Favorite December Reads

Here are my favorite December reads - lots of great poetry and picture books this month.

Heroes in Disguise by Linda Pastan (adult nonfiction)

Favorite poems and lines: 

From The Myth of Perfectability - "...I sit here at the typewriter, putting in a comma to slow down a long sentence, then taking it out, then putting it back again until I feel like a happy Sisyphus, or like a good farmer who knows that the body's work is never over, for the motions of plowing and planting continue season after season, even in his sleep." 

From Hibiscus - "...torn last winter from a Florida pavement...You wrapped it in brown paper, hid it under your airplane seat...Now it trumpets its honky-tonk song here in a northern window..." 

From Crocuses - "They come by stealth...mothers of saffron, fathers of insurrection..." 

Oh, So Many Kisses! by Maura Finn and Jenny Cooper (board book)

The illustrations are stunning and full of all kinds of people and animals. I can't get over how expressive the faces are. This book a bit too small for large storytimes but definitely a great book to bring just in case a smaller crowd shows up. Because of the variety of ages represented, I think it's a great book for any kind of storytime. I enjoyed the rhymes and only tripped over one spot so the language is lovely as well. I think anyone who reads this is going to think of all the people who love them and feel all warm and gushy inside.

The Sonoran Desert: A Literary Field Guide (adult nonfiction)

Favorite poems and lines: 

From Arizona Sycamore - "Nests rest upon the losses and you quiver with song, while you reach upwards, shedding sheaths of skin like drafts of letters." 

From Jumping Cholla - "Drinker of sand, halo of bones, chain-hanger, Cylindropuntia fulgida - a bit of sun, earth-fallen, taken aroot." 

From What the desert is thinking - "The saguaros all hum together like Tibetan or Greorian monks one green chord that people hear when they drive through Gates Pass and come to the place where they gasp." 

From Sonoran Whiptail Lizard: Personal Ad - "SWL seeks independent companion for fun in Sonoran Desert. Must appreciate...Lingering midmorning sunbaths...Sensuous, lethargic movements, with possible scurrying from one shaded area to another." 

This is a phenomenal read that alternates between poems/prose and habitats/descriptions about desert plants and animals. I enjoyed the descriptions as much as the poems, and occasionally was surprised by how poetic they were. The saguaro's description, for example, reads, "Blossoming in April, at the end of spring, and into early June, during the arid foresummer, a saguaro's tips will be covered with thick white flowers, many corsages for courting desert pollinators. The flowers open two hours past sunset, and, like a good honky-tonk, stay open all night long and well into the following afternoon, when they close against the heat." This is, hands down, the best poetry book I read in 2019. 

My Forest is Green by Darren Lebeuf and Ashley Barron

An exploration of nature experienced through the senses and recreated through a child's artwork. It's an adjective lover's dream. I love how the colors are described, especially the greens (twisty, shiny, jagged, wavy) and the illustrations are exceptional - so vivid and happy.

Daniel's Good Day by Micha Archer

I was sitting in a poorly lit room while reading this and the illustrations just lit the place up. It's a gorgeous book with a positive message about what makes a good day for different people, and how their good days can make your day great too.