We at Postscript truly believe that every child has an appreciation for poetry, and we just so often miss the opportunity to get the right books into little hands that will cultivate that appreciation. That's why When Green Becomes Tomatoes needs to be united with every small reader, new to articulating observations about the world. This book is, in our humble opinion, poetic perfection. The speaker of these poems is a small girl watching and feeling the seasons go by and responding to them often with delight but also not without disdain, reveling at every turn in the fun of language. In a poem entitled "march 13," for instance, the speaker says simply:
politely
but tired of mittens
i asked the winter to please tell the snow
thank you very much, but no
These short and small poems offer up a big personality that charms our socks off. The illustrations by Julie Morstad, featuring a diverse little cast of children, are playful and soulful alike with a soft color palette and expert composition that will make kids and their adult companions linger over the pages, arrested by a marriage of text and image that demands a permanent home in our libraries.
