a gust of ghosts

the reviews and a few poems from Pumpkin Butterfly

ALA Booklist:

“Heaven might be this / dark and wet and dangerous.” The excitement of the natural world, from a thrilling lightning storm to butterflies “untethered from earth,” is a child’s joyful discovery in this poetry collection. At home in his yard, the child enjoys playing with the falling leaves, “mounding and drifting and trickling and piling / curling and crumbling and blowing and flying.” The bright watercolor, oil, and tempera illustrations extend the metaphors, with delicately detailed images of petal-soft, tiny, pink, cherry-tree blossoms pedaling toward summer or the literal image of the young speaker’s hoarse throat (the horse may be thirsty for lemon and honey, “but if I feed him / he’ll whinny and fly away”). Far from any solemn reverential view of nature, the poems are filled with fun action that is always rooted in physicality, whether it is shooting a cherry pit missile out of the park (“spitwhistle summerfun home run”) or making frozen angels in the snow. ~ Hazel Rochman

Washington Parent:

Maryland poet Heidi Mordhorst begins her tribute to the seasons with poems rife with autumnal motifs:  pumpkins, the “rusted heat” of fallen leaves and, of course, “frisky whisky” squirrels. Mordhorst’s deft wordplay and carefully honed images cause us to look anew at the stuff of life, including a black cat that is a “howl-yowl queen of prowl,” a wintry sore throat called a “red dragon-horse” and the “pin-thin and brittle” shell of a spring egg. Jenny Reynish’s delicate watercolors capture the look and different moods of each of these 23 free-verse poems. This lyrical treat can be savored year-round, whether you’re curled up by a crackly fire or lounging beneath a summer tree.  ~ Mary Quattlebaum

Nikki Grimes, recipient of the 2006 NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children:

I love how these poems sing!  I love the playfulness of language (Most Realistic Costume Award!).  I love the unnamed riddles (Winged Solstice!).  I love the varying points-of-view you use to explore your subjects (Winter Linens!).  Your poems are joyful, and many of them take us places we haven't been before.  The art is a great match, too.  Brava!