WINTER EYES: POEMS AND PAINTINGS written and illustrated by Douglas Florian

1. Bibliographic data

Florian, Douglas. 1999. Winter Eyes. Ill. by Douglas Florian. New York: Greenwillow Books. 0-6881-6458-7.

2. Plot summary

Winter Eyes is a collection of poems that express all sorts of sentiments concerning the winter season. Douglas Florian writes twenty-eight poems about the atmosphere of winter, what it looks like in the outdoors and indoors, what he hates and loves about it, what you wear during winter, what you do during the winter, and much more.With his paintings and poems, Florian allows the reader to see and experience many aspects of winter through his own eyes.

3. Critical Analysis

Douglas Florian's delightful collection of winter poems, Winter Eyes, is an honest portrayal of the winter months through the eyes of a child. He begins with clear, beautiful imagery: "Look at winter/ With winter eyes,/ As smoke curls from rooftops/ To clear cobalt skies." This first poem, aptly named "Winter Eyes," portrays winter first through sight, then through smell, through touch, and lastly through sound. This is the perfect starting point for Winter Eyes, as Florian uses the remainder of the book to add depth to all of these senses.

One of the endearing aspects of Winter Eyes is that the poems seem to be Florian's childhood memories put on paper. In "What I Love About Winter," he speaks of snowball fights, funny hats, hot cocoa, ice skating, chimneys, and the holidays. In other poems, he writes about sledding, building snow men, doing chores, and being stuck inside because of bad weather. Reading Winter Eyes reminded me so much of my childhood playing in the snow, and I connected with a lot of Florian's imagery.

There are several different forms of poems in Winter Eyes. Florian uses the AABB form, the AABBCC (and so on) form, the ABAB form, and free verse. Florian often pairs his free verse with a painting or makes an image out of his words. I especially love Florian's poem about sledding: "First you budge then slowly trudge your sled to the top and then you speed you sail you whiz you wail and start all over again." This poem is very special because Florian fits his words into the contours of a hill. While reading, you actually feel like you're sledding! In a poem about two snowflakes meeting, Florian uses his words in a design that looks like two snowflakes are colliding. These techniques add an action element to the story and make the poems even more fun to read!

Florian's poems in Winter Eyes are pretty simple and easy to read. He throws in the occasional difficult words such as "ochre" or "umber," but the remainder of the poems could be easily understood by upper elementary students. The language will not be a barrier at all, and I think students will enjoy how he uses words to create images and will connect with many of the winter activities that he writes about - unless they have never seen snow. In that case, this book is a great eye-opener!

Florian's poems add a childhood dimension to his poems, and enliven his words. His pictures of runaway snowmen, animals burrowed underground, the bleak winter landscape, and sheep in scarves provide a charming and colorful background for his poems. For example, in "Winter Wool," Florian never speaks of sheep, but focuses on how much wool children must wear in the winter. His picture of sheep in scarves implies to me how so much wool-wearing has turned the children into sheep! These pictures shed light on these poems and brought a smile to my face.

I really enjoyed reading Winter Eyes. It brought back many childhood memories and made me miss snow (and then not miss it as well!). The poetry was simple and easy to understand, and right on target in depicting winter, in my opinion. I often felt as if I could have written many of the poems because I agreed with them so much! Florian uses a good combination of poetic styles to accurately depict his thoughts and description and keep it interesting. These poems and paintings are a delight to behold, and I definitely recommend this book.

4. Review Excerpts

"Small, quiet poems and pictures capture how winter feels to a small child, especially the physicalness of it, from "sloppy slush" to "grumpy" sun, and the wind "that hustles rusty leaves along." The short rhyming lines are clear and will be easy to read aloud, and the softly toned watercolor-and-colored-pencil pictures show snowy winter scenes, some realistic, some playful. Opposite a poem about the amount of wool to wear in winter, there's a wry picture showing people turning into sheep. There are things people love about winter ("Snowball fights / Fireplace nights"), as well as things they hate ("Frozen toes / Running nose"), and children may want to add their own wintry images." - Booklist

"Winter Eyes does not address seasonal holidays and religious celebrations. The season itself is the celebration; it is alive and ever changing. When winter begins to hold on too long, readers bid adieu and welcome spring in the final poem, "Good-Bye, Winter." Quiet and reflective as the whispers of falling snowflakes and as jubilant as the whizzing of sleds, this book will be as welcome as a warm cup of cocoa after a long day of making snowmen and turning figure eights." - School Library Journal

5. Connections

Activity: Pick another season besides winter and ask students to write a poem in any form about any aspect of that season. Ask them to draw corresponding pictures and put all of the work. They've made their own seasonal poetry book just like Winter Eyes!

Related Books:

Florian, Douglas. 1987. Winter Day. Ill. by Douglas Florian. New York: Greenwillow Books. 0590443860.

Frost, Robert. 1978. Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening. Ill. by Susan Jeffers. New York: Dutton. 0525467343.

Rogasky, Barbara. 1994. Winter Poems. Ill. by Trina Schart Hyman. New York: Scholastic Inc. 059042873X.