Hey Tumblr. If you're looking for a gift for a kid this holiday season, I made a children's book that I just released (I'm just a guy, not a company). It's called: 'Kingdom of Verse: A Children's Introduction to English Language Poetry and Rhyme'.
It's currently the #1 new release on Amazon in Children's Poetry books. Sorry to flex, I'm supposed to get people's attention in the beginning here.
My wife is more literate than me, so she wrote the description:
"This charming introduction to the world of rhyming verse takes children on a journey through the wild and wondrous landscape of the English language, guided by such greats as Lewis Carroll, Emily Dickinson, John Milton, Rudyard Kipling, and Shakespeare, spanning from nursery rhymes to the 1600s to the early 20th century. The lively, distinctive illustrations open the imaginative treasure trove of our collective poetic heritage for children of the 21st century and beyond."
This book was inspired by reading with my son - he also helped me make it. This below poem by A. A. Milne, author of Winnie the Pooh, is basically what the book is about:
I was impressed by how much each book we read became a part of his world, and opened up new aspects of our world to him.
The book, an illustrated poetry anthology, spans from folk rhymes and nursery rhymes all the way up the early 1900s.
A short list of heavy hitting authors included: Lewis Carroll, Shakespeare, Rudyard Kipling, Poe, Wordsworth, Milton, William Blake, Beatrix Potter, Emily Dickinson, Lord Byron, Edward Lear, and way more.
I believe I went through over 2000 pages of older books to select these. I was very pleased to get certain authors in, like Rudyard Kipling, who you can see below. (I also snuck a ben franklin in there).
We read some older poetry anthologies here. I made this because I felt like there wasn't one that "went hard" in the way I would - really making a package where the message is: you, as an English speaking kid, have this huge treasure chest of linguistic artistry waiting for you.
It's an honor to be a part of a child's world. At the risk of sounding grandiose, I wanted to make a civilizational transmission: a thread running through the Anglospheric mind for a kid to tug at.
I run a little art studio here with my son, wife, baby, and cats. This is our holiday release. Thanks for considering it.
📦 Linked: it's on Amazon.
