Mora, Pat. Yum! ¡MmMm! ¡Qué Rico! America’s Sproutings. Rafael Lόpez. New
York: Lee & Low Books, 2007. ISBN 978-1-58430-271-1.
Poetic Elements: Sensory images abound in this book allowing
the reader to see, smell, hear, taste and feel throughout. The deliberate shortness of the poems is
modeled after the Japanese origin of poetry called haiku, where syllables of
words are counted, making three concise lines of poetry which resemble a 5-7-5
syllable pattern. Onomatopoeia begins
with the book’s title and continues inside.
Unique adjective choices persist, while metaphors are also present. For
example, in the poem “Potato” the
last line reads “Salt and pepper clouds,” which compares mashed potatoes to the
appearance and look of clouds in the sky.
Assonance is mimicked in the second line of the poem “Pineapple” as it reads, “on thick
prickly skin, inside.” Imagery appears
in the poem “Cranberry” when it
describes “Scarlet fireworks” to the look of when a cranberry has simmered and
the heat finally bursts the berry open. The
assortment of poetic elements used throughout the book in various ways is sure
to keep the reader addicted.
Appeal: The short and concise poems in this
book will appeal to young people, especially reluctant readers who are time
conscious of how long a book will take to read.
The distraction of looking at the multiple effects offered for each
selection (poem, information block, and illustrations), will draw the attention
of students. The familiarities involved
with recognizing the foods mentioned with the extra added nonfiction feature
about the food, will enrich one’s knowledge and stimulate inquisitiveness. Lingual enthusiasts are sure to sharpen some
vocabulary and will most likely find themselves counting out the syllables per
line to make sure each poem is only 17 syllables long. Recognizing a few Spanish words, particularly
in the title and scattered throughout various poems, along with seeing the
cultural people in the pictures should convey the diversity among people and
the variety of foods we are blessed to encounter living in America.
Overall Quality: The poems in this book are definitely
suitable for young people to read and listen to. Because of the style in which they are
presented, haiku, they are short and to the point! Each poem describes a different food with
distinguished tastes. They are eaten in America and have been nourished by the
Mother Earth. The balance for each
spread offers a poem written in haiku, includes a small passage of explanation
about the food’s origin, and is accompanied by very cheerful pictures of that
food being eaten. Mora has consulted
various books, dictionaries, and Internet sources for the foods she has written
about and admits that some foods chosen have multiple ideas of origin and
history, but has condensed the information to the best of her ability. The formatting of each poem is unified
throughout. The design and organization
of the book is short and compact. The
illustrations created by Rafael Lόpez are rendered in acrylic on wood panels
and give life and humor to each poem. I
would definitely read more books by Mora because of her talent in writing
poetry and ability to weave a multicultural facet. Using occasional words written in Spanish
like la cocina, los dulces, and qué rico
help flavor the bilingual perspective that her life has been immersed in which
allows the reader to indirectly catch that spirit of pride. Mora also has a flair for creating original
poetry and imparting nonfiction information into her arrangements.
The Poets: Pat Mora has written the collection of
haiku poems in this book. This is her
very first book of haiku to write. It is
an anthology that focuses on the indigenous foods of the Americas and their
origin. Mora is an award winning author
for writing children’s picture books, nonfiction, and poetry and is
characteristically known for mingling Spanish words into mostly English written
poems which emphasize many of her cultural life experiences. In 1996, Mora founded Día which is a daily
commitment to unite children to books, languages, and cultures. It is
celebrated annually across the country around April 30. Mora’s
website can be viewed at http://www.patmora.com
Layout: This book was released in print 5
years ago, and I would consider it to be current in content because it
discusses foods that are eaten in America.
The award winning Pat Mora is the only poet represented in the
book. She has included 14 poems that
each represents a typical food eaten in America. The double page spreads also contain
nonfiction paragraphs which explain the food’s origin. The poems are appropriately placed around the
bright and vibrant illustrations, and are written in haiku, a three line syllable
pattern of 5-7-5. Neither a table of
contents nor an index exists for this book.
Mora has written a note on the last page to her readers explaining why
she decided to write this book.
Spotlight Poem: This book would be a fun way for students to
practice using prior knowledge, making connections, and drawing
conclusions. As the teacher, I would
orient students by telling them that we will be playing a game where they have
to listen to a poem and connect the words they hear to possible prior knowledge
they may have about the particular food being written about and make a
prediction on what food is being described.
I would give them a hint that they are all foods that we eat in America,
but most likely originated elsewhere.
Depending on the group of kids, would depend on if I split the class up
in teams, in half or as individuals to play this guessing game. After subtly reading each of the 14 poems and
allowing the students’ time to guess, I would then gather the students together
to share the book Yum! ¡MmMm!
¡Qué Rico! America’s Sproutings and reveal the various foods that went with
each poem. This could ultimately be a
round-a-bout way for introducing students to the poetry form called Haiku.
“Blueberry” by Pat Mora
Fill your mouth with blue.
Share a bowl heaped with summer.
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