Witty, irreverent, and warm, this gorgeously illustrated and utterly unique offering holds a mirror up to language and fairy tales, and renews the ...
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Jan 13, 2011
Ceridwen
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This is the kind of book that I wish was not just hanging out in the children's book ghetto. I complain a lot, and loudly, about the books I endure at bedtime - although there are many, many good ones out there, do not get me wrong. Kids tastes are weird though, and they do not necessarily freak out on the things I find enjoyable. This one happily hit some kind of spot for all of us, and that is a wonderful thing.
Adults do not read poetry much anymore. There are many reasons for this More...
Adults do not read poetry much anymore. There are many reasons for this More...
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Oct 24, 2011
Denise
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My opinion of the book is that i like it sooo much cause is fairytales and Is poetry.The book is about the change the poems back words and has 2 diffrent points of view.My shema is that I am a princess cause they call me on the house.My question is why all the princess have wiches.I recommend the book to Jacqueline cause she likes fairytales.My favorite poem is mirror mirror cause i like ryming words and i alos love snow white whith her dress.
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Feb 08, 2012
Shana
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Mirror, Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse by Marilyn Singer is a story about different fairytales. However, each fairytale involves different perspectives from the main character and villain. Singer was able to reverse each story to mirror one another using the same words but just in a different way.
In the poem, each line was consistent that you were able to determine that it rhymed. The images throughout the poem supported the text and were able to create a clear picture for the r More...
In the poem, each line was consistent that you were able to determine that it rhymed. The images throughout the poem supported the text and were able to create a clear picture for the r More...
Dec 06, 2011
1. Junior book, Poetry
2. A collection of poems based on fairy tales that tell two sides of the story using the same poem.
3. These reversals are such a neat idea. Not only is the idea to read a poem from bottom to top fantastic, but to use that to show a different view using the exact same poem, just "upside down", is extremely creative. This book was a great example of a new use of poetry. The poem tells the story of familiar fairy tales but it gives us two pers More...
2. A collection of poems based on fairy tales that tell two sides of the story using the same poem.
3. These reversals are such a neat idea. Not only is the idea to read a poem from bottom to top fantastic, but to use that to show a different view using the exact same poem, just "upside down", is extremely creative. This book was a great example of a new use of poetry. The poem tells the story of familiar fairy tales but it gives us two pers More...
Nov 05, 2011
Jackie
rated it: 
mirror mirror
Marilyn Singer
Illustrated by Josee Masse
Poetry Picture Book
For ages 7 to 10
Dutton Children’s Books, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-525-47901-7
Marilyn Singer turns fairy tales upside-down with her witty reversos in a funtastical poetry book for early readers. Her poems are read top to bottom down one side of the page and then from bottom to top on the opposite side. Singer writes free verse in sassy, clipped lines that would be fun to read alou More...
Marilyn Singer
Illustrated by Josee Masse
Poetry Picture Book
For ages 7 to 10
Dutton Children’s Books, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-525-47901-7
Marilyn Singer turns fairy tales upside-down with her witty reversos in a funtastical poetry book for early readers. Her poems are read top to bottom down one side of the page and then from bottom to top on the opposite side. Singer writes free verse in sassy, clipped lines that would be fun to read alou More...
Nov 01, 2011
Curtis
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Mirror Mirror by Marilyn Singer is a children's poetry book with an outstanding concept. The topic of each poem is a fairy tale. For each fairy tale, two poems are written from different perspectives. The awesome thing is that the two poems are the reverse of each other. For example, in the poem "Cinderella's Double Life", the first line of one poem is "Isn't life unfair?", while it is the last line in the other poem about Cinderella. I truly enjoyed the concept and I think i
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Jul 19, 2011
Allison
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Mirror Mirror by Marilyn Singer is a picture book that can be used among all ages. It is a book filled with 'reverso' poems; a type of poetry created by the author. These are simply poems that are side by side, seemingly the same, just written in reverse. It is like reading the mirror image of the first poem. Most of the punctuation and words remain in the same places, but the mirror images changes the meaning. The book sleeve gives a preview of this type of poetry, saying: "Isn't this
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Feb 18, 2011
Bonnie at
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Mirror Mirror has won the 2010 Cybils Award in the Poetry division. The winners are chosen because they "combined literary merit with kid appeal."
I actually purchased Mirror Mirror sometime last year because it combined interesting poetry techniques with fairytales. The first few entries were so witty, I had to go home and read the rest.
At the end of the book, Marilyn Singer states, "We read most poems down a page. But what if we read them up? That's the q More...
I actually purchased Mirror Mirror sometime last year because it combined interesting poetry techniques with fairytales. The first few entries were so witty, I had to go home and read the rest.
At the end of the book, Marilyn Singer states, "We read most poems down a page. But what if we read them up? That's the q More...
Jan 13, 2011
Kathryn
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This book is so much fun for word-lovers! Singer's poetry takes the form of reversos--a poem that reads one way down but takes on a new meaning when read "up" (reversed, with changes in punctuation and capitalization). As Singer notes in her Author's Note, this is especially effective in telling two sides of one story.
Here, the stories presented are fairy tales. I really enjoyed the selection but felt that some of the poems were more successful than others. In a few cas More...
Here, the stories presented are fairy tales. I really enjoyed the selection but felt that some of the poems were more successful than others. In a few cas More...
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Nov 17, 2010
N_hannahkang
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The idea is clever but I wished there was more depth or discussion to these fairy tale poems. The concept is interesting - Singer attempts to shed light in the well-known fairy tales by exposing both sides of the story through reversible verse. Singer writes the traditional version of the story and then rewrites the same words from bottom to top. I understand that she is limited in her words since the verse has to make sense top to bottom and then bottom to top, but some of the fairy tales t
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Oct 08, 2010
Jessica
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The thing that I love about reading and all the arts in general is that even though that particular art form has been around for hundreds or thousands of years, the well of creativity does not run dry. Marilyn Singer has created the reverso, a poem that reads backwards and forwards and composed a book about fairy tales. Here's an example:
Isn't life unfair?
Stuck in a corner,
while they're waiting for a chance
with the prince,
dancing waltz after waltz
at the ball, More...
Isn't life unfair?
Stuck in a corner,
while they're waiting for a chance
with the prince,
dancing waltz after waltz
at the ball, More...
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May 04, 2010
Elizabeth
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I like to think that the world of children's literature has gained a bit more respect in the last decade or so. Folks notice it and reference it more often. And as sales continue to be good and scholars take note of it more often, its sub-genres proliferate and gain acceptance. Graphic novelists of children's fare increase. Non-fiction writers for kids demand more attention. And then there are the poets. Poets like Marilyn Singer who has been doing good steady work for years and years. I'm looki
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(5 people liked it)
May 29, 2011
Abby
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A "reversible verse" is a poem that becomes a new poem when the lines are read from the bottom up. The poems in "Mirror Mirror" are all based on well-known fairy tales, and by flipping the poem upside down, the reader gets a new perspective on the story.
The concept of the reversible verse is very clever, and some of the poems in this book are very clever as well. I liked the poems about Cinderella, Goldilocks, and Hansel and Gretel; they were well executed. But some po More...
The concept of the reversible verse is very clever, and some of the poems in this book are very clever as well. I liked the poems about Cinderella, Goldilocks, and Hansel and Gretel; they were well executed. But some po More...
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Feb 10, 2012
Cheri
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Mirror, Mirror on the wall.....no this book won't answer that question, but it will give you both sides of the fairytale story. This children's book allows you to read the poem going forward and then read the exact same words but in reverse. The punctuation is different, but the words are the same! Yet, you can read two very different stories. My favorite poem was, "The Doubtful Duckling", most will remember "The Ugly Duckling" story, but here's a sample of this story in reve
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Jan 18, 2011
Eva
rated it: 
I find it strange that I sincerely dislike most of the books that everyone screams from the rooftops about. I don't get it.
This fails. I'm talking like, epic fail here. I get what Singer wanted to do and I like the idea of it. But it doesn't work. Maybe it would with some things and if I'm totally honest it did in fact work here - with maybe two of the poems. The rest? Failed.
I don't know - if you want to read and scream your love for the books the masses say they love this is for More...
This fails. I'm talking like, epic fail here. I get what Singer wanted to do and I like the idea of it. But it doesn't work. Maybe it would with some things and if I'm totally honest it did in fact work here - with maybe two of the poems. The rest? Failed.
I don't know - if you want to read and scream your love for the books the masses say they love this is for More...
Feb 14, 2011
akibird
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Mirror Mirror by Marilyn Singer (2010)
Beginning Reader, 32 pages
Marilyn Singer turns traditional fairytales upside down in Mirror Mirror by using her reverso, two way paired poems that tell both sides of each story using the same words. A reader will need background knowledge of the original tales to appreciate and understand the juxtaposition of the poems, as in “Bears in the News” where the first poem finds a startled Goldie Locks a victim, and the other shows the innocent bear fa More...
Beginning Reader, 32 pages
Marilyn Singer turns traditional fairytales upside down in Mirror Mirror by using her reverso, two way paired poems that tell both sides of each story using the same words. A reader will need background knowledge of the original tales to appreciate and understand the juxtaposition of the poems, as in “Bears in the News” where the first poem finds a startled Goldie Locks a victim, and the other shows the innocent bear fa More...
Feb 10, 2012
Kacie
rated it:
Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse by Marilyn Singer has become my new favorite children's collection of poetry. The poems come alive and invoke all different kinds of feelings. Singer uses what she calls a "reverso" poem to retell classic fairy tales and add a new twist. In the style of "reverso," the poem is divided into lines so that when the order of the lines is reversed, the poem takes on a whole new meaning while using the exact same words.
Each p More...
Each p More...
Jun 19, 2010
Alicia
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From the time that we are very young, magical stories of princesses and fairies, princes and talking animals are told to us, over and over. Fairy tales teach us of the dangers of straying from the path, of judging a man by his fur and not his heart, and of forgetting one's manners and stealing from a witch. Breaking from rote tellings of these tales requires creative thinking on the part of both the author and the reader; author is charged with re-situating well-known characters and actions in a
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Jan 30, 2012
Amy
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This beautifully illustrated poetry collection is unique in that each poem is a reverso, a poetic form created by the author. Each poem is meant to be read from top to bottom and then again from bottom to top. The poems focus on different fairy tales, from Cinderella to Jack and the Beanstalk. For instance, the poem about Little Red Hiding Hood, “In The Hood”, when read top to bottom is from Little Red’s perspective. Read it again from the bottom up and suddenly you get a wolf’s eye view.
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May 18, 2010
Shauna
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Wow! I love children's poetry, and this book is amazing. Part of the "amazingness" was Sophia sitting on the couch next to me, reading aloud each "reverso" poem, with Aerie peeking over the back so she could read along. For a CHILDREN's poetry book, no less. The cleverness of this new form of poetry is delightful. Each of the poems in the book are about a fairy tale, and each reads the same from top to bottom and bottom to top, but mean different things. (Capitalization and p
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Jul 10, 2011
Vicki
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The appeal of a book like Mirror Mirror is its novelty. Author Marilyn Singer has created a clever new form of poetry, the reverso, which happens to be well-suited for expressing alternate perspectives of the same story. Using well-known fairytales provides context for otherwise unimpressive twists of wording. Although Singer receives high marks for creativity, without clues from Masse's half-and-half opposing page layouts, readers would find it difficult to differentiate between voices and p
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Mar 03, 2010
Heather
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Asking herself what would happen if we read a poem up instead of down, Singer created a new poetic form called reverso. When reading a reverso down, it has one meaning. Turn it upside down, and you’ve got a completely different story. This “two sides of a story” style of poetry is perfectly suited to fairy tales. In “The Sleeping Beauty and the Wide-Awake Prince” the poem read one way tells the princess’s side of things—read the other is the prince’s:
But I have to be sleeping,
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But I have to be sleeping,
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Jan 29, 2011
Lisa
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These reverso poems (read the same going down as going up) are clever. They don’t always work 100% but they work well enough and they’re very impressive given how hard they are to write/construct. They’re fiendishly difficult to write; I can tell. The ones I liked best were the ones that specifically gave the perspectives of two different characters depending on whether they were read up or down.
All the fairy tales included are favorites from my childhood, and I also like the author’ More...
All the fairy tales included are favorites from my childhood, and I also like the author’ More...
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Nov 28, 2011
Jeannie
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Citation: Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse, Marilyn Singer, Josee Masse (illustrator), Dutton Children’s Book, 2010, 30p, Junior Book/Poetry.
Genre: Poetry
Summary: This book of poetry features well known fairytales but with a twist...it tells the “flip side of view” of a poem in a unique art form called Reverso. Reverso employs the use the same words written in reverse with only a change in punctuation to change meaning. You will enjoy this prose so much that you More...
Genre: Poetry
Summary: This book of poetry features well known fairytales but with a twist...it tells the “flip side of view” of a poem in a unique art form called Reverso. Reverso employs the use the same words written in reverse with only a change in punctuation to change meaning. You will enjoy this prose so much that you More...
May 15, 2010
Connie
rated it:
This is a great concept, and a good book.
Each poem is readable frontwards and backwards, with each line acting as its own unit. (This means some of the lines are quite short, of course.)
And the front and the back version of each poem tells the fairy tale from a different perspective. My favorite? The Hansel and Gretel one:
Fatten up, boy!
Don't you
like prime rib?
Then your hostess, she will roast you
goose.
Have another chocolate.
More...
Each poem is readable frontwards and backwards, with each line acting as its own unit. (This means some of the lines are quite short, of course.)
And the front and the back version of each poem tells the fairy tale from a different perspective. My favorite? The Hansel and Gretel one:
Fatten up, boy!
Don't you
like prime rib?
Then your hostess, she will roast you
goose.
Have another chocolate.
More...
May 25, 2010
Becky
rated it:
What a cool book!! Right on the heels of the "Lost Generation" reverse poem going viral (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42E2fAWM6...), here is a book of fairy tale "reversos" -- poems that can be read down the page, but also up, line by line, with only punctuation and capitalization changed. The way this changes the meaning is incredible, and would be a lot of fun to study with a writing class. The illustrations, too, are masterfully designed to use the same elements to show
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Oct 16, 2011
Halley
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The playful verses in this beautifully illustrated collection of poems will entrance all of its readers. Marilyn Singer has created a new form of poetry. She writes one poem so that it will be able to tell two sides of the same story, depending on which direction you read the poem (top to bottom, or bottom to top). She has cleverly rewritten classic fairy tales, such as Snow White, from two differing points of perspective. One of the things that is helpful is that she has placed the two perspect
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Mar 16, 2010
Tatiana
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I read this aloud to fourth graders today, and for the most part, they thoroughly enjoyed the novelty of "reverso" rhyme. They were duly impressed with the effort and work and it took the author to be able to pen a poem that could be read forward and backward, each having a different meaning, but all the words are the same. The poem that really floored them in reverse was "In the Hood". Going forward, it was a sunshiny poem from Red's perspective, but in reverse, it was darkn
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Jan 07, 2011
Gayle
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I usually don't include pictures books here, but we found this at the library and thought it was so unique and clever. It's a book of "reverso" poems about fairy tales, meaning they are read line-by-line first forward and then backward, with only changes being made to capitalization and punctuation. Most of the poems focus on two different characters from a fairy tale, for example:
In my hood,
skipping through the wood,
carrying a basket,
picking berries to ea More...
In my hood,
skipping through the wood,
carrying a basket,
picking berries to ea More...
Nov 30, 2010
Ashley
rated it:
I read this book during my elective when we were reading kids books, and it is AWESOME! All the poems are so clever and I love how they work both ways, but tell very different (yet similar) stories. The questions we answered about each book after we read it (during the elective) were: 1. Would you have liked this book as a kid? 2. Do you like this book now? 3. Why? Here are my answers:
1. Yes, but I don't think I really would've appreciated this as much as a kid. I would not have rea More...
1. Yes, but I don't think I really would've appreciated this as much as a kid. I would not have rea More...
