Messing Around on the Monkey Bars by Betsy Franco

Image Credit: www.amazon.com

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Franco, Betsy. 2009. Messing Around on the Monkey Bars. Ill. by Jessie Hartland. Somerville, Massachusetts: Candlewick Press. ISBN 9780763631741

2. PLOT SUMMARY
Betsy Franco’s poems in this book are all poems that pertain to school. Whether taking place within the school walls or outside on the school playground, young readers will easily recognize the individual topics. Betsy Franco writes about pencils, new kids, monkey bars, lunch money, the teacher, homework, and other popular school topics. Children’s poetry is meant to be read aloud, and in this case, it is even better if two people or two groups read it aloud. In addition, Betsy Franco suggests more “adventurous ways” of sharing some of the poems, and those ideas can be found in the back of the book.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
The individual poems are crafted in such a way that they invite and encourage the readers and the audience to be actively involved in the telling of the stories. Author Betsy Franco incorporates different fonts to indicate lines which are spoken by certain voices or certain groups. Rhyming is prevalent throughout the pages, and rhythm is most definitely apparent. Betsy Franco also employs sound effects like “snort, squeal, tap, snicker, eek, whirr, thud, bounce,” and so many other noises. Personification is used in the poem entitled “Back in the Room for the Afternoon” as Glue, Door, Pack, Clay, and Calculator speak to the students.

The illustrator, Jessie Hartland, paints bold colors throughout the book. Her pictures resemble childlike drawings which compliment the “school” theme. She accurately emphasizes the physical characteristics as they appear. In the poem “Jenny’s Pencil”, for example, the illustrated pencils are much larger in comparison to the size of the students. The combination of Franco’s words and Hartland’s illustrations results in an overall fun book that needs to be shared.

4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL – “An enjoyable romp through playgrounds and cafeterias, this book will please class poets, performers, and clowns alike.”
KIRKUS – “Hartland's energetic gouache illustrations adopt a nave style that matches the playful spirit of the text while serving as a splendid complement to its evocation of children's voices. This book gets high marks.”
THE HORN BOOK – “The clear and interactive presentation elevates the solid content, and Hartland's whimsical paintings (featuring a multi-ethnic cast of kids) add to the playful tone.”

5. CONNECTIONS
• This book or portions of it could be used in a “school” themed library story-time for elementary students.
• Other poetry books by Betsy Franco could be paired with MESSING AROUND ON THE MONKEY BARS:
Franco, Betsy. A DAZZLING DISPLAY OF DOGS. ISBN 9781582463438
Franco, Betsy. A CURIOUS COLLECTION OF CATS: CONCRETE POEMS. ISBN 9781582462486
• Use this book with other poetry books about school.
Crawley, Dave. READING, WRITING, AND ‘RITHMETIC: POEMS. ISBN 9781590785652
Horton, Joan. I BROUGHT MY RAT FOR SHOW-AND-TELL: AND OTHER FUNNY SCHOOL POEMS. ISBN 0448434903
Dakos, Kalli. PUT YOUR EYES UP HERE, AND OTHER SCHOOL POEMS. ISBN 0689811179