Review: Blue Lipstick: concrete poems

Grandits, J. 2007. BLUE LIPSTICK: CONCRETE POEMS. New York: Clarion Books. ISBN 9780618568604. 

This funky book of concrete poems is an excellent example of the types of poetry available for young readers. Grandits not only wrote the poems in Blue Lipstick, but he also illustrated the book. In a note from the author at the back of the book, Grandits explains that he used QuarkXPress Software to create the illustrations.

Most of the poems in this collection seem to be written from the point of view teenagers, so this book will certainly appeal to young teenagers. There are over thirty concrete poems in this collection. The poems seem to be in no particular order, and this somewhat disarray may be frustrating for some readers (as it was for me). In a book with poems of this format, a table of contents or a list of the poems would have been helpful. There is a short note from the author entitled “Pocket Poem” at the end of the book.

Probably one of the most fun poems is the one titled “Poems Inspired by the Free Perfume Samples at Carson’s”. It features six different haikus written for the “Totally Lame English Assignment #19”.

Here is the haiku “Attar de Girls’ Bathroom during a dance”:

            Breath mints. Bubble gum.

Jealousy, lies, and gossip.

Ninth-grade witches’ brew.

And “Essence of Lunchroom”:

            Mysterious meats.

           Questionable vegetables.

        Mix, bake, burn, and serve.

            (Grandits, 2007)

These hilarious haiku poems are just one example of the variety of concrete poems in this collection. Grandits uses the concrete poem form to show through design and words, the gamut of thoughts, feelings and emotions teenagers experience due to budding hormones. A fun activity to do with teenagers, based on the haikus above, would be for them to come up with a “Totally lame English Assignment” and then switch with a peer and write out a poem based on the satirical “assignment”.

This is a light-hearted look at poetry, and really a fun way to get the kids excited about poetry, which may be viewed with trepidation. After writing their poem assignments, the kids could take turns sharing their poem with a partner, and then vote on whose assignment was the most lame. All in good fun of course! 

Blue lipstick cover photo. JPEG. Retrieved from http://www.hmhco.com/shop/books/Blue-Lipstick/9780618851324#