Big Talk: Poems for Four Voices

Be the first to write a review

All Available Formats + Editions

$2.47

$7.19

Paperback

$2.47

$7.19

Big Talk: Poems for Four Voices Pub. Date: 3/25/2008 Publisher: Candlewick Press
$0.01

$14.60

Hardcover

$0.01

$14.60

Big Talk: Poems for Four Voices Pub. Date: 3/28/2000 Publisher: Candlewick Press

Want to read this on your NOOK? Request as NOOK Book from the publisher

Thank you for requesting this book as a NOOK book from the publisher.

Customers Who Bought This Also Bought

Advertising

Overview

"Following his Newbery Medal-winning Joyful Noise, Fleischman offers another collection of beautifully orchestrated, spirited poems for many voices." — BOOKLIST

These rousing, rib-tickling poems demand the joy of reading aloud. Settle back and chant "The Quiet Evenings Here," as Grandma rocks, the clock tick-tocks, and no one cares a hoot for the world outside. Delight in "Seventh-Grade Soap Opera," alive with hearsay about who’s holding hands with whom. This innovative book weaves a tapestry of rhythm that will have readers of all ages sounding off.

A collection of poems to be read aloud by four people, with color-coded text to indicate which lines are read by which readers.

Editorial Reviews

Leonard S. Marcus

These sly poems, meant to be read by multiple voices, come alive to create satisfying proof of the music of words.
— Parenting

Publishers Weekly

Fleischman expands from verse duets, as featured in his Newbery Award-winning Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices, to quartets with this well-crafted volume. Part drama, part chorus, the three extended poems read like a musical score: each speaker follows a line of color--green, yellow, orange or purple--then rests when the line is blank. An introduction explains how to use the book and suggests some variations (for fewer or more than four readers). Except for the full-page images that begin and end each poem, Italian artist Giacobbe's computer-generated illustrations appear within a kind of elaborate comic strip at the bottom of each page. Fleischman's poems vary in dramatic and poetic intensity. In "The Quiet Evenings Here," droll country folk detail the noises of city life, images of which Giacobbe captures in sepia tones, as well as their preferred serene gatherings around the hearth, rendered in full color. Readers eventually realize that the "peaceful" evenings--"Grandma rockin'/ Clock tick-tockin'/ Sister hummin'/ Grandpa strummin' "--may not be so quiet after all. "Seventh-Grade Soap Opera" gives voice to the perils of junior high life as a never-ending saga; the artwork carries through the theme with extended phone chords and overlapping images within discreet vignettes. In "Ghosts Grace," the standout among the collection, four ghostly narrators observe a family at dinner and, much as Emily does in Wilder's Our Town, the foursome savors the extraordinary nature of ordinary experience. A lively and thought-provoking treat guaranteed to get kids talkin'. Ages 10-14. (Mar.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

More Reviews (2) Fewer Reviews

Children's Literature

Sure, you're verbal, but are you verbally coordinated? If Paul Fleischman's Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices left you tripping over words and stammering like a fool, Big Talk will leave you speechless. Fleischman gives words life, making them dance gracefully around each other as four voices unite to tell stories. Three poems are included; each is progressively more complicated. From the rhythmic beat of "The Quiet Evenings Here" to the gossip of "Seventh Grade Soap Opera" and the eerie voices in "Ghost's Grace," poetry-lovers will savor the words as they roll off the tongue. A salad becomes "A jungle explored by fork" (p. 33), and corn on the cob invites diners "To march down the rows with your eager incisors/To bite into summer itself, sweet as sugar" (p. 38). Color-coded lines let readers know which words are theirs, and careful spacing directs them when to jump in. These poems are a wonderful challenge for anyone with an agile tongue. 2000, Candlewick Press, Ages 8 to 14, $14.99. Reviewer: Carol Lynch

School Library Journal

Gr 5-8-Fleischman expands the choir in this new collection of poems for multiple readers. Four voices intertwine to narrate the three amusing scenarios. Rhythmic refrains define "The Quiet Evenings Here," with "Sister hummin'," "Grandpa strummin'," "Grandma rockin'," and the "Clock tick-tockin'." Once readers get their color-coded lines sorted out, this will be a toe-tappin', audience-joinin'-in pleaser. "Seventh-Grade Soap Opera" catalogs the doings and dramas of the peer group in terse verse, inviting improvisation. And "Ghosts' Grace," with the longing voices of spirits yearning for old pleasures as they observe a family hastily dispatching with dinner, is both poignant and fun. Giacobbe's computer-generated paintings in warm, muted tones are an effective folksy backdrop. While there are a few full-page pictures, most of the art consists of strips of small vignettes running below the narrative. Instructions for group reading introduce the poems. This book will find a host of uses in choral reading and in stimulating reading, discussion, and writing. The likely cacophony will bring giggles as readers work on getting the hang of all of this big talk.-Margaret Bush, Simmons College, Boston Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780763638054
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Publication date: 3/25/2008
Pages: 48
Sales rank: 373,226
Age range: 10 - 14 Years
Product dimensions: 10.66 (w) x 7.00 (h) x 0.22 (d)

Meet the Author

Paul Fleischman grew up in a home filled with books and music. "after years along on the piano bench," he says, "I learned to play the recorder and fell in love iwth the camaraderie of chamber music. Recently, I just joined my first string quartet. What joy! I've tried to bring this bliss into these spoken quartets." The author of many awardwinning books, Paul Fleischman lives in Pacific Grove, California.

Beppe Giacobbe was born in Milan, Italy, in 1953, and is a graduate of the School of Visual Arts in New York. In addition to teaching at the European Institute of Design, he also illustrates book jackets and, in his spare time, creates sculptures out of knicknacks and objects he finds while out walking. He says he is "a calm and meticulous man, who vents his emotions while drawing." Beppe Giacobbe lives in Milan.

Customer Reviews

Be the first to write a review

( 0 )

Rating Distribution

5 Star

(0)

4 Star

(0)

3 Star

(0)

2 Star

(0)

1 Star

(0)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines

Tell the world what you think of this product.

Add Recommendations

Your Name: Create a Pen Name or Leave Anonymously

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

- HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
- Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
- Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
- Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
- Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
- Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
- Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

- By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
- Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
- See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.

If you find inappropriate content, please report it to Barnes & Noble

Big Talk: Poems for Four Voices

Pick Up in Store

Overview

All Available Formats + Editions

Customers Who Bought This Also Bought

More About This Book

Overview

Related Subjects

Editorial Reviews

Leonard S. Marcus

Publishers Weekly

Children's Literature

School Library Journal

Product Details

Meet the Author

Customer Reviews

Rating Distribution

5 Star

4 Star

3 Star

2 Star

1 Star

Your Rating:

Your Recommendations:

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

What to exclude from your review:

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

Reminder:

Recommend other products that relate to your review. Just search for them below and share!