April 20, 2013

Sidman Poetry: DARK EMPEROR

Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Sidman, Joyce. 2010. Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night. Ill. by Rick Allen. New York: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children. ISBN 978-0-547-15228-8

REVIEW AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS:  

Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night, is a collection of poems by Joyce Sidman that celebrate the world that comes alive after dark.   Sidman has cleverly organized Dark Emperor.  The poem collection begins at dusk with “Welcome to the Night” and ends at dawn when the sun beings to rise with “Moon’s Lament.”  In between she features poems about 8 nocturnal creatures of the night and 2 plants that are found in the woods during the night. 

Included in the margin of each page is a short note on the creature or object of the night featured in the poem.  These notes give further information about the object’s behaviors and characteristics.  They are also carefully written and aren’t just full of dry facts.  Instead, Sidman has included factual information that not only adds to the beautiful poetry and illustrations, but is also interesting and entertaining for the reader. 

There are many poetic forms included in this book such as verse, lyrical, and concrete.  Some poems, like “Welcome to the Night,” have a clear rhyme pattern while others like “Love Poem of the Primrose Moth” do not contain any rhyme. Her use of rhythm makes the poems easy and fun to read and add to the imagery of the poems.  Sidman’s use of descriptive language makes the poems exciting and rich with sensory details.  She creates strong mental images with the use of similes, like “where the moss grows like candy.”  In “Oak After Dark” she uses personification “I stretch my roots into the hill/and slowly, slowly, drink my fill. /A thousand crickets scream my name, yet I remain the same, the same.” This book of poetry keeps the reader’s interest by featuring poems that have variations in content and style.  

Rick Allen’s illustrations are gorgeous linoleum cut prints covered with gouache.  Sidman’s poems are written from the perspective of each creature in the book and Allen’s illustrations perfectly add to their voice.  The block-prints, combined with dark colors, create a shadowy effect and the details of the illustrations complement the actions in Sidman’s poems perfectly.  The poetry, illustrations, and informational text in the margins combine to create a rich and informative experience for young and old readers alike.   



WELCOME TO THE NIGHT

To all of you who crawl and creep,
who buzz and chirp and hoot and peep,
who wake at dusk and throw off sleep:
Welcome to the night.

To you who make the forest sing,
who dip and dodge on silent wing,
who flutter, hover, clasp, and cling:
Welcome to the night!

Come feel the cool and shadowed breeze,
come smell your way among the trees,
come touch rough bark and leathered leaves:
Welcome to the night.  

The night's a sea of dappled dark,
the night's a feast of sound and spark,
the night's a wild, enchanted park.
Welcome to the night!


Welcome to the Night is the first poem in the book and it welcomes the reader to the nighttime adventure they are about to embark on.  Students could list the different animals that they see during the daytime and at nighttime.  They could continue to read the rest of the poems into the book and add to the list of animals that are found during the night.  After reading, the children could choose an animal that isn't mentioned in the book and research its habits and behaviors.  They could write a poem, illustrate it, and write a short informational paragraph like Sidman has done in her book.  The class could compile all the poems together to create a class book.  

Students could also create a movie of the poem they wrote about their animal or about a creature featured in Dark Emperor.  They could include pictures of the animal, its habitat, and even include sounds the animal makes.    


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