Author: Amy Ludwig Vanderwater
Illustrator: Ryan O'Rourke
Genre: Picture Book Poetry Collection
Target Ages: 5-9
Prime Audience: Kids Who Love to Read and Who Enjoy Poetry
Publisher: Wordsong
Publication Year: 2017
Read! Read! Read! is a poetic celebration of all the things we read— novels, cereal boxes, newspapers, maps, greeting cards, and more. While most of Vanderwater's poems aren't technically formal and don't follow set rhyme schemes, there are rhymes to find in each, which give them a curious unpredictability. O'Rourke's colorful and imaginative illustrations pair well with Vanderwater's words. Add in a few references to classic children's literature, and Read! Read! Read! is a pleasant contemplation about the words we read and their power.
Readers who read, read, read this book will appreciate again those combinations of words that take them to other worlds, keep them informed, and teach them about life. Now I need to read their 2020 follow-up book, Write! Write! Write!
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