Meow Ruff

Bibliography

Sidman, Joyce. 2006. MEOW RUFF: A STORY IN CONCRETE POETRY. Ill. By Michelle Berg. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. ISBN 0618448942

Plot Summary

On a bright sunny day, a dog slips quickly out of an open door. Simultaneously, a small white cat is dropped out of a car onto the curb, let the chase begin! As the two animals run, a sudden storm begins to brew, leading them to seek shelter in the same place. They form an unlikely bond, and in the end, the dog’s owner brings the cat home to live with them.

Critical Analysis

The illustrations and poems in this book come together as one. Sidman uses concrete poetry to bring the scenery in these poems to life. The clouds in the beginning are made up of the words “plump bright dome of sugary white sky-muffin”, but as the storm heats up, they transform into “dense dark drenching murk.” Even the grass, lining the bottom of the pages, is composed of descriptive words like “Ticklish, Feathery, Earth-smell, Sun-Warmed, Paw-Soft Grass” that transform along with the weather to a “soaking, sinking, seeping, draining, slurping sponge of grassy dirt.”

This book is wonderfully designed, so that the poetry and illustration become one, and really engage the reader in the text. This book would be great to share with students as they begin to explore poetry, and understand its many forms.

Review Excerpt

Booklist- “It's typically said of picture books that art and text are inseparable, but the truth of that has rarely been more evident than it is in this introduction to concrete poetry--which, unlike most books about the form, doesn't just collect unrelated poems, but tells a story through them. With the same creativity of expression that marked Song of the Waterboatman (2005), a 2006 Caldecott Honor Book, Sidman develops a simple tale about a cat and dog trapped in a rainstorm, coding much of the substance right into the physical landscape.”

Connections

*Have students create their own concrete poetry using the shapes of animals, foliage, and common objects.

* Other Books if Concrete poetry for children

Graham, Joan. Flicker FLASH. ISBN 0618311025

Lewis, J. Patrick. DOODLE DANDIES: POEMS THAT TAKE SHAPE. ISBN 0689848897