Did National Poetry Month pass without your having the chance to read a sonnet or haiku? Maybe you prefer to read novels. Historical fiction? Non-fiction, even? Anything but poetry? If so, novels in verse may be for you.
The library’s Young Adult (YA) and Children’s collection has a number of interesting novels in verse that may help diminish your reluctance to reading poetry. (Critics may argue that novels in verse aren’t really poetry but few will quibble with their ability to resonate emotionally with readers, especially young adults.) Consider these:
Like interesting rhymes and sports, try Coretta Scott King and Newbery Award winner Kwame Alexander’s The Crossover or Booked, available electronically or in print. Did you see the movie Loving (2016), which recounted the story of the plaintiffs in the Supreme Court Case that invalidated states’ laws prohibiting interracial marriage? If so, maybe you would like Patricia Hruby Powell’s Loving Vs. Virginia, which combines verse with illustration and artwork. Carnegie Medial winning Irish author Sarah Crossan’s One tells the story of conjoined twins forced to make the most difficult choice of their lives.
A catalog search for novels in verse will bring up more titles, including print and e-books. Need help finding the right title or accessing the format that works for you? Ask a librarian.