BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Sidman, Joyce. 2007. THIS IS JUST TO SAY: POEMS OF APOLOGY AND FORGIVENESS. Illus. by Pamela Zagarenski. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-618-61680-2
REVIEW/CRITICAL ANALYSIS:
Inspired by the poem This Is Just To Say by William Carlos Williams, a class of sixth graders penned their own writings of apology. Poems range from lighthearted expressions of remorse over dodgeball games ("Kyle, I'm sorry/ for hitting you so hard in dodge ball./ I just really get carried away") to a heartfelt plea to a father ("Please, please come back./ Don't leave me spinning alone,/ like a slow, sad tornado./ I'm sorry, Daddy./ Next time I'll be perfect.").
After these poems were written, one of the students wondered what the reactions and responses were of those receiving the various apologies. In a perfect counterpoint, written responses from the recipients are recorded as a second half of the book. This provides a sense of completion and balance to the emotion of the students. The responses are as varied and engaging as the original works. Reacting to a sincere apology from a sister, one responder provided this simple verse: "Roses are red,/ violets are blue,/ I'm still really/ pissed off at you." One father responded to his son's concern over a past broken window by sharing details of his own educational journey and pride over his son's accomplishments while telling him to forget the window. When those receiving apologies would not reply, others did so for them. In a particularly emotional poem, a peer responded to a poem which revealed a student's pain over losing a competition and the apparent disapproval by his mother. The classmate reached out with these words: "Parents say:/ only the best get ahead./ I say:/ everyone's good at something."
Starting with a guide to the organization of the book, Sidman's anthology of young people's poems is balanced and of appropriate length. However, one must wonder why the decision was made to not to display the poems of apology and response side-by-side. For some poems it was difficult to remember just what was said in the apology and why the response was written as it was. This one issue is not enough to sully the work, but forces the reader to go back and forth in the book to clarify certain points.
The reader is pulled into the book beginning with the endearing note from the student editor. Illustrations are childlike and simple which direct the reader through the poems themselves. The drawings are innocent like the words they reflect. Both the words and the pictures are simple yet honest perceptions of a child. In "What Was I Thinking?", the descriptions and corresponding illustration of a principal as seen through the eyes of a scared child are classic ("she is bigger than I thought...The principal's eyes are like hot sparks./ My parents will be so angry."). The drawing depicts a disproportionately small child slinking in the office with a huge adult. Colors used in the work are soothing with elements of a collage work. Periodically words/images from a dictionary or newspaper are seen on the pages lending a feel of a children's school project. These are works of children, and the illustrations are true to that origin and are reflective of that.
The rhythm of the poems vary, but all are basic and reflect the youth of the authors. The other poetic elements vary with each writer. Poems in the work do not have forced rhyming but are most often more free verse stories, and the language is true to the age of the authors. Each of the poems contain vivid imagery. Descriptions of "jagged holes" in "Balance" to "the pan gaped/ like an accusing eye" in "Brownies- Oops!"to the daughter's plea in "Next Time" not to be left "spinning alone,/ like a slow, sad tornado." The emotion of each author is felt through their descriptions and are enhanced by the parallel illustrations.
This Is Just To Say is a powerful anthology testifying both to the lighthearted approach of some and to the depth of emotions felt by students. While most appropriate for older elementary and middle school students, parents and teachers will be greatly affected by the writings included within the pages. The book is easy to read and carries the reader from laughter to tears as they journey with these children. Many readers may find themselves wanting to know where these children are now and how these relationships have fared since the writing. Their hearts and words leave an imprint on the reader, a true mark of good poetry and a quality anthology.
AWARDS/REVIEWS:
Texas Bluebonnet nominee
School Library Journal, starred review: "what emerges is a surprising array of emotions, poetic forms, and subjects" (Lee Bock)
Publishers Weekly: "often humorous and touching anthology"
CONNECTIONS:
*have children journal about a time when they could have written a "This Is Just To Say" (or apology) poem
*have children select one writing from This Is Just To Say, either apology or response, and respond to it
*have students read other works by children by providing students with other anthologies written by children, like "Shots & Sugar, Sugar & Shots" which is an anthology by children with diabetes collected by the Children's Diabetes Program at Vanderbilt Medical Center
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