All the World a Poem Reviews
Quill & Quire
“…Tibo’s verses and prose poems (translated by Pajama Press managing editor Erin Woods) playfully consider the experience of poetry—how poems may climb under his quilt at night and keep him awake, or how writing poetry can resemble plucking silence like a flower and gently pressing it ‘into a notebook made of light.’ Unexpected similes and metaphors help the reader see poems in many ways, linking them to nature, feelings and the joy in life.
While there is fun in a good—or a whole string of them—the figurative language is more effective than the rhymed verses. Certain concepts—including that poems ‘are infinite inside’—might be difficult for kids to comprehend, but the emphasis on sensations such as flying and floating, feelings of affection and companionship will bring the poems into relief for the young child hearing them.
The poetically quirky spirit of Tibo’s text is well served by the playful collage illustrations of Manon Gauthier. The text (sometimes running on an angle across the page) and images are placed in interesting and varied relationships, and Gauthier uses earthy colours and strong contrasts between white pages and patterned or dark backgrounds. The illustrations richly reflect the poems’ celebration of nature; of night with its associations of imagination and creativity; of the pleasures of poems that float in from the sea, drop from the sky or sprout from the earth for us to hold in our hearts.”
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Publishers Weekly
“The wide-eyed, button-nosed young poets in Gauthier’s collages give this collection much of its appeal. Drawn on paper, cut out, and placed against backdrops filled with scribbled and scumbled textures, the children look at the world, think about poetry, and try writing it….By portraying children as poets, Gauthier (Elliot) presents poetry as something that belongs to everyone—not just grownups.”
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ILA Literacy Daily, “Books Too Good to Miss”
“Some of Gilles Tibo’s poetry is decidedly child friendly…and some is sophisticated….Manon Gauthier’s collage art…will draw the attention of young children to this picture book that invites them to explore the world of poetry through both reading and writing.”
—CA
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Resource Links
“Although this is a heartfelt tribute to poetry, it is also a well conceived description of poetry for a child just learning to understand what poetry is….[Tibo’s] poetry is simple but elegant. The text is always positive and will help encourage children to write their own poems.
The illustrations are a creative blend of paper collage and mixed media. They ably provide the whimsy needed to match the poetry.”
Thematic Links: Poetry for Children; Imagination
—Isobel Lang
Read the full review on page 11 of the February 2017 issue of Resource Links
Canadian Children’s BookNews
“…All the World a Poem is a poetic picture book that immerses the reader in a world or words and wonder….From the moment this book is opened and a kaleidoscope of butterflies greets you, you are immediately transported – almost as if on the wings of said butterflies….
For young readers, hearing the words of All the World a Poem will fill them with the understanding that magic exists. This is grounded in the natural environment that Gilles Tibo and Manon Gauthier draw from the text. This beautiful book is best read together, leaving all enchanted by the depth and simplicity it creates. Even the presentation of the words on the page in relation to the illustrations gives the reader a new or re-imagined understanding of the fluidity of poetry.”
—Ashley Pamenter
Read the full review on page 26 of the Winter 2016 issue of Canadian Children’s BookNews
CM Magazine
“Equally impressive is [Tibo’s] ability to place the profound next to the humourous…The accompanying paper collages created by graphic artist Manon Gauthier capture the wonder of the poems beautifully….their sense of whimsy will bring a smile to the reader’s face….Highly Recommended.”
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Ingram News and Reviews for the Youth Librarian
“A picture book of poetry for the very young takes the reader from butterfly wings to the sea, from grazing sheep to the stars above, and from the silence of the night to sharing with their best friend. Lyrics, some rhyming some not, bring wonder and beauty of nature to each page accompanied by light-hearted, earthen-toned paper collage illustrations. Tibo leaves the reader with the message, ‘If all the world is a poem, then anyone can be a poet!’ This title fits nicely into any poetry unit for early childhood and primary grades. Recommended for ages 5 to 8.”
—Jeanne Martin, M.Ed., Collection Development
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San Francisco Book Review
“We rated this book: ☆☆☆☆☆
Poetry can be quite intimidating. Not only writing it, but even reading it can be daunting for so many, but perhaps most difficult for children. What is a poem? Does it rhyme or not? Are the verses long or short? There is no simple answer, and this book doesn’t really purport to answer that question. What it does is introduce to children the idea of poetry being everywhere and found in so many gifts of nature—flowers, the sky, birds, the ocean, and more. The entire book is written in a variety of poetic forms, some rhymed, some not, but all quite accessible to children.
Author Gilles Tibo has written a charming picture book that will help youngsters find their way to poetry as both readers and writers of the form. The writing is fun and whimsical and lyrical. The illustrations by Manon Gauthier—a combination of several media including collage, pencil, and gouache—are absolutely charming and match the whimsicality of the text. This book will find its way into a great many classrooms and school libraries, but it deserves to be in lots of children’s homes as well. This is a lovely book.”
—Rosi Hollinbeck
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Foreword Reviews
“Poetry lives, falls from the sky, floats on the sea, and tumbles from the heart, in All the World a Poem, a flowing collection of verses from Gilles Tibo, translated from the original French by Erin Woods. Cut-paper-and-crayon collage art by Manon Gauthier adds to a youthful sense of wonder, as young poets are invited to see and share the beauty and inspiration in nature, emotion, friendship, and all the world around them.”
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Learning Magazine
“Rhymed or unrhymed, regular or irregular, the verses bring both poems and the concept of poetry to a child’s level.”
Read the full review in the Spring 2017 issue of Learning Magazine
Youth Services Book Review
“What did you like about the book? The whimsical illustrations set the tone for this fantastic first book of poetry for young children. The assumption in this book is that if all the world is a poem, than anyone can be a poet. This book makes poetry accessible to all children and shows children how much fun poetry can be. Some of the poems, rhyme; some don’t. It’s not so much a book of poems, but a book about poetry that includes poems.
Anything you didn’t like about it? I liked everything about it.
To Whom Would You Recommend this book? This would be perfect for an early elementary literacy class where a teacher is introducing poetry. It is a non-threatening way to make all children realize that they can be poets with little effort….
Should we (librarians/readers) put this on the top of our “to read” piles? Yes”
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Winnipeg Free Press
“Enhanced by illustrations by Montreal artist Manon Gauthier, done in paper collage, coloured pencil and gouache, Tibo celebrates the power and freedom of poetry.”
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Life in Québec Magazine
“This is a picture book about the wonder of poetry. It is also a whimsically illustrated invitation for children to go out and extract poetry from the world around them.
The author, Gilles Tibo, asks the reader to take a ‘journey towards the endless country of verses yet to come….’
Not only does this book show how reading a poem makes one feel, it explores the act of creating poetry. How does it feel to create a poem, to read it out loud and share it with a friend?”
—Lorie Pierce
Read the full review on page 55 of the March-June 2017 issue of Life in Québec Magazine
Village Living Magazine
“[T]ry introducing little ones to [poetry] with this picture book…The unique illustrations in All the World a Poem are paper collage art, which adds to the overall artistic aesthetic.”
—Joanne Sallay
Read the full review in the April 2017 issue of Village Living Magazine
CanLit for LittleCanadians
“…All the World a Poem is a lyrical odyssey examining the richness of poems in shape and content, place and time, purpose and destination. According to Gilles Tibo’s dreamy text, poetry can be anything and everything, filled with grace and love, both reverent and impassioning.
The translation from Gilles Tibo’s French Poésies pour la vie (Isatis, 2015) is beautifully rendered by Pajama Press’ own Erin Woods, who also capably gave English voice to Elliot (Pajama Press, 2016). The text is sublime, a celebration of sounds and rhythms and expressive verse. And Manon Gauthier again creates her distinctive illustrations of paper collage art that gives texture and whimsy a totally unique look. The luxuriance of the words and the art is almost overwhelming in its intimate beauty…”
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Pickle Me This
“I am totally in love with All the World a Poem, a celebration of the poetry in the world and the world that’s in poetry, written by Gilles Tibo and illustrated by Manon Gauthier, both award-winners in Quebec and internationally. And now their book has been beautifully translated into English by Erin Woods, whose task fascinates me in what it means to translate a poem, poems being is so intrinsically about their language….
Each spread is a different poem celebrating poetry as diverse as the poets who write it, and sometime the poetry is literal (concrete?) and sometimes the poetry is simple (not simple) wonder at the world around one, ephemeral moments and fleeting flyaway things….
…The poems themselves all sophisticated and yet accessible, like the illustrations with their childlike renderings and the richness of texture. Inspiring young readers to see the poetry at work in life and the world, to read it, and maybe even to sit down and write it.”
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Reading Rockets, “Summer Reading Guide 2017”
“[A] thoughtful look at language and poetry.”
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