Nature’s Paintbox: A Seasonal Gallery of Art and Verse by Patricia Thomas, illustrated by Craig Orback.

Wowza.  This is a great book of poetry for children! 

The book moves as a single poem throughout the seasons, rhyming and rhythmic and capturing with clarity each season.  The book also combines an understanding of art with the verse, moving from medium to medium to evoke each season as pure and distinct from the others.  Winter is done in pen and ink, spring in pastels, summer in watercolors and autumn in oils.  And each illustration shows why that is true in the same way as the dazzling poetry does.  While I enjoyed the poetry throughout the book, I am filled with amazement and wonder at the autumn section where Thomas’ verse gets as voluptuous and full as the season itself.  The book begins with spare verse about winter, slowly developing throughout the year until autumn arrives and the boundlessness of the season, the colors is almost overwhelming.  Colors are described as “redorangepurplebronzeindigogoldgreen.”  And you know just what she means.  It is a joy to read, to dance along with these words and these illustrations through the year.

Highly recommended as a read aloud.  You won’t be able to read it to yourself anyway when you reach those colorful words in autumn because they beg to be read aloud and come to life.  Add this one to your seasonal story times or units.  Plus it can be enjoyed by art classes looking at different media where children understanding the seasons already can relate.  Children aged 6-9 will enjoy this best of all.