Book Review TOASTING MARSHMALLOWS: CAMPING POEMS

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
George, Kristine O’Connell. 2001. TOASTING MARSHMALLOWS: CAMPING POEMS. Ill. by Kate Kiesler. New York: Clarion Books. ISBN 061804597X

2. PLOT SUMMARY
Kristine O’Connell George’s Toasting Marshmallows is a compilation of poems on everything that happens before, on, and after a camping trip. The book begins with a family setting up a tent at their camping site and ends with the main character, a young girl, stashing away her dirty flannel shirt filled with “pine smells, campfire, forest moss” keeping it hidden, so no one will “wash away” her memories. Between this, the main character describes her adventure—the places she explored, the animals she encountered, toasting marshmallows with her brother, and admiring the starry nights.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
George’s compilation of thirty poems and Kiesler’s detailed acrylic paintings tell and show readers the sights, smells, and feelings of a family camping trip. The poems are written from the perspective of a young girl enjoying the adventures and wonders of the natural world.

The poems are short, use simple language, and are well-crafted. George also cleverly constructs the text of her poems into shapes representing their title. For example, the first poem titled “Tent” is written to resemble the shape of an actual tent, and another poem titled “Storm” has its text slanted like the rain.

In “Mosquito Song,” the author uses alliteration and onomatopoeia to show a mosquito’s view: “It’s meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! / Mosqueeeeeeeeeeeeto! / Is that you, Dinner? / Greeeeeeeetings!”

4. AWARDS WON AND REVIEW EXCERPTS
School Library Journal Best Books of the Year

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: “Readers will definitely want S-mores.”
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “The poems are varied and inventive, replete with marvelous images and universal truths.”

5. CONNECTIONS
*After reading Toasting Marshmallows, students can write their own poems about family camping trips, going to the ranch, vocations, or going to visit family members. Students can illustrate their poems and then present it to the class.

*The library can be transformed into a camping site. During a scheduled library visit, students can bring their favorite book of poetry, and the librarian will have read alouds around the “campfire.”

Image Credit: librarything.com