Any poetry picture book that wants to collect poems for EVERY day of the year has my automatic respect.

TIGER, TIGER, BURNING BRIGHT! is another massive picture book poetry collection from Nosy Crow and editor Fiona Waters.  If you read my blog back in 2019, you might remember when I reviewed a previous collection by Nosy Crow and Fiona Waters called SING A SONG OF SEASONS.  It too was a huge collection with one poem for every day of the year.  That book was every bit as large and lovely as this one.

If the title doesn’t grab you, then that cover certainly will!  And if that fails, simply open the book!  I was mesmerized and instantly added this book to my online purchases.  Mind you, it’s still sitting in the cart (it’s a bit spendier than your average picture book), but I fully intend to get it soon.  This is one of my favorite finds this year.

Here is a gigantic collection of animal poems from so many different poets.  See how big it is?

I love animals!  I thought for sure (especially with that recognizable title) I would know almost every poem included.  I was not only wrong, but shocked to find that I didn’t find some of the ones I fully expected to see (like Carl Sandburg’s “Fog” which I argued to myself could be seen to be about cats).  Instead, here are poems about the animals, reflecting on the animals, or written in the voice of the animals.  And what a delicious assortment there is!  There are red foxes (and I was tempted to share that one), whales (and assorted sea creatures), hummingbirds (and other birds woven throughout), and so many more.

And the art work!  Britta Teckentrup’s illustrations just left me breathless, page after page.  The textures, the perspectives, and the flashes of color just blew me away.  She weaves this book together in ways that are nearly imperceptible.  This is one heck of a collection and not to be missed!

With 365 captivating poems, I struggled to pick just one.  STRUGGLED!  And yet, my love for this poem was so great that I couldn’t resist.  I thought to share it for a future Valentine’s poetry post, but instead, I share it here with you.

And if you’re looking for more poetry fun this month, be sure to check out the Kidlitosphere Event Roundup!