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Friday, October 18, 2024

2 THINGS I LEARNED & CANT WAIT TO SHARE!

Howdy Campers, and Happy Poetry Friday! (The link to PF is below)

I'm starting off our final topic of the year: 
Something New I Learned and Can't Wait to Share 

Sadie learns something new: TV!

There are soooo many things I'd love to share!
But lucky, lucky you, 
I can't remember all of them,
so I'll just offer two.

#1: This Splendid Blog Came Knocking at my Door...

Many of you probably already know this one...it's a blog! it's a newsletter! it's a splendid picture book/poetry/gift resource and more!)

I'm talking about Orange Marmalade Books ~ with the tagline: spreading the word on delightful children's literature  

And who's the wonderful writer behind the curtain?  Her name is Jill Swanson (though I think of her as Ms Marmalade.)

Jill's October 14th post, "Five for Autumn's Splendor" introduces us to the beauty of picture books that celebrate fall, including Buffy Silverman's On a Gold-Blooming Day: Finding Fall Treasures  

I love that her posts are never too long to read on a busy day, and I love that they're always full of the illustrations of the picture books she's introducing us to...such as this illustration from Buffy's book:

If this photo is cut-off on your device,
the words on each picture are: 
Clouds rumble. Mushrooms Pop.
Raindrops Tumble. Acorns drop.

I also love that this blog shines its light on books that are hot off the press and those that have been around for a while. Good books shouldn't be lost in the shuffle, and Ms Marmalade sees that they aren't.

I like getting her blog as a newsletter, which comes every two weeks. If you haven't already, check it out!

#2: A Poet I've Just Discovered: Arthur Guiterman

This past weekend, our pup Sadie was overjoyed to be in the center of a circle of my folk music friends in our living room. Janet, who was tossing Sadie a ball, told me that when she was young, her family put this short poem on their dog's house:

MOTTO FOR A DOG
by Arthur Guiterman

I love this little house because
It offers, after dark, 
A pause for rest, a rest for paws,
A place to moor my bark.

Sadie prefers Kitty's bed to her own

Born in 1871, Arthur Guiterman was famous for his clever humor and quick language.  He wrote of technological advances and modern progress in poetry, novels and satires. He addressed the hypocrisy of the ladies of Daughters of the American Revolution and other similar organizations. Guiterman co-founded the Poetry Society of America in 1910. Guiterman was forever caught in the “now,” addressing the rapid and shocking evolution of society with humor and mental agility: "First dentistry was painless;/Then bicycles were chainless" as well as...“Now motor roads are dustless, The latest steel is rustless, Our tennis courts are sodless, Our new religions, godless.” ~ The information above, which I've shortened, is from this source.

In looking up Guiterman, I discovered that one of my fellow blogmates, JoAnn Early Macken, posted information about him in 2016 and shared the very poem you just read.😊 

In her post, JoAnn writes: "The last line always grabs me. I didn’t realize the double meaning at first: a bark is a kind of boat; of course, a dog’s bark would be moored (tied up) somewhere cozy and safe. And the pause/paws homonyms add to the poem’s genius." 

Thank you, Matt, for hosting Poetry Friday this week 
on Radio, Rhythm and Rhyme


posted with hope by April Halprin Wayland,
with help from Sadie's big sister, Kitty









24 comments:

  1. Another BRILLIANT TeachingAuthors post – and thanks for the intro to Arthur Guiterman's work!!

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    1. Thank you, Janet...it's strangely comforting that you didn't know about him, either.

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  2. I always learn something from you, April! And I love the dog poem. :-)

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  3. I'm glad you shared these things you've learned - now I need to learn more about Arthur Guiterman!

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    1. You, especially, will get a kick out of him, Matt ~ enjoy!

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  4. I'm a longtime Orange Marmalade reader and am happy you discovered Jill's blog! Guiterman, however, is new to me, so I enjoyed the introduction. I think Sadie needs a pillow if she's going to continue using the cat's bed . . .

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    1. Jama, dear Jama! Someday you and I and Jill are going to meet in 3D--won't that be a kick? I'll suggest a pillow to Sadie...who will say, "Sure!" and then she's merrily rip it to shreds

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  5. Thanks for the blog-rec, April -- I agree...there are enough fabulous "old" books out there that are well worth a blog post!

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    1. Hooray for keeping our shared memory of good books a live, Patricia. Thank you so much for stopping by.

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  6. April, it is wonderful that you shared books that were already out in the Kidlit world. We do need to cherish the books, like Buffy's because of their value to children. Motto For A Dog is a quick little poem with a message. The photo added to the poem.

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    1. SO nice to "see" you, Carol! (I've been absent from Poetry Friday for a while) Thanks for commenting <3

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  7. Thanks for the blog rec, April, & for the intro to Arthur Guiterman's work, both new to me, though if JoAnn wrote about it, I possible did read her post, but have forgotten? Great post!

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    1. Thank you, dear Linda B! You and I are on Team Forgetting. The upside to that is that everything is new and shiny--even if we saw it before.

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  8. I just lost myself in Orange Marmalade Books, such a wonderful blog. Thanks for sharing it with us. And do get Sadie a bed just like Kitty's with more space. My head hurts just looking at her.

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    1. Thanks for coming by, Ramona. Glad you're discovering it and enjoying it as much as I do. And believe me, we've tried getting her larger beds. Sadie ripped to shreds a really, really Sadie-sized EXPENSIVE dog bed. (I would have slept on it!) We had to get her a gorilla indestructible kind...not as soft, but so far she is sleeping on it rather than dining on it...whew!

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  9. This post puts me in a good mood. I feel my smile growing as I consider what a bark is. How fun.

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    1. Hello,Linda ~ I didn't know it had 2 meanings either. Short poem, big smile 😁

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  10. Thanks for the blog recommendation, April. I just signed up!

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  11. You've made my day, April! Thanks for highlighting Orange Marmalade Book's mention of GOLD-BLOOMING DAY--I did not know about this blog before. And my hound Dakota gives a four-paw applause for MOTTO FOR A DOG.

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  12. Sadie would love to play with Dakota, Buffy...and she says she loves that book🐕

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  13. I'm very very late to comment, April, but I wanted to come by and say that recently, when I was planning and "Applause for Apples" no-school-day poetry camp, I looked for Rosh Hashanah books and discovered yours! I didn't end up using that one (I needed more apples), but I enjoyed it so much, the structure and suspense of the atonement, and I hope it keeps giving back to you as it gives to readers each year. Thanks for the pointer to Ms. Marmalade, and I am SO happy to hear of Arthur Guiterman! I wonder if he knew Cole Porter?

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  14. Interesting to wonder if Arthur knew Cole, Heidi. And, wow...what an interesting camp you're offering. Sounds like you do it annually.
    I'm so glad you enjoyed my book...there's a whole story behind it, of course!

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