The Best Worst Poet Ever

May 1, 2020
An interspecies war of verse! An orange-and-white cat channels Shakespeare, feathered quill in paw, while his creative nemesis--a pug--clacks away at a green typewriter. The origin of the two foes' conflict isn't quite clear, but they battle in rhyming couplets, haiku, and galloping verse. "I hope it shan't disturb you that I plan to write some poems today," Cat begins. "I hope it 'shan't' disturb you, Cat, that I intend to do the same," Pug retorts. The ensuing scansion and prosody are remarkable, making for a truly rollicking read-aloud with extreme emotional highs. Both animals are fat and joyous, Cat's dignity neatly offset by Pug's crude hilarity: "Can I write a poem with my butt? / I don't know! / Oh can I write a poem with my butt? / Here I go!" In the illustration, Pug's fuzzy posterior hovers above the typewriter. There are even some moments of poetic instruction toward the end, when the two animals reconcile their differences and collaborate: "If a line is too long... / then we can enjamb it! / If a rhyme's almost rhyming... / it's not wrong; it's just slanted!" It starts to drag in the middle, as this is slightly longer than an average picture book, but there's plenty of humor and energy to keep audiences large and small enthralled. Delightful. (Picture book. 4-8)

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June 22, 2020
Debut author Stohler takes “use your words” to literary, witty extremes via roly-poly Pug and orange, fluffy, and equally rotund frenemy Cat. Stirring the pot on what are clearly long-standing issues between them, the two engage in a poetry face-off. Cat, who is not a little snobby, fussily assembles a quill, an inkstand, and a bust of Shakespeare before hurling all manner of verse at Pug: “Don’t poke the haiku/ this fresh toasty haiku, plump/ with soft little words.” Pug, who has gathered a typewriter, a pizza, and a large bag of cookies, counters with a poetry slam pose and a multi-stanza manifesto: “Can I write a poem with my butt?/ I don’t know!/ Oh can I write a poem with my butt?/ Here I go!” As the versifying escalates, expressively inky digital vignettes grow ever more rambunctious and gravity-defying; the typewritten text follows suit, skipping and swooping around the page. Eventually, poetry works it magic on both characters, who enthusiastically embrace each other, the muse, and all the tools in the meter toolkit, including slanted rhyme, enjambment, and poetic contractions. They’re poets, and boy, do they know it. Ages 4–8. Agent: Thao Le, Sandra Dijkstra Literary.

July 1, 2020

K-Gr 2-An erudite cat who quotes Shakespeare and a food-obsessed, slightly low-brow pug have a "battle of verse," trading rhyme for rhyme, with the writing style of each matching their personality. The cat uses a quill and speaks of writing ballads, limericks, and sonnets while the pug makes fun of the cat and his highfalutin language, using his butt, toes, and tongue to type and rhyme. Eventually their battle leads to a volley of insults, but when the cat starts comparing the pug to disgusting food ("you'd be piled high with licorice frosting and soggy french fries") a delighted pug notes, "What delicious perfection! How tastily true! You're a friend and a poet, and I never knew!" What ensues is a messy and hilarious collaboration leading-almost-to the world's greatest poetry show. With clever illustrations of the mayhem, this is a wonderful story for two people to read aloud together, demonstrating the pleasures of poetry and language, not to mention how much fun a battle of wits can be for the participants and the spectators. Although the story stalls a bit in the middle, for most of the book the pitch-perfect banter between pug and cat is almost Seussical in nature, using rhyme and rhythm to propel things along. VERDICT For listening, looking, or reading aloud, this is a battle of verse worth joining.-Sally James, South Hillsborough Elem. Sch., CA

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