Jack Prelutsky

Open this book to any page to begin your exploration. Here are poems about things that you may never have thought about before. You'll be introduced to jellyfish stew, a bouncing mouse, a ridiculous dog, and a boneless chicken. You'll learn why you shouldn't argue with a shark, eat a dinosaur, or have an alligator for a pet. You'll meet the world's worst singer and the greatest video game player in history. You'll even find an invitation to a dragon's birthday party....Your friends are invited too. Over 100 hilarious poems about strange creatures and people--from jellyfish stew to a bouncing mouse, and a boneless chicken. "The illustrations bring the frivolity to a fever pitch."--School Library Journal. Index.

The New Kid on the Block

Something big is right here! It is this book of wonderful, funny new poems by lack Prelutsky. If you've read The New Kid on the Block, you have some idea of the treat ahead. And if you haven't, all you have to do is start reading! Here are four vain and ancient tortoises, a rat of culture, Super Samson Simpson, a meat loaf that defies an ax, five flying hotdogs--and many, many more people, animals, and things that are destined to become part of the lives of everyone who loves to laugh. Say them, chant them, learn them by heart, or just read them--Jack Prelutsky's poems are incomparable. The long-awaited companion to The New Kid on the Block. "A wealth of funny new verse from a favorite poet. Prelutsky's comic muse is at its best here....Another winner."--Kirkus Reviews. "Prelutsky has done it again."--School Library Journal

Something Big Has Been Here

A collection of humorous poetry on a variety of topics.

A Pizza the Size of the Sun

The Random House Book of Poetry for Children

When you're in the world of Jack Prelutsky, anything can happen. Ogres run wild, dragons sing, and baby uggs hatch. . . . Frogs wear red suspenders in a rainstorm of pigs and noodles. . . . Scranimals gallivant under a pizza the size of the sun. . . . Even the new kid on the block can see that the nation's first Children's Poet Laureate is something big. So, what are you waiting for? Let your parents think you're sleeping, and ride a purple pelican to a land where imagination is king, ridiculous rhymes rule, and laughing out loud is guaranteed! These are Jack Prelutsky's greatest hits! This magnificent treasury of more than one hundred of Jack Prelutsky's most celebrated verses, along with fifteen all-new poems, is a tribute to his gifts to children's literature over the past forty years. Lushly illustrated by rising star Brandon Dorman and featuring a CD with classic performances by the poet himself, it is the perfect volume for any poetry lover's bookshelf.

And Other Poems: Some of the Best of Jack Prelutsky

Be Glad Your Nose Is on Your Face

The poet laureate of the young set is back, with his artist laureate collaborator, to "take another swipe at stuffiness."- Here are more than one hundred poems bursting to be read, chanted, laughed over, and remembered. It would be hard to find a schoolage kid who has not read or heard a Prelutsky poem and who does not want to hear another. He plays with the language and encourages readers to revel in the game. Puns, jokes, wordplay and shape play, wit, silliness, slapstick, and joy abound. Some of the poems are about people, some are about animals. And some are about things that never were (and that one hopes never will be). Be warned: Read a poem once and you will love it. Read it several times and it will be part of you forever.

It's Raining Pigs & Noodles

A collection of poems about dragons, including "I'm an Amiable Dragon," "If You Don't Believe in Dragons," and "A Dragon Is in My Computer."

The dragons are singing tonight

Dr. Seuss

Hooray for Diffendoofer Day!

A creature whispers: If not for the cat, And the scarcity of cheese, I could be content. Who is this creature? What does it like to eat? Can you solve the riddle? Seventeen haiku composed by master poet Jack Prelutsky and illustrated by renowned artist Ted Rand ask you to think about seventeen favorite residents of the animal kingdom in a new way. On these glorious and colorful pages you will meet a mouse, a skunk, a beaver, a hummingbird, ants, bald eagles, jellyfish, and many others. Who is who? The answer is right in front of you. But how can you tell? Think and wonder and look and puzzle it out!

If Not for the Cat

Have you ever encountered an underwater marching band, a pig in a bathing suit, a pet orangutan, or a witch in a hardware store? Have you ever sat with a skunk in a courtroom, shopped for a dinosaur, or conversed with a Bupple, a Wosstrus, a Violinnet, or a Celloon? You will have, once you′ve read this exuberant collaboration from Jack Prelutsky and his "partner in crime"∗ James Stevenson. The "reigning czars of silliness"∗ have once again teamed up to bring readers an irresistible collection of poems that will have tongues twisting, imaginations soaring, and sides aching with laughter. The result is genius, indeed. ∗Publishers Weekly (starred review)

My Dog May Be a Genius

Haiku-like poems describe a variety of animals.

"In a companion volume to Nightmares, poet and artist again collaborate to elicit feelings of exquisite terror."--Horn Book. "Prelutsky's rhymes are as lethal, lithe, and literate as ever, and Lobel wrings every atmospheric ounce out of them."--School Library Journal.

More Poems to Trouble Your Sleep

The Headless Horseman Rides Tonight

A collection of more than 200 poems by such modern poets as Nikki Grimes, John Ciardi, Karla Kuskin, Ted Hughes, e.e. cummings, Eve Merriam, Deborah Chandra, Arnold Adoff, and more than 100 others.

The 20th Century Children's Poetry Treasury

Have you ever tried to write a poem about a pizza? How about a pig? How about a pigeon, penguin, potato, Ping-Pong, parrot, puppy, pelican, porcupine, pie, pachyderm, or your parents? Jack Prelutsky has written more than a thousand poems about all of these things—and many others. In this book he gives you the inside scoop on writing poetry and shows you how you can turn your own experiences and stories about your family, your pets, and your friends into poems. He offers tips, advice, and secrets about writing and provides some fun exercises to help you get started (or unstuck). You'll also get a behind-the-scenes look at the ingredients of some of his most popular poems. If you are a poet, want to be a poet, or if you have to write a poem for homework and you just need some help, this is the book for you!

How to Write a Poem

Pizza, Pigs, and Poetry

We're sailing to Scranimal Island, It doesn't appear on most maps.... Scranimal Island is where you will find the fragrant Rhinocerose, the cunning Broccolions, and if you are really, really lucky and very, very quiet, you will spot the gentle, shy Pandaffodil. (You may even hear it yawning if the morning's just begun, watch its petals slowly open to embrace the rising sun. So put on your pith helmet and prepare to explore a wilderness of puns and rhymes where birds, beasts, vegetables, and flowers have been mysteriously scrambled together to create creatures you've never seen before –– and are unlikely to meet again! Your guides –– Jack Prelutsky, poet laureate of the elementary school set, and two–time Caldecott Honor artist Peter Sis – invite you to join them on an adventure you will never forget! Ages 4+

Scranimals

An illustrated, rhyming tale of a wicked wizard and his evil deeds, shows how he uses "elemental sorcery" to change a bullfrog into a series of objects, from a flea to a flame. 100,000 first printing.

The Wizard

It is hard to believe that Cincinnati Patty, Justin Austin, Pennington Poe, and the little pink pig in Arkansas have not been chanted and sung about by children for generations. But it is not hard to believe that they Will be chanted and sung about for generations to come! Jack Prelutsky and Garth Williams have created a nursery world, peopled with unforgettable characters. Come and meet your new friends. They will be old friends soon!

Ride a Purple Pelican

It's winter! The trees are bare, the days are short, and the first sparkling snowflakes are falling from the sky. Master of rhyme Jack Prelutsky creates a flurry of winter verse, just right for ushering in the season of ice and snow. Lively, warmth-filled illustrations by Yossi Abolafia enhance these sixteen delightful poems.

Winter Poems

It's Snowing! It's Snowing!

Lazy Black Bird, and Other Verses. Pictures by Janosch

Some of the animals in this book are real. They include: the hippopotamus (she's missing) the elephant (he's artistically talented) the octopus (it's great at multitasking). Others may not be quite so real. These include: the wiguana (very hairy, for a lizard) the halibutterfly (there's something fishy about it) the gludu (quite clingy). In the tradition of Jack Prelutsky's classic poetry collections The New Kid on the Block, It's Raining Pigs & Noodles, and A Pizza the Size of the Sun, here is a book packed with more than 100 funny poems and silly pictures. Most of the poems are about animals—some are big and some are small, some have unusual interests, and some are just plain unusual.

Jack Prelutsky

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