The Death of the Hat: A Brief History of Poetry in 50 Objects

by Paul B. Janeczko, Chris Raschka (Illustrator)

A celebrated duo reunites for a look at poems through history inspired by objects—earthly and celestial—reflecting the time in which each poet lived.

A book-eating moth in the early Middle Ages. A peach blossom during the Renaissance. A haunted palace in the Victorian era. A lament for the hat in contemporary times. Poetry has been a living form of artistic expression for thousands of years, and throughout that time poets have found inspiration in everything from swords to stamp albums, candles to cobwebs, manhole covers to the moon. In The Death of the Hat: A Brief History of Poetry in 50 Objects, award-winning anthologist Paul B. Janeczko presents his fiftieth book, offering young readers a quick tour of poets through the ages. Breathing bright life into each selection is Chris Raschka’s witty, imaginative art.

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

80 pages, Hardcover

First published March 10, 2015

About the author

Paul B. Janeczko is a poet and teacher and has edited more than twenty award-winning poetry anthologies for young people, including STONE BENCH IN AN EMPTY PARK, LOOKING FOR YOUR NAME, SEEING THE BLUE BETWEEN, and A POKE IN THE I, which was an American Library Association Notable Book.

Reviews

[Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Death of the Hat: A Brief History of Poetry in 50 Objects" is one of the "non-fiction" selections for Chapter and verse Book Club this year. We are reading it as a possible contender for the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal. At the same time that the book list of award contenders for 2015 publications for our book club was released, "The Death of the Hat" appeared in a Star Tribune article on August 18th entitled, "Lovely Picture Books for Your Kids on Sharks, Poetry, North Woods Life and More." The title of this article introduces much of what I want to talk about in regards to this book.

This book is a conundrum. "Lovely Picture Book..." - yes, the book is packaged as a "picture book" in both size and illustrations. And the watercolor and ink illustrations are gorgeous and help add cohesiveness to the book, both in terms of style and repeated elements (the wildgoose, pastel color palette, etc.)

"For Your Kids..." - not so much. The book is recommended for grades three and up. Really? The text at the beginning of the book, which covers literary periods from the early middle ages to contemporary, would be well beyond the grasp of a third grader. For example, "First, early poets, particularly in the West, composed philosophical and spiritual meditations on life and death..." Yeah, a third grader would be all over that! The same is true of many of the poems Paul Janeczko selected for inclusion in the anthology. I felt the text was more appropriate for high school on up - who may have some context for what is covered here - most will have studied these literary and historical periods to some degree. However, they will NOT carry around a "Lovely Picture Book."

So, the question is, "Who is 'The Death of the Hat: A Brief History of Poetry in 50 Objects' for?" The book has received many starred reviews in professional review journals. It IS well-organized and IS fluent visually, in terms of the chronological coverage of literary time periods, and in terms of the "object" theme. It IS visually appealing. However, as many goodreads reviewers (many of whom were disappointed in the book and gave it one star) have stated, the book is not appropriate for its intended audience. This is something I very often see in "informational texts." I don't understand the insistence on using the large, picture book format when presenting material more appropriate for older readers. Perhaps secondary teachers might use the book in a study of poetry and/or literary time periods, but I don't see it as a big seller for independent reading at any age level.

I, personally, enjoyed it. But I don't necessarily think kids or teens will.

[Charlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book very much, both for its selection of poetry (my favorites were "The Death of the Hat" by Billy Collins, "Lament, for Cocoa" by John Updike and "The Summer Day" by Mary Oliver) and for its charming illustrations by Chris Raschka. Took me a month or more to get through the 50 page book but I enjoyed that pace & looking back at the illustrations afterwards.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Janeczko has collected here an excellent representation of poems from different cultures and time periods, starting with the early Middle Ages. All of the poems center around objects, which must have been a challenge to find during times when poetry tended to be more abstract or philosophical. His introduction provides an overview of the time periods and poets selected. I discovered a few poets I’d never heard of before, like Jusammi Chikako and Charlotte Smith. These poems were selected with care, and were a pleasure to read aloud.

I usually don’t care for Chris Rascka’s illustrations, but I make the exception here. He has two really cute watercolors of cats, one fuzzy gray kitten on the verso, and a stripy gray cat on pages 54 and 55 in whose eyes the crescent moon is reflected. However, the best illustration is the one that accompanies the poem “A Solitary Wildgoose” on page 17. The poem is about flying with the flock or flying alone. The goose chooses to fly alone—throughout the entire book. You can spot him in the illustrations to other poems as the book progresses, until, on the endpapers, he’s joined a flock of what looks to be a different type of goose. Very clever!

I highly recommend this delightful collection of poems to young and old alike. Don’t forget to look for the goose!

[Samantha · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really liked the introduction here and I was excited to see this concept in action. In the end, though, I don't think this approach to the topic of poetry works, especially because when you search for poems about an object you often end up with obscure poems by fantastic poets rather than the poems these writers are famous for.

The watercolor artwork did a good job of spotlighting the subjects of the poems and was the main draw to this book (for me).

Overall, there was a great selection of authors included in this volume of poetry, but less than 5 well-known poems due to the linking factor being objects versus what each poet was best known for. The poetry is very advanced and difficult for young readers to understand. I'd place this volume at an 8 grade and up reading level, though the artwork appeals to PreK-2+ crowds.

I've enjoyed poetry collection by this duo before, I just think the concept doesn't work here.

[Becky · Rating 1 out of 5]

The premise of The Death of the Hat is intriguing and challenging. Is it possible to give a brief history of poetry in 50 poems? And in 50 poems about things? What I noticed is that by limiting it to things--to objects--what you get is not 50 of the best poems ever written, but 50 poems that fit the criteria. I would have preferred 50 of the best poems ever OR 50 poems that are really good and still accessible to children. The spanning of the poems through the centuries is nice enough. And as I said, in theory, this one has potential. But in fact, I found it a challenging read. The poems varied in accessibility. Some were REALLY hard to connect to, to understand, to enjoy. Authors probably weren't hoping for a response of "so what?" Of course, there are some exceptions. Still this one would be for people who already LOVE poetry.

[Leaflet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marvelous collection with wonderful watercolor illustrations. Is it suitable for children? I don't know and I don't care. One poem of many favorites:

In Praise of a Sword Given Him by His Prince
Colman mac Lenini
translated by Richard O'Connell

Blackbirds to a swan,
Feathers to hard iron,
Rock hags to a siren,
All lords to my lord;
Jackdaws to a hawk,
Cackling to a choir,
Sparks to a bonfire,
All swords to my sword.

[Mary Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

FABULOUS anthology of poetry from Early Middle Ages to Contemporary. Great choices. Accessible to kids. Wonderful illustrations.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strange. In the introduction, the editor makes it plain that 1. finding diverse poems about objects is hard, 2. different cultures have different histories, and 3. different poems written both in the same era and in the same culture can 'belong' to different labeled 'periods.' So I'm wondering, why is Janeczko forcing this theme into a book? He has a solid reputation with the industry, couldn't he have skipped the 'history' part? Or (less successfully, because art doesn't follow rules), skipped the objects and focused on the 'history' - ? Maybe making it a history without labels, like "Romantic Period," as labels like that seem unnecessary.

And to call a "wildgoose" an "object," for example, disturbs me. Objects are inanimate, at least as implied by the syntax of the title of this collection. Grammatically, even people can be objects, but that's not what this book seems to be talking about.

No help with interpretation, as in other collections for children (except for a bit, very general, in introduction). No back matter (except acknowledgements). Illustrations ugly, in my opinion.

However, several great poems. Some familiar, ok. Some incomprehensible to me. But there's Mary Oliver's *The Summer Day* that is all worth reading, but concludes with a pair of lines you've probably seen: "Tell me, what is it you plan to do/with your one wild and precious life?" And a new to me by Langston Hughes, *Stars.* Then there's *Mushrooms* by Sylvia Plath is understandable on its own, but even more effective if the reader knows of her challenges & tragedy.

My favorite, of the ones that I think are suited for this title & for this audience, is:

*In Praise of a Sword Given Him by His Prince*
Colman mac Lenini

Blackbirds to a swan,
Feathers to hard iron,
Rock hags to a siren,
All lords to my lord;
Jackdaws to a hawk,
Cackling to a choir,
Sparks to a bonfire,
All swords to my sword.

Irish Gaelic; trans. Richard O'Connell

[superawesomekt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! I love the illustrations in this anthology and I like the idea. It took me a while to really understand that each poem is supposed to be an object. It was a cute gimmick but there's a few ways it doesn't really work. One is that some of the objects are repeated (e.g. cats and moons) and secondly the poems themselves are not necessarily appealing to a child. Many of them are, which is why I'm still giving it four stars.

I also don't love that there's an introduction that most kids likely wouldn't read but then no further context or introduction for the rest of the book. On the other hand leaving out any of that makes it a slimmer more manageable size and a better picture book.

I actually do like it as part of a collection of poetry anthologies. It is unique and only has a few poems that would overlap with other children's poetry anthologies that I know of. I like that you get Ben Jonson and John Donne in it as well as more medieval and Renaissance Chinese and Japanese poets.

But the illustrations are the star!

[Lynne Vanderveen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology of poetry is a children's book. I was sure of that when I saw the overall size, the length, and the illustrations. Then I started reading only to find Rumi, Shakespeare, Ben Jonson, John Donne, Robert Burns, Blake, Tennyson, Yeats... Some of this is difficult reading for a child and then some is not. Some writers like John Updike are presented through a very child-friendly poem. I found poems by familiar poets I had never read. I didn't think it possible to find a Langston Hughes or Countee Cullen or Robert Frost - and yet there were these lovely finds! I discovered poets both old and new who were interesting and begged for me to read on in other works. I'm not sure exactly what age the book is for. My ten-year-old granddaughter would appreciate some of them. The fourteen-year-old who loves poetry would certainly be introduced to some wonderful poems by older poets she hasn't read and be enriched. And their old grandma found challenging poems, silly poems, familiar and new poems. Maybe it's not a children's book but just a lovely book of poems for all.

[Katrina Tangen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always like his anthologies, but I didn't love this one as much. I think he gave himself too hard of a job by making it a history of poetry that only includes poems about objects. He mentions in the intro that he had some trouble because early Western poets normally wrote about abstract things like philosophy and death, not objects--which you would think would be an indication that maybe this wasn't the best combination of themes! So the early poetry is mostly Eastern and then it suddenly switches to Western, which is a little disconcerting. And it's kind of strange that he starts his timeline in 400AD and doesn't include anything from Ancient Greece, etc. I don't think you get as clear a view of the evolution of poetry as you could have if he'd given himself more flexibility.

It's also not his most accessible anthology since it includes more early poets than usual. So definitely for older kids or even YA.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another interesting project between the compiler and illustrator. Billy Collins’s “The Death of the Hat” steals the show along with Raschka’s cover, but it is far from alone. Raschka’s illustrations throughout are imaginative, evocative, and fanciful. For myself, I’m glad Janeczko was constrained by the boundaries of the project—read the Introduction. Raschka seems especially enchanted by geese, cats, clouds, and water. It is curious to find the book cataloged in our library in the juvenile section, when the book is targeted for “young and not-so-young readers” and is less likely to capture many on the younger end of that spectrum—I think it would be more likely to be read if at least moved into the Young Adult category. This book deserves to be seen and read

[Margie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very unusual collection of poetry meant to illustrate the history of this literary form. Paul Janeczko found poems about objects for younger readers to take them through the history of poetry starting with the early Middle Ages and progressing to contemporary poetry. Some of the "objects" are actually living things such as animals, plants and the weather. Some are clear and easy to understand, while others require stretching the mind. The illustrations by Chris Raschka are bright, lively and bring clarity to each poem.

[David Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

March 2015

2019 Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children

Poetry

This is a poem about the change of attire (particular hats) over time.
I personally really like this poem for it's connection to historical trends. I think this would be a good poem to get students visualizing and inferencing which a lot of poetry requires.

[Debi Cates · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed it. The most powerful poem for me was the title one. The illustrations were swishy, moody, and folksy watercolors.

Being a picture book format would make you think the book is for elementary school kids. But it is much too sophisticated for that level.

But, heck, who says a picture book couldn't be for teens or adults?

[Lkking · Rating 4 out of 5]

All ages poetry. The author presents a history of poetry by era - romantic, renaissance, modern, etc. - and by object. A good intro to classic and not-so-classic poetry, this volume is beautifully and simply illustrated by the watercolor art of Chris Raschka.

[Elle Buffenbarger · Rating 2 out of 5]

The illustrations were amazing and the poems were well written as well but I would not want to read to my class in one sitting. I would recommend breaking this book down into sections or to read it over a period of time when working with children.

[Maika · Rating 2 out of 5]

This goes through the ages with poems of objects. I think this could be an interesting read for a history unit/class specifically if you are learning about the romantic period or the Renaissance, to tie in a poem from that time.

[Kayla Leitschuh · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Death of the Hat takes you on a poetic journey from the Early Middle Ages until Contemporary times. I loved Chris Raschka's illustrations that accompanied the poems. A really cool book.

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This "children's book" is for children who are enrolled in an MFA program at college. Sheesh.

Lovely pictures, though.

[Leonard · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little unusual, and some of the poems were familiar and some not so familiar, but nothing to get excited about.

[Rebecca Lesue · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this anthology more than I did.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am teetering back and forth between 3 and 4 stars. 4 for my personal enjoyment but 3 if I am considering it for children.

I liked the premise...to use 50 poems about 50 objects to give a history of poetry, of different periods. I liked the inclusion of a variety of poets, many famous but some lesser known poets. I liked the illustrations. And I liked many of the poems. Some I really liked. I, personally, enjoyed that while I was familiar with a number of the poets, almost all of the poems were unfamiliar to me.

However, I agree with many other reviewers that most of these poems will not appeal to children. Teens will enjoy some. So it is an unusual anthology because it is set up as a picture book but the poems are geared more toward much older readers. That isn't inherently bad...teens and adults do read picture books.

A few of the poems I really liked include:
The Eagle by Alfred Lord Tennyson
I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud by William Wordsworth
A Riddle, On the Letter E. by George Gordon
An Hymn to the Evening by Phyllis Wheatley

My very favorite poem was "Famous" by Naomi Shihab Nye.

The river is famous to the fish.

The loud voice is famous to the silence,
which knew it would inherit the earth
before anybody said so.

The cat sleeping on the fence is famous to the birds
watching him from the birdhouse.

The tear is famous, briefly, to the cheek.

The idea you carry close to your bosom
is famous to your bosom.

The boot is famous to the earth,
more famous than the dress shoe,
which is famous only to floors.

The bent photograph is famous to the one who carries it
and not at all famous to the one who is pictured.

I want to be famous to shuffling men
who smile while crossing streets,
sticky children in grocery lines,
famous as the one who smiled back.

I want to be famous in the way a pulley is famous,
or a buttonhole, not because it did anything spectacular,
but because it never forgot what it could do.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paul B. Janeczko and Chris Raschka reunite for this anthology. I will begin by saying that I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of poetry. I loved the organization of the poems throughout time, beginning in the Early Middle Ages through today. Each of the 50 poems is written about an object, further uniting the poems in the collection.

The poetry caused me to reflect on life and the human experience. Because the poems spanned so many centuries, it was also interesting to read about how someone once felt about certain objects in time gone by. Poetry is often written about nature and nature is certainly a theme here.

Raschka’s watercolor illustrations are breezy and light – but also sometimes require further consideration to catch his true meaning. Astute readers will notice that the solitary wildgoose from Cui Tu’s poem in the beginning flies through many of the pages, finally reconnecting with other geese in the end papers.

As with any collection, some of the poems and the illustrations struck a chord in me. Some did not. Most of my favorites were from the more recent years. I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud by William Wordsworth, Manhole Covers by Karl Shapiro, and both of the cat poems by William Butler Yeats and Lawrence Ferlinghetti. It must be a difficult task to decide on the poems to include in an anthology, and the introduction is well worth the time to read.

For me, as a lover of the written word and admirer of poetry, this collection is a treasure. As an elementary school librarian, I am a bit more torn. The intended audience for this book is children, and here I’m afraid it may have missed its mark. I’m just not sure how much kid-appeal these poems hold.

This review was first posted on my blog, Get Your Book On.

[Jessica DuFrain · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so cool! I recommend using this book as a way to share a daily poem with students. They are the most random poems thrown together and progress through out time. So when in need of a poem for a daily read aloud, you should keep this book handy.
Genre: Poetry
Published : 2015

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was hard to read this without comparing it to BEASTLY VERSE, which I just read, since I really don't read a lot of poetry (basically, I read no poetry and just the occasional novel in verse). I loved the concept of a history of poetry geared toward children and told through fifty poems all about objects. The reality was good, but not quite what I was hoping for. I had a difficult time following the poetry's historical progression (despite reading Janeczko's introduction), so I'm not sure how meaningful this will be to children. And though I certainly enjoyed this collection of poems much better than I did BEASTLY VERSE'S, I guess I just have to admit that I'm not the poetry aficionado I wish I could be. There were still plenty of poems in THE DEATH OF THE HAT that I found, if not challenging, then hazy, and I wondered how the average child would have experienced this anthology. Partly I know that the problem is that I insist on reading poem after poem after poem, which I know is not the point of poetry. I was also thrown off by the fact that Janeczko apparently categorizes animals as objects, since he included a number of poems about animals. Although I enjoyed reading those poems, I think they were misplaced in this anthology, and I preferred the poems that stuck to purely mundane objects as their subjects, like Pablo Neruda's "Ode to a Stamp Album." Finally, the area in which this book shone in comparison to BEASTLY VERSE, and the main reason that it ended up with four stars, is Chris Raschka's lovely watercolor illustrations. The color palette and dreamy lines of these illustrations were perfect for the book, and really complemented instead of detracting from the poetry.

[Taylor Hartman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Copyright: 2015
Number of pages: 77
Book format: print
Reading level: 3-7; GR level N/A
Genre: poetry
Lit requirement: anthology

The Death of a Hat is a book of collected poems collected by Paul B. Janeczko which cover a brief history of poetry in fifty objects. Each poem is completely different from the rest; the types and forms differ. There are haikus, poems that rhyme, free verse, etc.

The illustrations are colorful and spread out around the pages. Most of them cover double-spreads. I, however, rated this book two stars because the poems were not very interesting. It may be because they are based on objects, but the illustrations do not make up for it either. They are not very intricate so there is not much to look at. This book would probably not interest the younger readers in the reading level, so the older children might understand these poems a little better.

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this book as part of the Chapter and Verse Book Club's discussion of possible Sibert Award-Winning books for 2015.

You have been forewarned... This review is going to be harsh. I will openly admit that poetry is not my thing, however, I can read and enjoy a good poem from time to time. But seriously, bleh! I thought this book was horrible and what I can't figure out is why an anthology of poetry would be a contender for a nonfiction award. I appreciate the difficulty that must lie in creating an anthology, especially in this case, when including poems from as far back as the Middle Ages. But the collecting of poems does not equal the writing of poems, in my opinion, and I don't understand how they can be compared.

I also have issue with the illustrations. They are very kid-like and I know that my own children who are 4 and 6 would eagerly grab this book and think that because of the drawings, it would be for them, when in reality it isn't. I don't think the illustrations support the more mature nature of this book. It certainly wasn't intended for the pre-school or elementary aged student set.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the previous poetry collaborations of Janeczko and Raschka. This one is an ambitious addition. As many have noted, this collection is probably for older kids than A Kick in the Head et al.- more middle school than elementary, and probably for those who are already interested in poetry (and not just Silverstein and Prelutsky). I enjoyed the poems, although I'm not enough of a poetry reader to comment on the selection. I love the illustrations; Raschka's impressionistic and abstract watercolors are just made for poetry. I really wish that the introductory information had been incorporated into the body of the book, linking each poem together. I think many readers will skip over the four pages of small type and skip to the poems, thereby missing the point of the collection.

Poetry for children tends to be either A Child's Garden of Verses or funny rhymes. There's nothing wrong with either, but young readers who are interested in poetry often have no choice but to dive into adult collections. I think this book might provide a helpful bridge.

[Stanislav242 · Rating 4 out of 5]

While the book is rather tad challenging and has many “difficult” subjects like death, chivalry, despair, romance, things young children wont understand, is hard to connect and enjoy I think it is rewarding to young readers exploring difficult subjects in life. It is broken into time periods, e.g early-late middle ages, Enlightenment, Gothic, Romantic, Victorian, Modern…so there is a nice history lesson, one sees how poetry progressed, from Medieval ages up to even Women poets/suffrage impacted them etc. One part I don’t like is that it did not list the best poems of that era but rather just random ones. Best suited for late elementary and children who are interested in poetry. Some are so difficult to understand even I had to jump pages, another mistake. Many children and early teens really wont “get” any but a few of these poems.
But the illustrations are superb , done with watercolors and reflect on the era.( I think they are Impressionist/Modern style art which has a “childish” feel to it)