This is Just to Say

1. Bibliography

Sidman, Joyce. 2007. This is Just to Say: Poems of Apology and Forgiveness.  Ill. by Pamela Zagarenski. Boston: Haughton Mifflin Company. ISBN 0618616802

2. Plot Summary

            Being sorry for something is relatable for everyone. Mrs. Merz’s class is assigned to write poems saying that they are sorry, and decided to turn them in to a book and get the subjects of their poems to respond.

3. Critical Analysis

            Using various rhythm, rhyming, and types of poetry This is Just to Say: Poems of Apology and Forgiveness acts as a topical collection about apology, but is really an individual poet compilation. Joyce Sidman is able to create a poetry book using several different voices and perspectives. The book is presented as Mrs. Merz’s class project turned into a book. While all the poems focus on apologies and forgiveness, they use a variety of emotions besides just remorse. Some of the poems make the reader laugh, such as Thomas’s poem This is Just to Say, others are more serious, such as Alyssa’s Black Spot and Jewel’s Next Time, and there are even a couple which aren’t really asking for forgiveness, such as Bobby’s Not Really and Raneesha’s A Waste of Heart. Sidman is able to stay true to the voices of the characters she presents, and Pamela Zagarenski’s illustrations make the reader think of a younger artist. The mixed media illustrations might be a bit to advanced, but this is explained in the introduction where it states “Bao Vang, who is really good at art, took our poems and made the illustrations with the help of Mr. Willow, the art teacher, using her own sketches and some computer art.” Each poem is presented on the page with an illustration. The illustrations add humor throughout the book even to the more serious poems. The colors in the illustrations are bold but complimentary to each other. The poems Sidman writes are also bold and complimentary as well.

4. Reviews

2008 Texas Bluebonnet Award Nominee

Kirkus Review; “…There's a range of topics and ability in the poems, from the "Roses are red / Violets are blue / I'm still really / pissed off at you" in the response section to the difficult form of a pantoum in "Spelling Bomb." A collage-like look to the illustrations captures the child-like quality in sprightly compositions, but the conceit that these are the artwork of one of the students doesn't quite ring true. At one point, Anthony claims to have edited for language, but other poems have some words that are realistically uncensored. Despite a slight uneven quality or perhaps because of it, the whole is far more captivating than expected. Packed with the intensity of everyday pain and sorrow, kids and adults exchange the words that convey grief, delight, love and acceptance of themselves and others.”

From School Library Journal; “…Sidman's ear is keen, capturing many voices. Her skill as a poet accessible to young people is unmatched. Zagarenski's delicately outlined collage drawings and paintings are created on mixed backgrounds-notebook paper, paper bags, newspaper, graph paper, school supplies. This is an important book both for its creativity and for its wisdom.”

5. Connections

* Write your own apology poem or response to someone else’s?

* What do you think Carmen said about Mrs. Merz’s Dress?

*Have different people read the poems allowed. If can only get two people to read then after reading the book allowed have them read Kyle’s and Reuben’s poems again as the students. The sorry poems are on pg. 10- 11, and the response is on pg. 30.

* Similar books:

            Nye, Naomi Shihab. A Maze Me: Poems for Girls. ISBN 0060581891

            Sword, Elizabeth Hauge. A Child’s Anthology of Poem. ISBN 0880013788

            Nye, Naomi Shihab. What Have You Lost. ISBN 0380733072