Poem Runs: Baseball Poems and Paintings

Florian gives readers a tour of the baseball diamond, focusing mostly on the various positions on the field, in upbeat poems that exude a bravado and competitive spirit that's perfect for the subject matter. The poems accompany naif, chalklike mixed-media artwork that uses watercolors, pastels, and (appropriately enough) pine tar on a canvas of paper bags; Florian exaggerates the players' physicality, as they bend, leap, and swing, their limbs stretching across the spreads. Cockiness and comedy intertwine throughout: "Our slugger can zing/ Each pitch you may hurl./ And one other thing: / Our slugger's a girl," Florian writes, as the batter bares her teeth and gets ready to swing at the ball, which is shown in tatters on the following spread ("Crash it/. Mash it./ Hit it./ Spit it./ Been there./ Did it"). Much like her hit, this one's a blast. Ages 6-9. (Apr.)

Gr 2-6--Both sports enthusiasts and Florian fans will welcome this collection. Most of the 15 short selections are written from the point of view of children playing different positions on the team. Many of the images are stereotypical but amusing, like the right fielder who spends her time picking daisies and the slugger who is a girl. All of the poems are written in short, clipped, rhyming lines that give the book a sense of energy and rhythm. "I can catch curve balls./I can catch heat./I can catch sliders/With glove or with feet." The poems are printed, one to a spread, in legible white font against dark backgrounds. Some of them have creative typesetting, and the titles are set in a variety of hues. The colorful illustrations are done in different mediums, painted or drawn on paper bags. The stylized figures are distorted to suggest force and motion. The art has a childlike quality, looking as though it could be the work of the very player it represents. A great choice for sandlot players who just want to have fun.--Donna Cardon, Provo City Library, UT