I imagine angels

Children's Literature

Lovely pairings of poem and prose with art from the collections of The Metropolitan Museum of Art make this book a bedside treasure. The introduction tells readers that the book offers ways to pray and this is certainly true. The text selections emanate from a variety of cultures. The words are in turn, solemn, whimsical, thought provoking, joyful and comforting. The art selected is a visual delight; it provides context for the accompanying poems and prose. Together, many of the selections inspire wonder at the glory of God's handiwork. This keepsake is appropriate for children of all ages. Included are very simple and poignant works, as well as more lengthy and challenging ones. Readers and listeners may choose to read one work and ponder its meaning or read the 21 works in one sitting. The book offers an opportunity to see how others have praised God over time. 2000, The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Atheneum Books for Young Readers, $16.00. Ages 4 up. Reviewer: Jeanne K. Pettenati

School Library Journal

K Up-Despite a title that seems to limit the subject matter to angels, this collection of 21 spiritual poems ranges much farther, with a fine variety of selections. It is magnificently illustrated with full-page reproductions of works from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. For example, three haiku by Kobayashi Issa are enhanced by a traditional Japanese woodblock print of a girl viewing plum blossoms at night. Langston Hughes's "Tambourines" is paired with an exuberant panel from Romare Bearden's The Block, and a section from William Blake's "Auguries of Innocence" with one of the poet's dreamy etchings. St. Richard of Chichester's "Day by Day" appears with praying girls by Kate Greenaway, and Cecil Frances Alexander's "All Things Bright and Beautiful" with a detail from Edward Hicks's Peaceable Kingdom. The juxtapositions of verse and picture are always creative and sometimes delightfully surprising. The poems include Hindu, Persian, Mayan, and Tewan works, as well as American, English, and Biblical quotations from sources such as e. e. cummings, Walt Whitman, Ecclesiastes, Ogden Nash, Mary Oliver, Gerard Manley Hopkins, and Emily Dickinson. Beautiful color printings; lustrous, gold angelic endpapers; and a clear, handsome typeface all add to the quality of this special collection.-Patricia Pearl Dole, formerly at First Presbyterian School, Martinsville, VA Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.