Naughty Boy: A Song About Myself

by John Keats, Grant Silverstein (Illustrator)

Overview

"A fine, child-friendly introduction to Keats by way of one of his most accessible works."—Kirkus Reviews

There was a naughty boy
A naughty boy was he
For nothing would he do
But scribble poetry

John Keats wrote “There was a naughty boy” in a letter to his younger sister in 1818. It is the word and sound play of a young man who would become one of the immortals of English poetry. Grant Silverstein’s wonderfully spirited illustrations bring the classic poem to life for young kids and their grown-ups.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781589881624
Publisher:	Dry, Paul Books, Incorporated
Publication date:	03/22/2022
Pages:	54
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 11.00(h) x (d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

John Keats (1795-1821) was an English Romantic poet. He published just three volumes of poetry during his short life, but his fame grew after his death. Today he is remembered as one of England's greatest poets.

Grant Silverstein is an American artist who specializes in etchings of a narrative character and in studies of figures, landscapes, and animals. He has illustrated three previous Paul Dry Books titles: The Battle Between the Frogs and the Mice, Davey McGravy, and The Verb 'To Bird.' Silverstein lives in rural Pennsylvania.

Editorial Reviews

"Slighter, jollier, and sweeter than much of the Keats corpus, the poem is illustrated with delicate watercolor sketches in green and sepia on white space (these come across as long-cherished memories or dreams) interspersed with full-bleed pages of impressionistic full-color art that introduce each of the poem’s four stanzas. The lively illustrations incorporate vignettes, montages, and continuous narration . . . Silverstein resists the temptation of modernizing the poem for contemporary audiences, instead opting for a timeless aesthetic that recalls European illustration of the golden age of children’s literature."—Kirkus Reviews 

PRAISE FOR GRANT SILVERSTEIN'S ILLUSTRATIONS OF 'THE BATTLE BETWEEN THE FROGS AND THE MICE':

"The characters of this dazzling epic spring to life (and death!) in Grant Silverstein's exquisitely detailed drawings."—Ann Temkin, Chief Curator, Department of Painting and Sculpture, The Museum of Modern Art

"The illustrations by Grant Silverstein maintain this balance, taking the combatants seriously (or as seriously as one can take the skinny legs of a standing frog wielding a beet leaf for a shield) and conveying the intensity of the battle."—Light Poetry Magazine

"The main section presents the poem interwoven on every page with Silverstein’s pencil drawings — of frogs and mice and weasels and hawks and snakes and gods with human faces. At first, I thought of the illustration as maybe somewhat analogous to medieval illumination. But as I read on, I realized it wasn’t that at all. There’s too much drama in the drawings’ visual punctuation. I instead came to appreciate their larger role as visual harmonics — a substitute for a lyre, of sorts, accompanying the combined voices of bard and translator. They are an integral part of the success of this small volume, which I am very glad to have read."—Los Angeles Review of Books

"Grant Silverstein’s gracious etchings of animals and gods evoke well-known drawings by Renaissance artists like Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, and provide a lively visual counterpart to the narrative."—Bryn Mawr Classical Review

From the Publisher

2022-01-25
An adaptation of the well-known John Keats poem endorses youthful discovery.

There’s really nothing that naughty about the English boy in the Keats poem who “would not be quiet” and “would not stop at home.” The boy is full of energy, ever moving, ever exploring. When he follows his curiosity “to the mountains / and fountains,” then eventually runs away to Scotland, it’s with the intent of finding something new and different. Instead, while there, he realizes that the ground is just “as hard,” a yard just “as long,” and a song just “as merry” as they are in England. Slighter, jollier, and sweeter than much of the Keats corpus, the poem is illustrated with delicate watercolor sketches in green and sepia on white space (these come across as long-cherished memories or dreams) interspersed with full-bleed pages of impressionistic full-color art that introduce each of the poem’s four stanzas. The lively illustrations incorporate vignettes, montages, and continuous narration. One could quibble that they are too itemized, a painted play-by-play of every line of the poem, but given its straightforward nature, this doesn't feel like a misstep. Silverstein resists the temptation of modernizing the poem for contemporary audiences, instead opting for a timeless aesthetic that recalls European illustration of the golden age of children’s literature. All characters present White. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A fine, child-friendly introduction to Keats by way of one of his most accessible works. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews