The Beauty of the Beast: Poems from the Animal Kingdom

by Jack Prelutsky (Compiler), Meilo So (Illustrator)

The Beauty of the Beast : Poems from the Animal Kingdom is a stunning collection of poems celebrating "the beauty and wonder of the animal kingdom." Poet and anthologist Jack Prelutsky has chosen 200 works by 123 poets from Carl Sandburg to Seamus Heaney, with a tip of the hat to his own "The Multilingual Mynah Bird." Not surprising for someone who grew up near the Bronx Zoo, Prelutsky has arranged the poems into five zoological classifications. The vibrant watercolor illustrations for this book were created by Meilo So, a brilliant Hong Kong-born artist. A welcome anthology for poetry lovers, watercolor enthusiasts, and children's book collectors alike. (Ages 8 and older)

Genres: Poetry, Animals, Picture Books, Childrens, Nonfiction, Middle Grade, Anthologies

112 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1997

About the author

Jack Prelutsky is an American poet. He attended New York public schools, and later the High School of Music and Art and Hunter College. Prelutsky, who has also worked as a busboy, furniture mover, folk singer, and cab driver, claims that he hated poetry in grade school because of the way it was taught. He is the author of more than 30 poetry collections including Nightmares: Poems to Trouble Your Sleep< and A Pizza the Size of the Sun. He has also compiled countless children's anthologies comprised of poems of others'. Jack Prelutsky was married to Von Tre Venefue, a woman he had met in France. They divorced in 1995, but Jack remarried. He currently lives in Washington state with his wife, Carolyn. He befriended a gay poet named Espiritu Salamanca in 1997 and both now work together in writing poems and stories for children and adults alike.

Reviews

[SaraKat · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you like poetry about animals, you'll enjoy this one. The poems are all pretty short and simple. There are poems about a lot of different types of animals-some pretty obscure. Some are funny, some are serious. I think the age group that this book is written for will be bored by many of the poems, though. The watercolors are beautiful and the poems are written in fanciful ways to go around the art on some pages which makes the presentation very nice.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

This anthology of animal poems, compiled by Jack Prelutsky, is brimming with beautiful watercolor pictures by Meilo So. The book is divided into five chapters that represent five major groups of animals: insects, fish, reptiles, birds, and mammals—however, even the chapter titles are poetic. Each chapter is prefaced with a haiku that further describes the group as a whole. Contained therein are myriad poems of varying size and complexity to satisfy readers of all ages. I like that I can flip through and choose a poem (or several) about a particular animal in which I have interest. I let my four year old daughter flip through until she finds a picture she likes, then I read the associated poem. This anthology is full of material to be picked out to enhance a given unit that may include animals (especially in science). Even the lowly, hated mosquito is graciously described with delicate words in the poem “Mosquito” by Valerie Worth (p. 4). For young children who may be interested in a wide variety of animals, or maybe even the student who may specifically like bugs, this book is a rich source of material that uses poetry to liven our imaginations. Definitely a must-have.

[Cheryl]

Lovely art. Big book. My taste does not correlate much with Prelutsy's, so there's too much for me to read through. He does include what may be my favorite poem of all time, though, *Dust of Snow* by Robert Frost.

I do appreciate that the section on birds says "descended from dinosaurs."
I like that a poem is chosen that lauds crows. I do not like that the ones on bats diss them.

*Pigeons* by Richard Kell makes me want to read more by him.
-------
*Small, Smaller*

"I thought that I knew all there was to know
Of being small, until I saw once, black against the snow,
A shrew, trapped in my footprint, jump and fall
And jump again and fall, the hole too deep, the walls too tall."

Russell Hoban
--------
Indexes of titles and authors, but not of first lines. Permissions page too dense to read as 'further reading' though it could easily have been designed so.

March 2024

[Child960801 · Rating 5 out of 5]

We did this one as a read aloud, because I like to have a poetry book going with the children. We all enjoyed this one. It was full of poems we hadn’t heard before and the illustrations were lovely. The poems are arranged by type of animals and I found it surprising how many poems about different kinds of bugs there were.

[Anne Shank · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poems about all sorts of animals... Beautiful artwork.

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loved the illustrations, especially the birds and ants. Thought the selection of poems was pretty boring on the whole.

[Amanda Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful watercolor and ink illustrations by Meilo So combine effortlessly with animal-related poems for readers in the upper elementary grades in The Beauty of the Beast: Poems from the Animal Kingdom. An Association of Library Service to Children Notable Book, this poetry collection by Jack Prelutsky features various types of poems from numerous authors to showcase animals through verse.

This book is organized into five sections, each featuring poems about a different element of the animal kingdom. Insects, sea-creatures, reptiles, birds, and mammals all have a place in this book. Each page of the book includes one to four poems and has related illustrations surrounding the text. The poems included in this book are fairly short, ranging from a few lines to three to four stanzas. They vary in age as well, with the earliest first published in 1930 up until the 1990s.

Acknowledgements at the end of the book list where the poems in the book were originally published, if relevant, and an index of authors and titles makes it easy for the reader to locate specific poems. Prelutsky included some of his own poems in this book, as well as the work of David McCord, Aileen Fisher, Eve Merriam, John Ciardi, and other award-winning poets.

This book contains many well-selected poems that are wonderful to read. There is something for every reader in this text; concrete, haiku, free verse, lyric, and even short narrative poems are in this collection. The poem ‘Dollar Dog’ by John Ciardi includes humor, word play, and authenticity of voice as it describes the type of mixed breed dog that can be bought for a dollar. Other poems, such as ‘Beavers in November’ by Marilyn Singer, take a more lyrical approach using word placement and alliteration to express the relationship between beavers and mud.

The illustrations by Meilo So in this book are a true gem. Using watercolors, she creates everything from the ocean floor, a world of snakes, and a reindeer herd, to a raccoon exploring a trashcan and a hawk in flight. Though she uses the same soft style of painting with few details throughout the book, she manages to express the strength, fragility, humor, and beauty of the animal world with freshness on each page. So’s artwork is wonderful and adds a great deal to the book. The placement of the poems between her illustrations and good use of white space make the pages of the book full, yet easy to read and not overwhelming.

The Beauty of the Beast is a well collected, high-quality poetry anthology that appeals to readers of any form of poetry. The variety of poetry styles and subject matter in this book make it a popular addition to the world of children’s poetry.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of animal poetry is arranged in five zoological classifications: insects, sea creatures, reptiles and amphibians, birds, and mammals. Each section begins with a poem written specifically for the book by Prelutsky, himself. Over one hundred authors are included in the book. There is a contents page that lays out the sections of the book, an index of titles that is helpful if a reader wants to quickly locate a specific animal, an index of authors, and acknowledgements of the sources Prelutsky used. The poems range in tone and focus. There are silly poems and serious poems. Some describe the physical features of the animals; others describe behavior characteristics. Some of the poems celebrate the animals; others lament or curse the animals. All of the poems celebrate life. The styles of the poems also encompass a wide variety: sounds, shapes, and movements from the animal kingdom are represented. The poems are printed in black on white paper and surrounded by bright watercolor illustrations. Like the text of the poems, the illustrations present differing perspective and parts of the animals and their habitats. The closing piece of poetry is well chosen. The book ends with a poem titled “The Whale Ghost.” It asks the reader to imagine the moment the last whale is made extinct. Its words are haunting, and the repetition echoes in the reader’s mind. It reminds us that although animals may entertain, frighten, or frustrate us—we are connected and have a responsibility to share and protect this earth. This book is a great selection for readers of all ages who have an interest in poetry and/or animals

[Hannah Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

My heart! Prelutsky's combination of obscure and familiar poems written by a wide variety of poets married with So's illustrations are the perfect match. I enjoyed this book of poetry as much as their other collaboration, The 20th Century Children's Poetry Treasury, and am sad there isn't another. It's tough to choose a favorite poem so I'll pick my favorite short poem, written by Moritake:

"Fallen petals rise back to the branch - I watch: oh...butterflies!"

[Jenna Scurto · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Beauty of the Beast: Poems from the Animal Kingdom is an anthology of animal poetry that covers everything from an ant to an alligator. The text is organized into five categories: insects, aquatic animals, amphibians, birds, and mammals. Each section opens with a short, one stanza poem written by Jake Prelutsky. Prelutsky also chose the poems that were to be included in the anthology. He chose a diverse grouping of famous authors and poems. Meil So created watercolor paintings that have the appearance of stamps due to the blurred edges of the figures. The artwork looks like it was created around each poem’s content and the organization of the poems on the page. The artwork would attract an elementary student, but may look too young for a middle school student. The poems could be used at the middle level, but content and reading level would best fit in the elementary grades, particularly in an animal unit. The text was an ALA notable book.

[Julia Maisel · Rating 4 out of 5]

These poems are excellent examples of high quality poetry for children. There are many different poems within this book, but they all are about animals. One of the poems, Fireflies in the Garden by Robert Frost, paint a wonderful picture for children. It is about the view of fireflies lighting up the night sky and how they look like stars.

One of the amazing elements about this book is the beautiful watercolor illustrations. They bring the various poems together on the page and offer an intriguing element to the literature. The poems offer many different characteristics of poetry, such as personification, rhyme and rhythm, and word play. The poems are in various styles. For example, I Catch a Firefly by Rebecca Caudill is a haiku poem. This book is an excellent selection for children's poetry.

[jacky · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of poetry about animals. The animals are sorted by mammals, reptiles, ect. The poems are by many different famous authors, and the collection has all sorts of poems. One of the best things about this book is the beautiful watercolor illustrations.

I used this book very successfully during my grad school practicum. I had my tutees choose their favorite animals and we read those poems. We discussed how the poets added the factual details about the animals as well as analyzing the style of the poems. I then had then write and illustrate their own poems on animals.

One of my favorite poems was on the skunk.

[Nichole Perez · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a poetry book about animals. The books contains over a hundred plus poems. Each poem varies in the tone used from funny to sober. The illustrations used to accompany the poems are beautifully done with watercolors. I was in complete awe of all the illustrations. My favorite part of the whole book were the illustrations because of how much attention to detail was provided. I would highly recommend this book to any child who has a hard time with poetry because animals are used which helps to generate more interest.

[Eden Silverfox · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a book of poetry by various authors and all the poems are about different animals. The poems were selected by Jack Prelutsky, who I just love.

I did like some of the poems in this book, but most were just okay. I like the poems were split into sections, like insects, birds, etc. Also the illustrations were nice and I enjoyed those.

So, for me, this book of poetry was okay. There were some poems in it I really liked so it was worth a read. I'd give it 2 and a half stars.

[Kelly Francis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is full of poems about different animals and insects written by a variety of authors. I would use this to enhance different subjects we are studying by reading a few poems that relate to the topic. I think students will enjoy the short poems and it will be a bit different and unexpected since they are more accustomed to picture books. There are enough poems to appeal to everyone's taste.

[Jodi Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book of poems could be a great resource in the classroom. During the animal segments you could read it and have the children guess what animals some are if its not given away in the title). You could also use this to talk about poems letting students know the different types of poems and different animals to write about.

[Kendal Ginnetti · Rating 5 out of 5]

i really enjoyed this book. I enjoy Jack Prelutskys works in the Random house book of poetry and this book is very similar to that one. The poems are very entertaining and they easily keep you reading because they are so interesting and fun to read. The pictures are great as well. I've always been really into poetry so I really enjoyed this book.

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poems about animals, varying formats and length, from a wide variety of authors. Bonus points for including a Kerouac haiku. Accompanied by watercolor illustrations.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible collection of poetry about animals accompanied by gorgeous illustrations. I read a few poems from this book every morning to my kids at summer camp.

[Christine Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

An illustrated collection of poems about animals, insects, and birds by poets from different parts of the world.

Juv Nonfiction 811.008 Bea

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