Animal Rap and Far-Out Fables

Teya Rosenberg is an assistant professor of English specializing in
children’s literature at Southwest Texas State University.

This collection of poems presents fun stories and silly scenarios
featuring a wide variety of animals, from the familiar (such as Penelope
Jane, the elusive hamster, in “Vanishing Act”) to the exotic (such
as the navigationally impaired mongoose, moa, and manatees in “Around
the World for a Shortcut”). Other highlights of the collection include
“Bumbling Bear,” whose “biological clock / got a crick,” a crick
cured by a large selection of doughnuts; “The Monster Duck,” who
becomes a sun shade in Iran; and “Earl,” a singing elk. In keeping
with a long-standing tradition in children’s literature, there are
some rather grotesque endings for some animals: the mouse who invites
kittens to tea ends up as the last course, and a “slimy snake” is
mashed by a “macho mastodon.”

As with most collections, Animal Rap has its strong and weak points.
Many of the poems are lively, well structured, and imaginative. But a
few poems seem to have been added to fill out the collection, and their
audience seems more adult than child. As well, the title Animal Rap
really applies only to the poem of that title, and the final poem, which
encourages readers to write their own poems, is a bit condescending. On
the whole, however, this is an enjoyable collection that can stand up to
successive readings. The black-and-white illustrations are lively and
well suited to the poetry. Recommended.