POEM DEPOT: AISLES OF SMILES by Douglas Florian

Current Poetry for Children

Florian, Douglas. 2014. POEM DEPOT: AISLES OF
SMILES. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers.
ISBN 9780803740426

The bestselling author of over fifty children's books, Douglas Florian, has written POEM DEPOT, a collection of hysterical poems. Organized into aisles, readers will find poems to tickle your ribs, with topics from alligators to Zero, and braces to windshield wipers. You can find a poem for every letter of the alphabet. Written in a style similar to Jack Prelutsky and Shel Silverstein, these 170 poems capture the humor of everyday life. 

The poems in POEM DEPOT vary in length, some only 4 lines, some longer. However, they are all short enough in length to be appealing to young readers. Every poem has a rhyme, but the rhyming patterns are different throughout the book. Florian uses a lot of word play in his poems, including similes, metaphors, and hyperboles. Each poem will bring giggles and laughter, but also open up the opportunity for classroom discussion and challenge students to think. 

The illustrations are drawn by Douglas Florian in dark, thick ink. Illustrations are on each page of the book, but are not overwhelming. Instead they add character and humor to the poems. Even though they are not in color, the boldness of the drawings make the reader pause and take in the pictures. 

The book includes a table of contents naming the title of each "aisle", or chapter. The poems are organized into aisles, such as "Tons of Puns" and "Jokes & Pokes & Funny Folks". At the back of the book, you will find two indexes. One index lists the titles of the poems, and the second index has the first line of each poem. 

Spotlight Poem

I'm So Hungry

I'm so hungry I could eat a horse,

And a moose, with a goose next course.

I'm so hungry I could eat Kentucky

And Rhode Island, Vermont, if I'm lucky.

I could eat the Earth with ease --

Except, of course, the peas, please. 

Classroom Activities

I'm So Hungry would be a great introduction to hyperboles. After reading, discuss what a hyperbole is, then have students write their own hyperboles. After writing a hyperbole, have students illustrate theirs similar to how Douglas Florian illustrates his poem. 

Teachers and librarians can find numerous poems in this compilation to introduce many topics throughout the school year. "Caterpillary" can be used to introduce a unit or science topic of life cycles. "In a Fog" can be used to teach idioms.