Welcome to Monsterville

One of my favorite poetry collections about the fantastic is Imaginary Menagerie: A Book of Curious Creatures, by Julie Larios with paintings by Julie Paschkis.

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I’m counting down to Welcome to Monsterville’s launch next Tuesday, April 25, and WOW do I have a poetry story to share with all of you.

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Thursday, 23 March 2023

I’m putting together a list of read-alikes for teachers. These are books and poems that pair well with the emotional content (or the creature content!) of Welcome to Monsterville.
Today, I am sharing two wonderful SEL poems from Things We Feel, edited by Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong.

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Thursday, 9 February 2023

My friend Aliza Werner sent me the most wonderful book: What Feelings Do When No One’s Looking by Tina Oziewicz, illustrated by Aleksandra Zajac. This sweet book about emotions was translated from Polish to English by Jennifer Croft.

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I made a special video just for Poetry Friday. You’ll get a sneak peek at some of Michael’s monsters… and I read a poem from Welcome to Monsterville that I haven’t shared before.

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Thursday, 29 December 2022

“It became clear to me very quickly when I started expanding on the ‘waiting for the right resources’ parallel between poems and seeds that spring brought many of the things a seed needs to move from dormancy into active growth. “

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Laura Shovan

Laura Shovan is the author of the award-winning middle grade novel, The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary. Her second book, Takedown, is a Junior Library Guild and PJ Our Way selection. Look for A Place at the Table, co-written with Saadia Faruqi, in 2020. Laura is a poet-in-the-schools Maryland.

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