Title: Kids Read and Write Japanese Haiku Poetry
Author: V A Rivera
Publisher: Telemachus Press, LLC
ISBN: 978-1965121245
Pages: 24
Genre: Poetry / Instructional / Workbook / Children’s
Reviewer: Beth Adams
Pacific Book Review
The decades of teaching school shines through as author V A Rivera scrolls instructions of how to write Japanese Haiku Poetry especially for children, as well as to all who read this creative book.
The book opens with a simple explanation of the fundamentals of Japanese Haiku. It is a 3-line poem, with 5 syllables on the first line, 7 on the second, and 5 again on the third. The first two lines should describe a characteristic of nature or any subject, followed with the final line showcasing an emotion. Oh, and interestingly the lines do not need to rhyme. Sounds easy, right?
Here are two examples: (Title) Singing Bird Haiku / In the day’s morning / the sun shines golden and bright / as bird song warms us. Lost in Space / In the home of the / stars silence is everywhere / like a moon-lit night.
There you have it, clean and inspiring following the 5/7/5 syllable pattern. What makes this book even more inspiring are the wonderful photographs interleaved throughout the poetry, appropriate for each of the subjects and artfully placed. Thus paging this book makes for an enjoyable experience – and in one word: Fun!
Children are encouraged to spend time by themselves creating their own Haiku poems. In the Japanese tradition of admiring nature, having children conjure up their own Haiku will create an educational experience second to none. Tapping the concentration of wordsmithing by placing syllables together in a tightly unambiguous pattern, along with choosing the adjectives explaining human emotions, becomes a challenging exercise of creativity – something children strive to engage in.
Kids Read and Write Japanese Haiku Poetry is a must-have for all families with children, as well as being used as the foundation for youngsters’ school lessons. I can imagine kids bringing a notebook to a park to be inspired by what they see or just hanging out at home on a rainy day, writing and creating Haiku for all their friends and family to enjoy time and time again.
Author and teacher V A Rivera has assembled a short lesson by first defining the format for Japanese Haiku, providing examples including inspiring photographs, followed by the perfect encouragement for readers to take what they have learned and go on to create their own works of word-art. This warm and inviting book empowers young writers to find their voice and discover the joy of poetry. This is an amazing book which is highly recommended.
