Module 6: Book Review 18-Free Choice Poetry

 I Am Someone Else: Poems About Pretending

Bibliography

Hopkins, L. B. & Hsu, C. (2019) I Am Someone Else: Poems About Pretending. Massachusetts: Charlesbridge. ISBN 9781580898324

Summary  

Let your fantasies take you away and turn you into something or someone else you have always wanted to become.  Take part in this charming anthology of poems compiled by Lee Bennet Hopkins and the colorful and vibrant illustrations by Chris Hsu.  Each poet in the book imagined who they might like to be and wrote an astounding poem to express those imaginations.  So, join in with the children of I Am Someone Else and become a wizard or mermaid or even a video-game inventor and read it today! 

Analysis

I Am Someone Else is a collection of poems written by fifteen different poets, compiled by Lee Bennett Hopkins.  Hopkins includes an introduction to the book that is encouraging and positive which promotes self-acceptance.  Also, in the introduction, he states though that every once in a while, it is fun to think about becoming someone (or something) else.  This is where the idea for the book came from.  The book is divided into three sections, Wish! a storybook character, Support! a person who helps, and Invent! a person who makes.  Each poem within the section invokes imagery for the reader throughout.  I button up my lab coat/ scrub my hands with soap/ check the day’s appointments/ and grab my stethoscope, from the poem Bellies, Bones, and Paws by Michelle H. Barnes offers the reader a vivid description of the vet’s day. 

This poem and the others in the book truly give way to role-playing and pretend.  It is an ideal book for children ages 4 to 8 and invites kids to being kids.  It allows children to dream in becoming who or what they want to be in the moment or future and shows children to be imaginative. 

Another fantastic addition to the book are the illustrations.  Chris Hsu creates a classroom of different children that are represented in our culture and includes them in this story.  Not only does he represent different people and cultures in the pictures, but he also crushes stereotypical beliefs about the work that people should do.  He depicts boys as mermaids and girls as construction workers and shows that you can be whoever you want to be. 

I Am Someone Else is truly inspirational for young children.  From the playful and inspiring poetry to the ethnically diverse illustrations, this book is sure to be one added to your library collection. 

Excerpt

The One
Matt Forrest Esenwine

I want to be the one who fights flames,

taming smoke and heat with hook and hose.

I want to be the one who drives the truck,

sirens wailing wherever it goes.

I want to be the one who saves lives,

no matter who they are or where they're from.

I want to be the one who wears the suit,

so one day I can be just like my mom.

Use

With this poem, have students imagine something or someone they want to be.  Then, just like this poem and the others within the book, have students write a poem about that something or someone.  Encourage students to use imagery within their poems and have them illustrate what they see.  Students can draw, paint, or use other media to create their artwork to pair with their poem.