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| Image Courtesy of: http://bookdads.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/guyku.jpg |
Bibliographic Citation
Title: Guyku: A Year of Haiku for Boys
Author: Bob Raczka
Illustrator: Peter H. Reynolds
Year of Publication: 2010
Publisher City: New York
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children
ISBN: 9780547240039
Author Website: http://www.bobraczka.com/
Illustrator Website: http://www.peterhreynolds.com/
Media Used for Artwork: Pen, Ink, Watercolor
Copyright 2010/2011
Awards
· American Library Association’s Notable Children’s Book, 2011
· Cooperative Children’s Book Center Choices, 2011
· National Council of Teachers of English’s Notable Children’s Books in the Language Arts, 2011
Annotation
A series of twenty-four haikus written for boys that revolves around the four seasons and the activities that are enjoyed during that time, such as riding bikes and building snowmen.
Personal Reaction
This delightful series of haikus not only tells the story of boyhood but also uses an ancient form of poetry in a modern language. This book is written to attract the imagination of boys and inspire them to read, but girls will also enjoy these haikus. Every poem involves enjoying nature and the seasons that surround everyone. It also teaches that everything constantly changes but also that many things are constant, like the changing of the seasons. There is playfulness in each haiku but also a calmness. These reflections on life can relate to children and older readers that remember their youth.
The illustrations focus on each poem but also relate to each other. Everyone involves a boy enjoying nature, such as: a boy releasing a grasshopper or a boy hibernating beneath a pine tree. The illustrations are simple which helps to relate to the simplicity of the haiku format. By not dominating the pages the illustrations allow readers the chance of reflection on every haiku being read.
A side note: In addition to the picture book, a website was created for this specific book to provide ideas for projects and also to create a fan base. The link is: http://hmhbooks.com/guyku/.
Curriculum: Grade 7- History and English: Since students learn about Asian cultures in this grade this book can be a useful tool in teaching students how to analyze and write haikus. Students can select one or all of the seasons like in the book and write their own haikus. In addition students can draw illustrations to accompany their poem like in the book.
Use of Rhythm: Every poem is written in haiku format, meaning that the rhythm is 5-7-5.
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