The New Kid on the Block

Bibliography

Prelutsky, Jack. 1984. The New Kid on the Block. Ill. by James Stevenson. New York: Greenwillow Books. ISBN 0329044532

Plot Summary

The New Kid on the Block is an anthology of hilarious poems on many silly topics all by the same author, Jack Prelutsky.

Critical Analysis

Prelutsky proves that poetry doesn’t always have to be deep and meaningful, but it can be fun and humorous. His choice of topics stimulate the imagination. A good example of this is, "Be Glad Your Nose is on Your Face",
"…Imagine if your precious nose
were sandwiched in between your toes,
that clearly would not be a treat,
for you’d be forced to smell your feet."
This shows how he took a simple topic, such as a nose, and turned it into a hilarious poem. Prelutsky uses great imagination when creating some of his poems, as in, The Underwater Wibbles, The Flotz, and Snillies.
My favorite poem of his since I first heard it in 1989, is Homework!, Oh Homework! Many of his poems have and will be timeless because the topics are universal and kids can relate to them. Some others are; My Baby Brother, My Dog, He Is an Ugly Dog, and The New Kid on the Block. Prelutsky uses many elements of poetry in his poems. In, Boing! Boing! Squeak, he obviously uses onomatapoeia. He also uses great sense of imagery as in, Jellyfish Stew. Each poem has something funny to laugh at and enjoy.
James Stevenson uses simple pencil drawings to go with each poem, but the poems really are what make the book.
This book does not have a table of contents, instead it has 2 indexes where the poems are listed by titles, and by the first lines of the poems. This organization works out because each poem has a rhythmic pattern that sounds great read aloud.

Review Excerpt(s)

School Library Journal

"Grade 1-8AJack Prelutsky's popular book and recording is now available on compact disc. This new format includes five poem/songs from the book not found on the cassette version: "The Carpenter Rages," "Drumpp the Grump," "Oh, Teddy Bear," "I've Got an Incredible Headache," and "Happy Birthday, Dear Dragon." These new pieces feature guitar, banjo, and fiddle playing behind Prelutsky's fun vocal antics."

Pubisher Review

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.

Connections

*Read some of his poems and have students choose a simple topic and write a poem.

*Do an author study on Jack Prelutsky.

*Read one of his poems aloud and have students illustrate it.