Reviews

Big Talk: Poems for Four Voices by Paul Fleischman

kristenremenar's review against another edition

3.0

I like the idea of this a bit better than I like the actual execution of it. I think it's cool for poetry units and for drama classes. There were only 3 poems in this book. Granted they were long ones and the format for writing out a poem this way takes up a lot more space, but the range of interests is limited. Still, this would be so cool to hear read aloud, and you can then challenge students to find favorite poems and format them for four voices.

turrean's review against another edition

4.0

This would be marvelous for groups of students to perform. Speakers say the words in a particular color band across the pages, and all together, four speakers perform Fleischman's "word music." The only quibble I have is that the bright colors and illustration style seemed to call for a slightly younger audience than the text level and topics (ghosts watching a family eat, and a "7th Grade Soap Opera" poem on sneaking out of the house and shoplifting). Would be great to perform with grades four and up, for kids who have outgrown Hoberman's "I'll Read to You, You Read to Me" series.

ubalstecha's review

Lovely book of three poems for reader's theater. The middle one on gossip is a must for middle school teachers to do with their kids.

luann's review against another edition

3.0

I love the "poems for four voices" concept! I just wish this had more than three poems with a wider variety of subjects. Two of the poems deal with families and one is for middle school students. These could certainly be used in a classroom or school library setting. They would be a great way to help build reading fluency, among other things. I made a few modifications to the first poem to fit an upcoming family reunion, and I'll be performing it there with some family members. We'll see how it goes!