A Poem as Big as New York City: Little Kids Write About the Big Apple

This homage to New York City is the brainchild of the nonprofit Teachers & Writers Collaborative, which asked children throughout the five boroughs to write about their city. Their observations are integrated into a single poem that reflects on neighborhoods, landmarks, and what it means to be a New Yorker: “I come from 99-cent stores, beauty parlors, and nail salons./ I come from the smell of sea salt and the curve of carousel horse hair./ I come from honey dripping off baklava at Lefkos Pyrgos.” D’yans’s ethereal paintings depict glassy skyscrapers, streets dense with people, and a childlike personification of a poem constructed of text. A mosaic as dynamic as its subject. Ages 5–up. (Sept.)