The Bill Martin Jr Big Book of Poetry

The definitive anthology of children's poetry, collected by a beloved author.

"The almost 200 selections in this big handsome anthology, created by Martin Jr. and published posthumously with Sampson’s help, have a singing beat that will turn even young kids on to what Steven Kellogg calls the 'music of language.' The collection brings together poems from Robert Frost, Christina Rossetti, Langston Hughes, Nikki Grimes, Aliki, Jack Prelutsky, and many other well-known poets. Accompanying the poems are pictures from many of the best picture-book illustrators, whose work, often in the artists’ signature styles, extends the words' lyrical rhythms and playfulness. The pages are spaciously designed and organized into thematic sections, such as animals, people and places, school, nonsense, family, and feelings, closing with a big final group of Mother Goose rhymes. This is a great gift book as well as a strong library and classroom anthology for browsing and reading aloud. Adults, in particular, will enjoy Eric Carle’s moving introduction." - Booklist 

"This grand and varied anthology contains an impressive number of old favorites and newer selections. Grouped by theme, such as animals, nature, feelings, school, family, and nonsense, the poems represent an appealing range of humor, pathos, and meditative wonder." - School Library Journal

Years in the making, this full-color treasury contains nearly two hundred poems, all of them handpicked by Bill Martin Jr. Traditional children's poems are presented alongside contemporary pieces, and the collection is capped off with tributes by Eric Carle and Steven Kellogg, two of Bill Martin Jr's best-known collaborators. This essential compilation also features original illustrations by award-winning artists, including Ashley Bryan, Lois Ehlert, Steven Kellogg, Chris Raschka, Dan Yaccarino, Nancy Tafuri, and Derek Anderson. This beautiful anthology is sure to become a classic.