Favorite Poetry for Young People 2009

I think it was a great year for poetry for young people with a tremendous variety of subject matter and format and heaps of quality and innovation. I wrote earlier about trends I observed this year and about the organizing thread of TIME in many poetry books this year, in particular. As a group, all the titles below offer a mini-library of what’s new and great about poetry for kids: in form, in format, in look, in impact, in humor, in emotional power, etc. There are so many wonderful works worthy of consideration and sure to hold up in repeated readings over and over again. Just $200 (app.) would buy this entire collection of my recommended list (for example) of some of the best poetry of 2009, a fabulous year’s worth of reading for all ages—adults included.

The list begins:

Argueta, Jorge. 2009. Sopa de frijoles/ Bean Soup. Ill. by Rafael Yockteng. Toronto, ON: Groundwood.

*It’s bilingual (Spanish/English), it’s a recipe, it’s poetry plus cooking full of metaphors and similes and beans.

For more details, get your copy of The Poetry Teacher’s Book of Lists.

And if you already have the book, but would like to suggest additions, corrections, or offer other input, please do so in the COMMENTS area. Thanks!