There are certain sense memories I carry with me from my childhood days of visiting my father's firehouse in the Bronx: the bumpy metallic texture of the back step of the firetruck.... the glow of lime-yellow stripes against the black of a turnout coat... the flashlight, gloves, and helmet visor layered with sooty reminders of fires past ( Read more... )

Anniversaries are the landmarks of our calendar years…. Anniversaries of relationships, dates of birth, big events, deaths, and more. Fifty-three years ago today, my parents got married in the South Bronx. They grew up in the Bronx, and started their own family there.

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I can't wait to see the latest poetry anthology by Lee Bennett Hopkins-- AMAZING FACES, published by Lee & Low. It promises to be a beautiful collection, celebrating a wide diversity of people at work and play ( Read more... )

When I learned about Jeannine Atkins' new book, BORROWED NAMES, I was intrigued on many levels. Poetry-- check. Women's history-- check. Love the title. A great hook about mothers and daughters? I'm there ( Read more... )

As my mother’s Valentine birthday approached, I pondered how to mark the day. She passed away three years ago, and I wanted to do something in remembrance of her- something that felt right and forward-looking. So I looked up her beloved elementary school on the internet: St. Luke’s School in the Mott Haven section of the South Bronx. My mother ( Read more... )

I recently happened upon Alice Schertle's BUTTON UP! It's a delightful collection of persona poems, written from the points of view of articles of clothing. Written for young children, it's funny, clever, and oh, so child-friendly! Think about how much energy young children put into getting dressed, how much feeling they attach to a favorite ( Read more... )

“The neighborhood stores are an important part of a city child’s life. They are his contact with the supplies that keep life going; they hold the beauty that his soul longs for; they hold the unattainable that he can only dream and wish for.”

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I'm winding up my 10-day residency at Vermont College of Fine Arts, where I am working towards my MFA in Writing for Young Children and Adults. What a vibrant writing community this is! With the very few brain cells I have left, I will share some of the highlights with you...

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We got more snow than we bargained for here on Cape Cod, and it has forced me to slow down and focus on home and my desk. I didn't really need those last few presents, did I? Perhaps I have enough to go around.


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It's here-- the season we call "the holidays." Author James Carroll captures it beautifully ( Read more... )