(excerpt)
Her given name was Patience.
Her schoolmates called her Pat.
In the garden on a stool
is where one day she sat.
What do we know about her?
Just this much, if you please:
She didn’t care for spiders,
but she did love cottage cheese.
Marilyn Singer
What’s A Banana?
(excerpt)
You can grip it
and unzip it.
Smash and mash it with a spoon.
You can trace it.
Outer-space it–
make believe that it’s the moon.
What’s An Apple?
(excerpt)
You can pick it.
You can kick it.
You can throw away the core.
You can toss it.
You can sauce it.
You can roll it on the floor.
How to Make up a Bedtime Story, According to a Children’s Author
Parents, relatives, babysitters: you know the deal. A bedtime story is a favorite part of most kids’ pre-sleep routines. But in order to capture a child’s imagination, as well as teach them a lesson without revving them up so much that they want to leap out from under the covers, requires one to follow a precise recipe.
Brooklyn-based writer, Marilyn Singer, understands the formula better than most. She’s the award-winning author of more than 100 children’s books including “Mirror Mirror,” “City Lullaby,” and the “Tallulah” series, and her books frequently appear on “best” lists by Time Magazine and The New York Times. Singer also provides advice for aspiring children’s books writers on her website. We spoke to Singer over email in order to get some basic bedtime story advice so that any intrepid parents out there who want to concoct some tales for their children and give bedtime a bit more of a personal touch.
Worlds Awaiting, BYU Radio Interview
Where does creative inspiration come from? Listen to Marilyn on BYU Radio’s “Worlds Awaiting” talk about her inspiration when creating a book. Known for touching on a variety of subjects – from animals to schools to aliens – she’s also invented a thing-a-ma-jig called a “reverso”poem. Marilyn is the winner of the 2015 National Council of Teachers of English Award for Excellence in Poetry. She has over 100 books to her credit. She’s also the creator of five picture books featuring Tallulah, a young ballet student.
Chicago Public Library’s Author of the Month
Stories
of
a magical world
created long ago.Created long ago,
a magical world
of
stories.
Flip your idea of poetry and Greek myths upside down with award-winning author, poet, inventor of reverso poetry and April’s Author of the Month, Marilyn Singer. In her third book of reverso poetry, Echo Echo, Singer breathes new life into 12 familiar myths of god, goddesses and mortals from ancient Greece.
Spotlight on Marilyn Singer on Today’s Little Ditty
Marilyn Singer is an award-winning author of over 100 fiction and nonfiction books for children and young adults, including poetry, picture books, and novels. She writes to satisfy her wide-ranging interests and has been recognized extensively for her work in multiple genres. In 2015, Marilyn joined a prestigious group of children’s poets as the latest recipient of the NCTE Excellence in Poetry for Children Award. Here, she describes her response to the news of receiving that distinguished award:
It’s the one award I really, really hoped to win someday. Poetry is and always has been my favorite thing to write. I feel deeply honored by the award—and by the company I’m in, which includes many of my favorite poets.
Language Arts, Volume 93, Number 1, September 2015, © 2015 NCTE
Interview with Poet Marilyn Singer on Poetry Tea Time
Welcome to our first Poetry Teatime Podcast!
I was honored to interview Marilyn Singer, award-winning poet and author. Marilyn and I met for the interview long distance—she, in her home in Brooklyn, and me, Julie, in a library in Cincinnati.
Unfortunately the library failed us, a bit. The Internet connection was variable throughout and you will notice that in the recording. Stay with it, though. The content is fabulous (delightful) and the sound improves. You will hear the cooing of her doves in the background at times, too. Enjoy!
Also, be sure to explore Marilyn’s wonderful books of poetry, including Mirror Mirror and its sequel Follow Follow! (affiliate links)
Echo Echo: Reverso Poems about Greek Myths
(excerpt)
An Age of Marvelous Myths
Ancient Greece:
An age of marvelous myths,
gone, but not forgotten.
Heroes that rise and fall.
Deep winter’s hardship,
summer’s harvest.
Gods who bring about
chaos and order.
Echoes,
fragrant flowers,
spiders,
gold,
stone.
People turned to
these curious stories.
How else to explain
such wonders
when the world was young?
***
When the world was young,
such wonders!
How else to explain
these curious stories:
people turned to
stone,
gold,
spiders,
fragrant flowers,
echoes.
Chaos and order.
Gods who bring about
summer’s harvest,
deep winter’s hardship.
Heroes that rise and fall,
gone, but not forgotten.
An age of marvelous myths:
Ancient Greece.