The 20th Century Children's Poetry Treasury Treasured Gifts for the Holidays

Editorial Review
"Until this century, most children's poetry was either syrupy sweet or overblown and didactic, and tended to talk down to its readers. Contemporary children's poets have thrown all that condescension and moralizing out the window, and write with today's real child in mind."
- from the Introduction by Jack Prelutsky

Here in one gloriously illustrated volume are 211 wonderful poems that represent the best this century has to offer. From sibling rivalry, school, monsters, food, and just plain silliness, to such ageless themes as the seasons, Who am I?, and the many moods of childhood, this is a collection that begs to be read aloud and shared with the whole family. The poems, from every decade of this century, showcase 137 famous poets.

Selected by Jack Prelutsky, America's leading children's poet, and illustrated by award-winning watercolorist Meilo So, this useful and beautiful gift is a splendid way to end the century -- or start a new one. Truly a book that families will cherish long after the millennium excitement is over, The 20th-Century Children's Poetry Treasury is a joyous companion volume to the best-selling The 20th-Century Children's Book Treasury.
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Customer Reviews

If only it were a little longer.

2005-06-05
This is another great anthology; well selected poems; great topics; great illustrations. Not a poem out of place. I just wish it were a little longer as we enjoyed it so much. This is one that we will dip into for years to come and is a lovely book to give to other families as a gift.

I enjoyed all the poems I read

2005-03-26
I fell in love with all the poems I read. It truely reminds me of poems mothers would read to their child for bed. The illustrations were very beautiful and dramatic. The pictures were so bright and colorful. Children from ages 0 to 5 would love to look at the pictures and illustrations in this book. Even though a child that young can't read, it would be very amazing to their eyes. At my age, I would love to either read the poems to a group of children or even have the children read them in silent reading. This book would also allow the child to be imaginative and creative. These poems are fun to listen to and not poems that are meant to be preached.

A wonderful book

2005-02-20
A wonderful book of beautiful poems written for children. I love these poems, i am 12. I got this poem book when i was little and still enjoy reading it often. this is a great book to add to a collection of children's poetry!

My favorite all-time children's book

2004-09-27
Paraphrase for your child the preface of this book- Jack Prelutsky's private poetry book collection totalled over 5000 volumes, and from these he culled the poems in this book. That immediately amazed my children who love to collect, and they knew these poems were special... My 6 year old boy - my Yugio loving, Ninja masked soccer playing boy, loves poetry as a result of this book, and recites several from memory. We copied his favorite to put on the bulletin board of his school when it was his turn to be student of the week.

The 20th Century Children's Poetry Treasury

2001-12-12
My daughter's favorite bedtime reading. A wonderful collection of poetry for children (and entertaining reading for adults too!). Fun rhymnes, bright illustrations and humorous approach make my 3 1/2 year old laughout loud. She asks for poems by name -- especially "My Name Is". This book makes reading poetry a joyful experience and will be the first Christmas gift I send the children on my list this year.

atrocious illustrations!

2008-01-26
I bought this book for my 9-year old who loves poetry. I'm basing my review merely on the illustrations. I was convinced by the many positive reviews, speaking so favorly regarding the illustrations that this book would be enjoyable to read and to look at. Upon receiving the book I couldn't believe how unappealing the so-called artwork is. I would be surprised to find any children captivated by poor modern, streaky-looking water color paintings within this book. To me they are darnright ugly. I personally have a preference for the illustrations of those like Michael Hague and Jan Brett who have illustrated numerous beautiful children's books.

Teacher Read-Aloud

2007-10-06
This book is a fabulous way to introduce young students to poetry. It is a collection of short, easy to understand poems that are perfect for read-alouds.

Loving It!

2007-06-13
My two grandsons, ages 10 and 8, picked up the book and immediately started to read...they love poetry anyway, but they spent some nice quiet time with the book...It will keep a special place at our lake house, where we have 7 grandchildren coming to visit us...It is great for ages 4 to +++..Real creative writing that keeps children's interests...

Nice Collection

2005-09-30
This is a wonderfully illustrated collection of children's poems. My daughter loves to look at the pictures, but there are not as many poems as other collections, like the one from Random House. It would make a great gift.

Excellent choice, not as encompassing as Book Treasury

2005-09-10
We bought this as we have the "The 20th Century Children's Book Treasury" and thought it would be a good companion piece. I liked the choice of poems (a nice range from classic to contemporary) and the way they were organized (by theme). My only (minor) disppointment has been that the Poetry Treasury is so small compared to the Book Treasury (87 pages vs. 297). One of the aspects I most appreciated about this book is that the poems included are not all "children's" but are still child-friendly. I would recommend this book for anyone with children.