{"id":23429,"date":"2014-02-03T22:48:09","date_gmt":"2014-02-04T02:48:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=23429"},"modified":"2014-02-03T22:48:09","modified_gmt":"2014-02-04T02:48:09","slug":"review-of-words-with-wings-by-nikki-grimes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=23429","title":{"rendered":"Review of Words with Wings, by Nikki Grimes"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Words with Wings<\/em><\/p>\n

by Nikki Grimes<\/p>\n

WordSong (Highlights), Honesdale, Pennsylvania, 2013. 84 pages.
\nStarred Review
\n2014 Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book<\/p>\n

Words with Wings<\/em> is a novel in verse about a girl who’s a daydreamer.<\/p>\n

Here’s the poem that shares its title with the book:<\/p>\n

Words with Wings<\/strong><\/p>\n

Some words
\nsit still on the page
\nholding a story steady.
\nThose words
\nnever get me into trouble.
\nBut other words have wings
\nthat wake my daydreams.
\nThey fly in,
\nsilent as sunrise,
\ntickle my imagination,
\nand carry my thoughts away.
\nI can’t help
\nbut buckle up
\nfor the ride!<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Some of the poems tell about Gabby’s life. Others tell about her daydreams. The daydream poems, imaginative and fun, usually start with the word that sets off the daydream. For example:<\/p>\n

Waterfall<\/strong><\/p>\n

Say “waterfall,”
\nand the dreary winter rain
\noutside my classroom window
\nturns to liquid thunder,
\npounding into a clear pool
\nmiles below,
\nand I can’t wait
\nto dive in.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

At the start of the book, Gabby’s parents split up and she has to move with her mother across town, and attend a new school. Once again, she’s known as the daydreamer. She has to deal with the other students teasing her and a new teacher trying to get her to pay attention and trying not to disappoint her mother. She has some nice victories in the book, and I love how she learns to value her own imagination.<\/p>\n

nikkigrimes.com<\/a>
\nwordsongpoetry.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Childrens_Fiction\/words_with_wings.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Source: This review is based on an Advance Reading Copy signed by the author, which I was given at an author lunch hosted by Highlights, at ALA Annual Conference.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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