Book Review: A Stick is an Excellent Thing by Marilyn Singer

Bibliographic Citation:

Singer, Marilyn. 2012. A Stick is an Excellent Thing: Poems Celebrating Outdoor Play. New York, NY: Clarion Books. ISBN: 0547124937

Book Review:

Marilyn Singer is an author to over 90 books for children and young adults, with poetry being one of her most notable formats.  A Stick is an Excellent Thing is a newly published book about all of the activities that children do when outside. The book has a very nostalgic feeling to it, especially when talking about playing jacks and hide and go seek. All readers both young and old will take a walk down memory lane with this book and be able to make connections. This would be a great book to read right before summer break!

Each page has a different poem, highlighting a different outside activity. The words are randomly arranged on the page, which is very enticing for young readers. All of her poems follow a different patterns, which is fun for readers to distinguish the patterns in each poem.  Singer's rhyming poems are fun to read and easy for young readers to comprehend. The illustrations used in this book are a nice addition and have a vintage feel. The colors used throughout the book are very muted, but tie in well with the poems simple words. 

This is the perfect book if you are looking for an introductory poetry book. The rhymes are simple and easy to understand for all types of readers. A Stick is an Excellent Thing is a great book to read when your child can't think of anything fun to do outside! After reading this book, they will realize that the options are endless!

Spotlight Poem: 

A Stick is an Excellent Thing

A stick is an excellent thing. 
If you find the perfect one,
it's a scepter for a king. 
A stick is an excellent thing. 
It's a magic wand. It's yours to fling, 
to strum a fence, to draw the sun. 
A stick is an excellent thing
if you find the perfect one. 

Activity: 

A fun activity for this poem would be to bring a stick from outside and show it to the students. Then you can ask the students what this stick could be? For example: a spoon to stir imaginary soup or a pencil. Once the class has brainstormed other uses for this stick, read the poem aloud and have them visual the stick turning into those subjects. After reading the poem, the teacher or parent can ask the question again and see if they can come up with more uses of a stick when playing outside.