This is a good time to introduce new poetry books. Take a look at these offerings and come by to check out these and other books to help you celebrate poetry in your home or classroom. Award winning poet Joyce Sidman gives these reasons for reading poetry:
1. Capture the moment.
2. Choosing joy.
3. Easing the heart.
4. Everything is connected
To read more about her rational follow this link:
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/slj/newsletters/newsletterbucketextrahelping2/893901-477/why_i_write_poetry_a.html.csp

Never Forgotten, illustrated by the incomparable team of Leo and Diane Dillon, this story is spoken by the Griot (African storyteller) whose words have the rhythm of drum beats. In lyrical verse, it tells of Dinga the blacksmith whose wife dies leaving him to raise their son Musafa. Elements of folklore weave through the story as Earth Mother, Fire Woman, Water Maiden and Wind Spirit nourish and seek to protect the boy when he is kidnapped by slave traders. The spirits follow Musafa across the Middle Passage to find him enslaved and working as a blacksmith like his father before him. This message returns to Dinga who celebrates "With the Mother Elements by his side, Celebrating the son who was taken, But never forgotten."  The Griot reminds us that Musafa was one of millions.  Patricia McKissack gives voice to the taken and the left behind.

Peaceful Pieces: Poems and Quilts About Peace explores the meaning of peace."Can peace creep up on us, seep into our souls, or do we have to search it out, coax it, give it space?" Anna Hines explores the subject of peace at home, in the world and within one's self. Each evocative poem is illustrated with handmade story quilts.

In Amazing Faces, Lee Bennett Hopkins has collected a multicultural array of people who reveal the universal emotions we all share.  Whether happiness, sadness, excitement or pride, these feelings express the experiences that make us human and let us make connections to others. "A young soldier returns home-----keeping miles of memories sealed within     One heartbreaking boyish grin."

Haiku at its most fun.  Throughout the seasons, boys frolic and play. In winter “Two splotches of white / on a black tree trunk. I aim / my next pitch—strike three!” 
Bob Raczka captures moments in nature complemented by Peter Reynold's delightful cartoons in which each seasons is depicted in a single hue.

Dear Hotdog by Mordicai Gerstein celebrates ordinary things from toes to toothbrushes. Three children spend their day; they play, eat, and enjoy everyday things. Illustrated by the author, these are poems in which young readers will see themselves.  "Leaves" tells us, "In spring, yellow-green and tiny, you pop out and dress big trees in baby clothes."

Step Gently Out--this title is good advice for being mindful of the beauty in the smallest creature. The stunning close-up photography of Rick Lieder reveals the lattice of a damselfly wing or lets you share the dew sparkling web with a spider.  Helen Frost leads you on this journey of discovery with her words, "In song and dance and stillness, they share the world with you."
Watch her world below.

I Lay My Stitches Down by Cynthia Grady is a moving tribute to the African American spirit. She says this in the introductory page, "Quiltmaking and poetry share similarities in craft.  In one, color and shape are organized into an overall pattern; in the other, sound and structure create the pattern, Each poem...is named for a traditional quilt block and reflects a metaphorical patchwork of circumstances encountered by enslaved people in America."

Meet an author in these upcoming Bay Area events!

Who: Gayle Forman, Nina LaCour, Stephanie Perkins, and Jess Rothenberg
Where: Kepler's
1010 El Camino Real
Menlo Park, California
When: April 18th, 2012 7:00pm
What: (from the site's description)
"YA Extravaganza: Gayle Forman, Nina LaCour, Stephanie Perkins, and Jess Rothenberg
Moderated by Heidi R. Kling
Don't miss this evening full of fun, fashion, romance, road trips, and heartbreak with some of YA's most exciting writers of contemporary fiction."
More: http://www.keplers.com/event/ya-extravaganza-gayle-forman-nina-lacour-stephanie-perkins-jess-rothenberg

Who: Anne Nesbet, Jenny Lundquist, and Jenn Reese
Where: Mrs. Dalloway's Literary & Garden Arts
2904 College Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94705
When: April 20th, 7:00pm
What: (from the site's description)
"For Kids! Anne Nesbet, Jenny Lundquist & Jenn Reeseread from The Cabinet of Earths (HarperCollins, $16.99),Seeing Cinderella (Aladdin, $6.99), and Above World(Candlewick, $16.99), respectively."
More: http://www.mrsdalloways.com/events/kids-anne-nesbet-jenny-lundquist-jenn-reese

Who: Gianna Mariano
Where: Book Passage
51 Tamal Vista Blvd
Corte Madera, California 94925
When: April 20th, 2012 10:00am
What: (from the site's description)
"Gianna Marino talks about Meet Me at the Moon ($16.99). When Mama Elephant must leave Little One, the young elephant is worried. Who will care for Little One? Who will sing Mama’s special songs? When will she return? Mama is very reassuring —Little One will hear her song on the wind and feel her love in the warmth of the sun!"
More: http://bookpassage.com/event/gianna-marino-meet-me-moon

Who: Susan Katz
Where: Book Passage
51 Tamal Vista Blvd
Corte Madera, California 94925
When: April 21th, 2012 10:00am
What: (from the site's description)
"Susan Katz presents My Mama Earth($16.99). Watch the wonder experienced by a small boy as he journeys through the world, taking in the many gifts of nature. With a simple, lyrical narrative, Katz celebrates the three-way relationship between Mama Earth, a mother and a child, making this an intimate picture book to share with little ones."
More: http://bookpassage.com/event/susan-katz-my-mama-earth

Who: Sandra Feder
Where: Book Passage
51 Tamal Vista Blvd
Corte Madera, California 94925
When: April 21th, 2012 4:00pm
What: (from the site's description)
"Sandra Feder talks about Daisy’s Perfect Word ($14.95). Curly-haired Daisy loves words and compiles lists of her favorites in a notebook. When Daisy’s beloved teacher must move to another town, Daisy decides to give her the ultimate gift: the perfect word. But with so many good words to choose from, finding just the right one isn’t easy."
More: http://bookpassage.com/event/sandra-feder-daisy%E2%80%99s-perfect-word

Who: Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket), Maggie Stiefvater, and John Corey Whaley
Where: Book Passage
51 Tamal Vista Blvd
Corte Madera, California 94925
When: April 24th, 2012 7:00pm
What: (from the site's description)
"Daniel Handler is the author of the literary novels The Basic Eight, Watch Your Mouth, and, most recently, Adverbs. Under the name Lemony Snicket he has also written a sequence of books for children, known collectively as A Series of Unfortunate Events, which have sold more than 53 million copies. His intricate and witty writing style has won him numerous fans for his critically acclaimed literary work and his wildly successful children’s books. His newest book, with illustrations by Maira Kalman, is Why We Broke Up. It was named a 2012 Michael L. Printz Honor Book by the ALA.

Maggie Stiefvater is an artist, and musician and the New York Times bestselling author of The Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy. Her latest novel, The Scorpio Races, was also named a 2012 Michael L. Printz Honor Book by the ALA, a New York Times Notable Children’s Book, and The New York Times Book Review raved, “[Stiefvater] not only steps out of the young adult fantasy box with The Scorpio Races but crushes it with pounding hooves….If The Scorpio Races sounds like nothing you’ve ever read, that’s because it is.”
John Corey Whaley grew up in Springhill, Louisiana, where he learned to be sarcastic and to tell stories. He has a B.A. in English from Louisiana Tech University, as well as an M.A in Secondary English Education. He started writing stories about aliens and underwater civilizations when he was around ten, but now writes realistic YA fiction, including Where Things Come Back - which was given the 2012 Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature by the ALA. He is a very picky eater and has never been punched in the face. His favorite word is defenestration, which is the inspiration for his second book."
More: http://bookpassage.com/event/daniel-handler-maggie-stiefvater-john-corey-whaley-evening-young-adult-authors

Who: Rick Riordan
Where: Fox Theatre 
2215 Broadway St., Redwood City
When: April 18th, 2012 7:00pm
What: (from the site's description)
"GREAT NEWS! Rick Riordan is starting his tour for The Kane Chronicles: The Serpents Shadow right here in the Bay Area on Publication Day, May 1. We are SOOOO excited. Yes - he's b-a-a-ack!...This is a ticketed event; Tickets are available NOW at the Fox Theatre Box Office"More: http://www.keplers.com/event/youth-event-rick-riordan

A lot of people were eager to read The Hunger Games last month with the movie coming out.  It came in at the number one spot on most searched for terms.  Other popular series took the other spots for most searched for terms.  The top titles included two books from the popular comic series Amulet and one from the comic series Babymouse.  In fact, four of the top five titles were comics.  This trend is reflected in the areas with most circulations last month.  Comics take the top spot once more, followed by picture books and DVD's.