As April is National Poetry Month, I’m highlighting a book each week, rather than only a poem, in the hopes that you will find some new sources of poetry treasures to feast on.
I’m dusty Bill
from Vinegar Hill
Never had a bath
and never will.
****
Diddlety, diddlety, dumpty,
the cat ran up the plum tree;
Half a crown
to fetch her down,
diddlety, diddlety, dumpty.
These are two lesser-known ditties among the sixty-plus nursery rhymes in Salley Mavor’s Pocketful of Posies: A Treasury of Nursery Rhymes. The rhymes in this collection are as old as ever, and just listen to the waltzing and fox-trotting of those delicious words! Very young children really
miss out if not introduced to the delights of rhythm and wordplay through our age-old rhymes. Preschoolers feel deeply the happiness that comes from knowing-by-heart and reciting these tiny poems.
And…wow! Salley Mavor has lavishly illustrated this collection with absolutely jaw-dropping textile art. Oh my dear goodness!!! Every page is like a new enchanting world. All of the pieces are hand stitched using naturally-dyed wool felt. The colors of fabric and thread are exquisite; the variety of stitches creating patterns and tendrils and vines, strewing flowers upon tiny pinafores and rising in nubbly wool on a lamb…un-be-liev-a-ble! Each little doll is hand crafted with little wooden heads, floss hair, heartachingly-charming clothing, some wearing acorn caps or dainty bonnets. There are sheep and cows, babies and buggies, cobblers and pie-makers — all three-dimensional. Tucked into the scenes as well are tiny treasures Mavor has collected — a teensy seashell, glinting beads, driftwood roofs, a bit of wood for a fishing pole.
I am gobsmacked, pure and simple! Every scene is a gift of beauty and creativity for us to pore over and marvel over. What a feast for the imagination! Thank you Salley, for the years of time and dedication to your art form that you poured into this.
You can see more of this amazing artist’s work at her website here.
And read a 2010 interview (that’s when this book was published), plus see beautiful details of her work at Seven Impossible Things.
I’ve just begun participating in Poetry Friday Round-Up which is a collection of poetry-saturated blog posts by children’s literature bloggers, pulled together each Friday. Their creativity is truly amazing. If you want ideas for poetry in your homes or classrooms, be sure to check out this week’s round-up here.
And another blog-friend of mine, always bursting with fresh, creative posts on children’s lit and yummy food, is working on a round-up for the whole month of April. That link is here.
And here’s the Amazon link for the book: Pocketful of Posies: A Treasury of Nursery Rhymes
Salley Mavor is one of my all-time favorite artists. I love this book! The poems are timeless and every inch of her illustrations brings delight! I find myself picking this book up to enjoy even when there are no children around!
It fairly screamed “Julie Steller!” when I picked it up 🙂 Have you visited her website? Oh my…
“Jaw-dropping” and “enchanting” are right – thanks for sharing this magic here today. Happy Poetry Month!
Thanks for welcoming me into the Poetry Friday world! So much inspiration in just one round-up!
So happy you’ve decided to join the Poetry Friday gang, Jill. Salley Mavor’s work is truly amazing. Love this book; it makes a nice gift for adults as well as kids :).
I’m glad you came back! This book looks A-Mazing!!
Wonderful. As I read yesterday’s Poetry Friday posts, I’m getting lots of reminders of how much creativity there in this world.
Thank you Jill, for featuring my book on your blog. I love the way you describe my artwork! I hope that you have a chance to see the original embroidered illustrations, which are touring the country. Right now, they are being exhibited in California and Illinois. I’ve recently decided to continue the traveling exhibit beyond 2013, so more venues will be added to the schedule on my website.
Oh, thank you for stopping by! I would love to see the traveling exhibit. My daughter and I checked the schedule and thought the Illinois site was a bit far for us, but we’ll keep checking your updated schedule. Your self-portrait in fashion is brilliant, by the way.
Jill, I adore this book. The illustrations are just so gorgeous!!! BTW, you have won a Lulu book by Hilary McKay in my blog interview drawing from last week. Please send me your address to pass on to the publisher – cloudscomeATgmailDOTcom
Andromeda, this is such fun news on a gray, slushy day here in the Twin Cities! Thanks for extending the Lulu love towards me!