Good Sports: Rhymes about Running, Jumping, Throwing, and More - Hardcover

Jack Prelutsky is widely recognized by elementary school teachers and students as the most popular poet working today. He has written more than 40 books of verse, including The New Kid on the Block, The Frogs Wore Red Suspenders, What a Day It Was at School, and compiled 11 poetry anthologies. He lives in Seattle, Washington.Chris Raschka has illustrated a number of distinguished picture books, including his Caldecott Honor Book Yo! Yes!, which he also wrote; A Poke in the I and A Kick in the Head, both compiled by Paul Janeczko; and the 2006 Caldecott Medal winner The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster. He lives in New York City.

Kindergarten-Grade 5—Prelutsky's gleeful verses team up with Raschka's economic, energetic, and humorous illustrations to create a winning book. Seventeen brief, untitled poems, mostly presented across eye-catching spreads, describe the experiences and emotions of young athletes as they participate in a variety of physical pursuits, including soccer, football, ice skating, and gymnastics. The narrators display varying levels of expertise, and although they may not excel at their endeavors, they are all at heart "good sports," dedicated to trying their best. A swimmer daydreams about being an orca and then good-naturedly admits, "I swim like a fish/That's been sick for a spell./I flop in the pool,/And I flounder around./My friends laugh and say/I should stay on the ground," before vowing to stick with the activity. The short, accessible verses are easy to memorize ("I'll swing at that ball,/And I'll smack it so hard,/I'll send that ball sailing/Clean out of the yard") and are perfect for classroom poem-a-day programs. They can also be used to introduce rhythm, rhyme scheme, punning, and alliteration. The expressive watercolors-with pen-and-ink lines adding a hint of definition-affectionately capture each character, depicting one youngster's chubby cheeks, another's curlicued hair, and another's hopeful eyes as he swings a bat at a ball. Readers will relate to and root for these children at play.—Teresa Pfeifer, Alfred Zanetti Montessori Magnet School, Springfield, MA
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