Scan barcode
calistareads's review against another edition
3.0
I appreciate this book alot, but I think it is geared to a more patient and older audience. For kids, this book is slow and long on information. I think the artwork is fun with a collage feel to it. It looks like a poem in pictures.
I also didn’t know anything about William Carlos Williams. He was an American poet from the first part of the 20th century. He was a doctor and poet in his free time. He wrote many collections in his lifetime and is considered a big influence in American poetry. He loved nature and those rhythms are in the poems he wrote. I’m glad I got to know this story.
The nephew thought this book was totally boring. Nothing happened in his mind. He’s a doctor and writes poetry, done. He gave this 1 star. He didn’t like it. The niece thought this book was only a little interesting. It seemed long to her and slow. She gave this 2 stars, but she still isn’t interested in poetry.
I also didn’t know anything about William Carlos Williams. He was an American poet from the first part of the 20th century. He was a doctor and poet in his free time. He wrote many collections in his lifetime and is considered a big influence in American poetry. He loved nature and those rhythms are in the poems he wrote. I’m glad I got to know this story.
The nephew thought this book was totally boring. Nothing happened in his mind. He’s a doctor and writes poetry, done. He gave this 1 star. He didn’t like it. The niece thought this book was only a little interesting. It seemed long to her and slow. She gave this 2 stars, but she still isn’t interested in poetry.
raoionna's review against another edition
5.0
This biography is well-tools through appealing narrative and visuals that combine the author’s text and drawings
readitcourt's review against another edition
4.0
An easy to read and understand biography of William Carlos Williams. Fragments of his poems can be seen in the collage-like illustrations and whole poems can be found on the fly-leaf and at the end of the book. The repetition of certain phrases help to tie this book together.
rachelkc's review against another edition
4.25
When we think of doctors, we usually don’t think of poetry, and vice versa: poetry doesn’t typically conjure up images of doctors. We also don’t associate “ordinary” with poetry, and yet, that’s just William Carlos Williams’s style. A River of Words, a biographical picture book, aims to show how William Carlos Williams was able to combine poetry with his medical career, providing for his family and caring for his community while also taking care of his need for solitude and writing about the everyday.
Both author Jen Bryant and illustrator Melissa Sweet show readers how to find poetry everywhere by letting it inform the details of the book. Using poetic verse to combine fact with art, Bryant tells Williams’s story of discovering the power of words, and of the extraordinary poetry of the everyday. Sweet’s mixed media collage illustrations add to the charm of this book, combining newspaper, notebook writing, and simple drawings to create a poetic scrapbook echoing the words on each page. A timeline, bibliography, and notes at the end round out this informational title. Young writers and artists alike will enjoy seeing Williams’s life unfold and his writing and medical career progress as they read.
Both author Jen Bryant and illustrator Melissa Sweet show readers how to find poetry everywhere by letting it inform the details of the book. Using poetic verse to combine fact with art, Bryant tells Williams’s story of discovering the power of words, and of the extraordinary poetry of the everyday. Sweet’s mixed media collage illustrations add to the charm of this book, combining newspaper, notebook writing, and simple drawings to create a poetic scrapbook echoing the words on each page. A timeline, bibliography, and notes at the end round out this informational title. Young writers and artists alike will enjoy seeing Williams’s life unfold and his writing and medical career progress as they read.
librarianryan's review against another edition
4.0
This is an interesting look at an interesting man. William Carlos Williams is remembered most for his poetry, but he made his poetry in his spare time, and spent his life as a doctor. This was an interesting story, and left me with more knowledge of a man who use to just be a name on a piece of paper.
luann's review against another edition
4.0
This is an inspirational biography and well worth sharing with children. It is the story of a man who never gives up on what he loves even when he can't make a living at it. It is the story of a man who allows his own voice and style to speak out even when it isn't just like others who are masters at the art. It is the story of a man who sees the beauty in the simplest things in life. I very much enjoyed reading about William Carlos Williams and plan to incorporate this book into a library lesson sometime in the future.
This is another picture book that you don't want to rush through because the illustrations are best enjoyed when you spend some time with them! I particularly enjoyed the illustrator's note at the end discussing her research and inspiration for the illustrations.
Now I need to go read more poetry by William Carlos Williams!
This is another picture book that you don't want to rush through because the illustrations are best enjoyed when you spend some time with them! I particularly enjoyed the illustrator's note at the end discussing her research and inspiration for the illustrations.
Now I need to go read more poetry by William Carlos Williams!
brucefarrar's review against another edition
4.0
Willie Williams was a very energetic boy. After playing with his friends, he would roam though the New Jersey countryside and then inspired by the poetry that his teacher read aloud in class, he would stay up late to write his own poems. It’s a good thing he had a lot of energy. He grew up to be a doctor and a poet. By the end of his life he had written 48 books and helped deliver over 3,000 babies.
More...