Summary: Yum! İMmMm! İQué rico!: America’s Sproutings is a book of haiku poetry written by Pat Mora with beautiful pictures by Rafael López. Each haiku poem is about a food that is native to Central and South America. In addition to the haiku poems contained within the book, Mrs. Mora has written information about the origins of each food.
Quality: Throughout this book, the sensory images run rampant. Mrs. Mora uses the language of her poetry to evoke the reader’s senses throughout the book. The illustrations grab the reader with beautiful, simple pictures in vibrant colors. Each illustration perfectly fits with the poem and the description being given of the food item. Mrs. Mora continues the appeal to the reader’s sense of smell, taste and touch by the words she chooses. Here are some examples of the sensory language for each food:
Chile - Dad “laughs when tears fill his eyes”
Chocolate - “brown magic melts on your tongue”
Peanut - “smear nutty butter”
Pineapple - “a stiff, spiky hat on thick prickly skin”
Tomato - “squirts seedy, juicy splatter”
The foods showcased in this book are ones that are likely familiar to the reader. In the seventeen short syllables of a haiku poem, Mrs. Mora manages to perfectly describe the food and illicit fond memories for the reader. In addition to the poems, Mrs. Mora provides a paragraph about each food’s origin and history that is well researched as indicated in the front of the book where Mrs. Mora lists her sources of information for the book. The poems and information provided in the book are consistent in quality throughout.
There is no table of contents, index or topical headings to direct the reader; however, the poems appear in alphabetical order of the foods described.
Appeal: I believe this book will appeal to children and teachers alike. Children will like the vibrant color and the simplicity of a haiku poems. Most children will be familiar with the foods of this book. Some foods may be a bit unfamiliar, such as papaya and vanilla. The addition the descriptive paragraph to go along with each poem, will extend and enrich a student’s knowledge of each food item. The language used by Mrs. Mora is simplistic enough to allow this book to be used with even young children. The sensory language will stimulate the emotions of the reader. I can see teachers using this book for classroom lessons and students using this for specific research projects as well as non-structured learning.
My favorite: It is so hard to pick a favorite. I have several and I will say that I can’t imagine these poems without the illustrations. They bring the poems to life. I chose the poem “Cranberry” to list in this review as my favorite because even without the illustrations, Mrs. Mora’s words create all the imagery needed.
“Cranberry”
Marsh-floating hard bead
Simmers then POPS! In hot pot.
References:
Mora, Pat. 2007. Yum! İMmMm! İQué rico!: America’s Sproutings. Ill. Rafael López. New York, N.Y.: Lee & Low Books, Inc. ISBN: 978-1-58430-271-1
Scarlet fireworks.
Use: Because this book has three clear sections to it: the haiku poems, the illustrations and the paragraph describing the subject of the haiku, I can see using this book for a collaborative lesson with a librarian, an English teacher and an Art teacher. The librarian could read the book in the library and have students chose various topics to write a haiku about. The English teacher could then have the students do research about the topic of their haiku poem. The art teacher could have students provide the illustration. All items could come together to create a class book to be displayed during poetry month in April.
References:
Mora, Pat. 2007. Yum! İMmMm! İQué rico!: America’s Sproutings. Ill. Rafael López. New York, N.Y.: Lee & Low Books, Inc. ISBN: 978-1-58430-271-1
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