G3: Please Bury Me in the Library

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Lewis, J. Patrick. 2005. PLEASE BURY ME AT THE LIBRARY. Ill. by Kyle M. Stone. Orlando, FL: Gulliver Books (Harcourt). ISBN: 0-15-216387-5.

Although its title suggests that libraries would be the unifying idea in this book, its 16 poems focus instead on books and readers. With topics ranging from “reading” letters in alphabet soup to relating books to people, the lighthearted and sometimes nonsensical poems cover a number of facets of reading and readers. The first poem, “What If Books Had Different Names?” sets the tone here, with its silly list of alternative titles for well-known books, such as “The Emperor Had No Clues/Or Mary Had a Little Clam.” The final poem in the collection, “Ab-so-lu-tas-ti-cal,” pays homage to a variety of genres and connects them to animals in highly figurative lines that show how books transport readers to “ab-so-lu-tas-ti-cal” and mysterious places. The poems come in a variety of forms (haiku, acrostic, modified limerick) and rhyme schemes and are marked by their overall whimsy and word play.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
While younger emerging readers could have fun with some of the more approachable poems in this book with the help of adults or older siblings, many of the poems have subtle, deeper meanings that more accomplished readers might better appreciate. This dichotomy in approach makes for an uneven text, where readers may not necessarily know what to expect next even if they enjoyed the previous poem.

Although its poems constitute a mixture in accessibility and interest level, the acrylic illustrations provide a unifying force. Rendered in colors that reflect the tone of the individual poems, they depict imaginary settings with children, insects and animals somehow interacting with books. Readers see Otto the Flea writing by the sprinkled light of a firefly, a boy with a large gaping mouth eating from a huge bowl of alphabet soup with bobbing letters and carrots, a rabbit reading while comfortably ensconced among books on library shelves, and a young girl zooming into a night sky on a paper airplane. In all of the illustrations, reality takes a back seat to an almost childlike imagination. (Yes, that is a monster behind the bed, and, no, Elaine will not look up from her book long enough to realize she’s holding Godzilla’s hand.)

As for the poems themselves, they can almost be divided by difficulty level. “What If Books Had Different Names?” “Please Bury Me in the Library,” “The Big-Word Girl,” “Reading in the Dark,” “Three Haiku,” and “Ab-so-lu-tas-ti-cal” are the more difficult poems in the book, requiring an ability on the reader’s part to have a wide knowledge of literature, to think figuratively or to understand deeper level puns and word plays. “Epitaph for a/Devoted Lifelong Reader--/Thank you for the plot” (one of the haiku) and “Please bury me in the library/With a dozen long-stemmed proses” exemplify both the prior knowledge and vocabulary sophistication required of readers to understand Lewis’s more abstract poems.

Even shorter and “simpler” poems, such as “Flea-ting Fame” discussing Otto the Flea’s life work (writing his “Ottobiography”) and “Great, Good, Bad” focusing on three different types of book (“A great book is a homing device/For navigating paradise) still force readers to have either a “Did I get it?” moment or to spend time imagining what Lewis meant by a particular image. Readers in upper elementary and middle school may be better suited to understand the poems on a deeper level.

Regardless of age, all readers will appreciate “Necessary Gardens,” “A Classic,” “Summer Reading at the Beach,” “Conversation on a Leaf,” and “Are You a Book Person?” for their more straightforward looks at different aspects of books. (“Great, Good, Bad” also falls more into this category, once everyone understands the vocabulary.) In these poems, Lewis minimizes his punning and plays on words to deliver a clear message of how books are common to all of us. Readers can find everyone of every generation sharing through books and reading. Books can bridge whatever differences we might have by “capturing,” “amusing” and “lighting a fire.” (“Are You a Book Person?”) “Necessary Gardens” and the title poem serve as reminders of the importance of libraries at “growing excitement” through books.

If readers are looking for a mismatched collection built around mostly related concepts and themes, PLEASE BURY ME AT THE LIBRARY could suit them. Those desiring of a set of unified poems about experiences in and around libraries would have to look elsewhere. The reviews and Amazon.com suggest this as a book for readers ranging from ages four to ten, but that would be a stretch due to the varying levels of difficulties of the poems.

REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
--A semi-swell collection of 16 poems celebrating books, reading, language, and libraries…The thickly applied acrylic paint and mixed-media illustrations are sometimes reminiscent of the work of David Shannon, with a comically grotesque air, and add comprehension to the verses.
(SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, June 2005)
--Despite its clever title, Lewis (ARITHME-TICKLE) and Stone's combination of sentimental rhymes and at times ghoulish whimsy creates a volume of poetry about reading that may leave bookworms with a bit of indigestion. (PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY, March 2005)
--It will take children older than the preschool crowd to appreciate the wordplay, which on occasion is quite sophisticated. (Lewis credits Lear, Carroll, and X. J Kennedy as his inspirations.)…the acrylic and mixed-media artwork adds whimsy to the words. (BOOKLIST, February 2005)

CONNECTIONS
--The illustrations along with the poems could be used during visual arts classes from late elementary to high school to show how to illustrate important sections of poems.
--Many of the more complex poems could be used to initiate a variety of lessons on poetry for language and rhythm, as well as for writing prompts for many different levels. (For example, “What does a book mean to you?” or “Create your own acrostic poem for the word ‘Library’.”)
--Other books by J. Patrick Lewis for younger and older readers:
THE HOUSE. ISBN: 978-1568462011
THE UNDERWEAR SALESMAN: AND OTHER JOBS FOR BETTER OR VERSE. ISBN: 978-0689853258
COUNTDOWN TO SUMMER: A POEM FOR EVERY DAY OF THE SCHOOL YEAR. ISBN: 978-0316020909
--Other books on poetry and reading, which may be better suited to elementary school students:
GOOD BOOKS, GOOD TIMES! Lee Bennett Hopkins. ISBN: 978-0064462228
WONDERFUL WORDS: POEMS ABOUT READING, WRITING, SPEAKING AND LISTENING. Lee Bennett Hopkins. ISBN: 978-0689835889