Reading Lists

Great Poetry Books for Kids Ages 8-10

Base, Graemw (JE BASE)                      
Eleventh Hour: A Curious Mystery                  
An elephant's eleventh birthday party is marked by eleven games preceding the banquet to be eaten at the eleventh hour; but when the time to eat arrives, the birthday feast has disappeared.  The reader is invited to guess the thief.

Begay, Shonto (JUV 811.54 BEGAY)
Navajo: Visions and Voices Across the Mesa   
A collection of Navajo poetry.

Feelings, Tom (JUV 811.508 SOUL)                     
Soul Looks Back in Wonder
Artwork and poems by such writers as Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, and Askia Toure portray the creativity, strength, and beauty of their African American heritage.

Fleischman, Paul (JUV 811.54 FLE)                       
Joyful Noises: Poems for Two Voices
A collection of poems describing the characteristics and activities of a variety of insects.

Florian, Douglas (JUV 811.54 FLORIAN)                      
Insectlopedia: Poems and Paintings
Presents twenty-one short poems about such insects as the inchworm, termite, cricket, and ladybug.

George, Kristine O’Connell (JUV 811.54 GEORGE)                              
Little Dog Poems
Short poems present a day in the life of a little dog and its owner.

Gerrard, Roy (JE GER)                         
Sir Cedric
Tiny Sir Cedric, bored with castle life, rides out on his faithful steed Walter, rescues a princess called Fat Matilda, and defeats the nasty villain Black Ned.

Gollub, Matthew (JUV 895.613 Gollub)                      
Cool Melons-Turn to Frogs!:  The Life and Poems of Issa
A biography and introduction to the work of the Japanese haiku poet whose love for nature finds expression in the more than thirty poems included in this book.

Greenfield, Eloise Ferguson (JUV 811 GRE)                      
Nathaniel Talking
Nathaniel B. Free is a spunky, spirited nine-year-old poet who raps and rhymes about his world.

Igus, Toyomi (JUV 780.899 IGUS)                        
I See the Rhythm
Chronicles and captures poetically the history, mood, and movement of African American music.

Larrick, Nancy (JUV 811.509 CAT)                     
Cats are Cats: Poems
A collection of thirty-six poems about all kinds of cats, from old grumbling cats to proud cats who sit tall, by poets including Eve Merriam, Jane Yolen, John Ciardi, and T. S. Eliot.

Lewis, Patrick (JUV 811 LEW)                       
Black Swan White Crow
A collection of nineteen haiku with themes from nature and the outdoors.

Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth (JUV 811.3 Longfellow)                       
Hiawatha’s Childhood
Describes in verse the boyhood of the legendary Iroquois Indian, Hiawatha.

Myers, Walter Dean (JE MYERS)                       
Harlem: A Poem
A collection of poems celebrating the people, sights, and sounds of Harlem.

Olaleye, Isaac (JUV 821 OLALEYE)                      
Distant Talking Drum: Poems from Nigeria
A collection of poems from Nigeria.

Prelutsky, Jack (JUV 811.54 PRELUTSKY)                      
New Kid on the Block: Poems
Humorous poems about such strange creatures and people as Baloney Belly Billy and the Gloopy Gloopers.

Prelutsky, Jack (JUV 811.54 PRELUTSKY)                      
Something Big has Been Here: Poems
An illustrated collection of humorous poems on a variety of topics.

Schertle, Alice (JUV 811.54 SCHERTLE)                       
Advice for a Frog
Presents a collection of poems about the toucan, fruit bat, pangolin, and other animals.

Service, Robert W. (JUV 811 SERVICE)                       
Cremation of Sam McGee
Constantly suffering from the cold, Sam makes his companion on the Arctic trail promise to cremate him when he dies, which the companion does--to his great surprise.

Silverstein, Shel (JUV 811.54 SILVERSTEIN)                      
Light in the Attic
A collection of huorous poems and drawings.

Stevenson, James (JUV 811.54 STEVENSON)                      
Popcorn: Poems
A collection of short poems with such titles as "Popcorn," "Driftwood," and "My new bird book."