POETRY - The Poetry of US - Edited by J. Patrick Lewis -

More than 200 Poems That Celebrate the People, Places, and Passions of the United States
Illustrated by National Geographic Photographs 

2018, National Geographic

HC $24.99

192 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.67

My rating:  5
Endpapers:  BRIGHT yellow, almost a yellow orange

My comments:  Divided into sections of the U. S. (New England; Mid-Atlantic; Southeast; Midwest; Great Plains; Rocky Mountain West; Pacific Coast, and Territories) this gorgeously photographed book of poetry for kids is right-on and really fun!  I read this a couple of days after the shootings in Gilroy, CA and El Paso, TX, and there were poems about each of those places in here!  I really enjoyed reading them and discovering some new poets as well.  There are three separate indexes - by title, poet, and first line and a resource list.  A few new-to-me poems about places and things I care about follow after Goodreads synopsis.

Goodreads:  It's all about us! Join former U.S. Children's Poet Laureate J. Patrick Lewis on a lyrical journey through the United States to experience the wonders of America's people and places through 200+ inspiring poems and stunning photographs.
          Celebrate the gift of language and the vibrant culture of the United States with this collection of classic and never-before-published poetry. Poems are arranged by region, from coast to coast, and among them you'll find works by Langston Hughes, Dorothy Parker, Robert Frost, Naomi Shihab Nye, Walt Whitman, and more. From the familiar to the surprising, subjects include people, places, landmarks, monuments, nature, and celebrations. Designed for sharing, but geared to younger readers, this beautifully illustrated treasury is a must-have for the whole family.

Groundhognostication

                 Punxsutawney, PA

                 February 2^nd

Gobbler’s Knob lies blanketed in February snow,

but even in the biting cold, people’s faces glow.

They’ve travelled here from far and wide to celebrate together

and listen as the groundhog gives his verdict on the weather.

They join in festivities as bands play on for hours,

while Punxsutawney Phil warms up his shadow-reading powers.

Finally, the main event – the “groundhognostication!”

Mittened fingers cross in hopes of spring’s initiation.

Will they suffer six more weeks of winter’s frigid gloom?

Maybe yes, or maybe no, but soon bright buds will bloom.

                                                F. J. Lee

                                                from The Poetry of US (Edited by J. Patrick Lewis)

Silent Sentinel

     Battle of Gettysburg

At field’s edge atop Cemetery Ridge, an old,

battered tree stands – split down the middle like

so many families whose sons

went separate ways in war.

Silent sentinel, it saw that costliest of campaigns –

an eternity of suffering in three days’ time.

Unmovable witness, it watched Pickett’s charge,

counted up its colossal casualties

With roots bathed in bloodshed –

did it break at once or over time, riven by

the weight of sorrow, torn apart by conflicting

passions of thousands injured and dead?

Still it stands, an aged, living monument

in a park full of granite and bronze markers.

One by one, in time, witness trees fall,

the last living veterans who survived it all.

                                    Kelly Fineman

                                    from The Poetry of US (Edited by J. Patrick Lewis)

The Jackalope

            Douglas, Wyoming

The oddest thing you’ve never seen

are antlered hares.  They’re very mean,

or so you’ll hear if you pop in

to Douglas diners now and then.

A cry is heard up in the hills,

the kind of cry that gives you chills.

“The jackalope,” townsfolk explain –

but if you look, you’ll look in vain.

For no one’s ever seen up close

that warrior rabbit.  No one knows

just where it sleeps, how fierce its fight,

how high it leaps, how sharp its bite.

Indeed, this creature’s very rare:

The only actual antlered hare

is mounted on a wall – a prop

made by a taxidermy shop.

Some taxidermists though it fun

to sew two creatures into one –

but still at night it gives you chills

when lonely cries rise from those hills.

                                    Abigail Carroll

                                    from The Poetry of US (Edited by J. Patrick Lewis)

Legends of the Sonoran Desert

My mom left Tucson twice in her life.

Both times she came back fast and said,

“I like it better here.”

She lets tarantulas walk up her arm.  She says

all the collared lizard needs is a tie

and he can go to dinner anywhere.

She favors saguaro and chaparral.  She blows

kisses at the unlovely javelin but she adores

the remorseless gila monster because,

“It looks like a fancy beaded purse your father

almost bought me.”

                                    Ron Koertge

                                    from The Poetry of US (Edited by J. Patrick Lewis)

Golden Gate Bridge

Rising above

            the fog,

I am an aria

            of orange,

a symphony

            of steel –

a remembered

            melody.

Beneath

            I span the

Golden Gate Strait,

            from shore to

shore, with a

            chorus of cars.

What song will you

            discover

On the other side?

                                    Joan Bransfield Graham