Some Favorite Children’s Poetry Collections

The Oxford Illustrated Book of American Children’s Poems 
Not as classic a collection and mostly black-and-white illustrations, but a pretty book worth owning and has lots of variety.

The Random House Book of Poetry
Jam-packed with lots and lots of great poems and Arnold Lobel’s whimsical drawings.  More geared toward children than some of the others books but still a nice selection.

The Golden Treasury of Poetry 
Very comprehensive, including classics short and long.  And lovely line drawings grace most pages, in both black-and-white and color.  A really beautiful collection.


Sing a Song of Popcorn 

A fun one with drawings by a variety of famous children’s illustrators.  Again, this is more child-directed collection but there are enough classics mixed in to keep the volume from being overly silly.

Talking to the Sun
A lovely volume illustrated with art from the Met.  The kids pull this one from the shelves often because it is a delight to look through–and read from too.

A Small Child’s Book of Verse
This volume, edited and illustrated by Pelagie Doane, is another out-of-print book with a non-descript cover, but the Tasha Tudor-esque drawings are delightful and it is full of pleasing selections.


Favorite Poems Old and New
Although I tried to limit myself to more heavily-illustrated versions, I had to include Ferris here too. Weisgard’s accompanying line drawings are few, but I have read to my littles from this volume for years and it will always be a family favorite.

And, of course, you can’t go wrong with A Child’s Book of Poems, scheduled in AmblesideOnline Year 1.  Gyo Fujikawa’s charming vintage illustrations, an appealing layout on the page, and a wonderful and extensive selection of poems.

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Last but not least, a question for you all: any favorite choices for thematic poetry collections for children, like an a book of poems specifically about birds, or about animals, etc?  My friend is asking and I’d love to pass along your suggestions to her, because I haven’t found any themed collections that we have loved.  Thanks in advance!