Here’s a video of me reciting the title poem from my book, My Cat Knows Karate. This new book has a number of poems about pets, animals, and sports, and this poem brings all three ideas together into a single poem.
I have always liked the idea of animals doing sports. So much so that I wrote an entire book of poems about it, The Tighty-Whitey Spider. And, if you like this poem, you might also enjoy my poem, “My Puppy Punched Me in the Eye” from my book My Hippo Has the Hiccups.
I’m very excited to announce the publication of my newest book, My Cat Knows Karate. This collection includes seventy new poems about goofy gadgets, kooky characters, funny families, absurd situations. Beautifully illustrated by Rafael Domingos, My Cat Knows Karate is chock-full of the ridiculous rhymes, wacky wordplay, preposterous punchlines, and guaranteed giggles that kids love to read.
My Cat Knows Karate is available now from Amazon.com in both paperback and Kindle formats. The book should be available from other booksellers, including Barnes & Noble and your local independent bookseller in about a week.
Sometimes when you’re writing a rhyming poem, you may want to include a word or phrase that rhymes with itself, such as itsy-bitsy or super-duper. Also called “close rhymes,” these are what are known as “reduplicated” words or phrases. “Reduplication” is the term for words or phrases that are created by repeating sounds. Here is a list of rhyming reduplicated words and phrases that may come in handy to you sometime.
Some reduplicated words and phrases don’t quite rhyme because they contain different vowel sounds, such as ping-pong or zigzag. Technically, these are known as “ablaut reduplications.” Here is a list of reduplicated words and phrases that don’t rhyme.
On September 21, 2016, I did a poetry reading for a small group at Barnes & Noble in Spokane, Washington as part of a local program called “Poetry Rising.” I read a poem from each of my books, including my new anthology, One Minute Till Bedtime.
The folks at Poetry Rising were kind enough to send me this video of the event.
“Your presentation was the best we have ever had.”
“You by far surpassed our expectations.”
“Our students are still buzzing about it! The enthusiasm you generated is phenomonal!”
These are just a few comments from schools who have had me visit with their students. If you are considering having an author visit your school, I would love the opportunity to get your students excited about reading and writing.
My school visit calendar is filling up for the spring, but I still have dates available for an author visit to your school, whether in-person or online.
I will be visiting the following cities this spring and still have open days:
If your school is interested in booking an author visit during one of these trips, or any other week this school year, please contact me by filling out the information request form on this page.
You will find my calendar online here. Any dates not otherwise marked are probably available.
I look forward to hearing from you.
I’m thrilled to announce the release of my newest book, One Minute Till Bedtime. This is the first anthology that I have put together, and it has already received starred reviews from Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, and School Library Journal, plus it has been selected by Publishers Weekly as a Best Book of 2016.
One Minute Till Bedtime contains over 140 brand-new poems from more than 130 poets from around the world, including such luminaries as Jack Prelutsky, Jane Yolen, Jon Scieszka, Joyce Sidman, Judith Viorst, Lemony Snicket, Marilyn Singer, Nikki Grimes, and many, many others. Each of the poems in this collection–all perfect for bedtime–can be read in about a minute. With seven sections, each with roughly twenty poems, One Minute Till Bedtime holds a full week of 20-minute sleepytime readings.
The beautiful hardcover book is whimsically illustrated by the incomparable Christoph Niemann, whose witty, minimalist drawings compliment and enhance the poems, giving readers even more to ponder as they get ready to dream.
One Minute Till Bedtime is now available in the US wherever books are sold, including:
It is also available for purchase now in Australia:
In the UK, it will be available on December 8, 2016:
I hope you had a wonderful summer and are settling into the new school year nicely. With the 2016-17 school year underway, I’m now booking school author visits, both in-person and online.
If your school is looking for a way to inspire your kids to want to read and write, my high-energy poetry writing programs are just the ticket. You don’t need to take my word for it, though. Click here to see what other schools have said about my visits.
You don’t need to wait for me to be in your area to book a visit. I cap my travel expenses, regardless of what it costs me to get there, so it won’t cost you extra if you are the first school in your area to book a visit.
However, here are some of the places I’m already scheduled to be this school year. I still have dates available each of these weeks.
You can view my full event calendar here. Any dates not otherwise marked are probably available for a visit to your school.
For more information about my programs and fees, simply fill out this form and I will contact you with further details. I look forward to hearing from you!
Next Wednesday, September 21, 2016, I will be performing live at the Barnes & Noble in the Northtown Mall in Spokane, Washington at 6:30pm. This event is free and open to the public. If you are in the area, please join me, along with musician Carlton Oakes and poet Merideth Jeffries for a fun evening of poetry and music.
I will be reading from several of my books, including The Biggest Burp Ever, Revenge of the Lunch Ladies, and my forthcoming anthology, One Minute Till Bedtime. Books will be available for purchase, and I will be signing them after the performances.
This program is produced by Stephen Pitters, host of the Spokane Open Poetry Program on KYRS 92.3 FM, Thin Air Commuity Radio.
Poetry4kids has had “Poems by Category” for a few years now, but I recently added a brand new category: Songs. If you like poems that are intended to be sung to popular tunes such as “The Itsy-Bitsy Spider,” “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” or “Frere Jacques,” — what my friend Alan Katz calls “Silly-Dilly Songs” — you’ll want to check out this new section on Poetry4kids.com to find them all in one place.
And, of course, you can see all of the categories, including sports poems, monster poems, school poems, and even funny love poems on the Poems by Topic page.
Psst! Want to read a funny book? You can preview the Kindle edition of my book The Biggest Burp Ever by clicking on Preview button below. Happy reading!
