2023-11-12 Review of Welcome to Monsterville
Poems by Laura Shovan
Illustrations by Michael Rothenberg

I received this book as part of the Library Thing Early Reviewers in exchange for an honest review.
The first poem is an invitation into Monsterville. Sixteen whimsical monsters are then introduced with a poem about their habits , emotions, and coping skills. Monsters are our neighbors and experience sadness, anger, shyness , hunger, and more. Monster houses take walks and “make the sidewalks quake”. In addition to enjoying the illustrations children can get a glimpse into the ways that Monsters deal with their feelings. In the poem “When I Cry” there is a line that asks, “Can I laugh too, even though I am sad? Yes, Monster says.”
My favorite poem in the book is “Micro Monster” that tell of micro monsters that float in the air after your friend sneezes and how they can infect you. The last line tells us it helps “if you cover your honker.”
Children will love the illustrations and may even come up with some of their own. The poems are fun and provide an opportunity for discussion about the situations and feelings. I really enjoyed this book and think children would, also. I think reading it to or with a child would be the best experience for them. ( )

When I think of poetry for kids, I think of Shel Silverstein. It's time for me to add another thoughtful collection: Welcome to Monsterville. Welcome to Monsterville is a collection of 16 poems, many of which address feelings and emotions. I loved Green Cave's "Sometimes I get so mad, the feelings can't stay inside.", When I Cry's "There is a monster in me called Sadness," Birthday's surprise party, and Freedom's "Their almost-human eyes are watching me. I'm petrified."

Something I appreciated about the writing was the variety and depth. Whenever I read a poem, I got lost in the thoughts it brought up. While I could easily read 16 poems in one sitting, this book took many sessions to get through. I took time comparing the poems, wondering why a style was chosen, the mindset it was written in, and the feeling it brought up.

At the end of the book, Laura Shovan and Michael Rothenberg share the process of making the book.

Recommended age: 6-8 years, though many poems apply to all ages

Writing style: Poetry. The poems in this book follow a range of styles. There is the classic coupled rhyme (AA BB CC...) and four-line rhyme (ABCB), but also blank verse, shape poems, and my favorite, onomatopoeia, or at least parts of it. I felt like I was back in 5th grade learning poetry for the first time. This book would be a great set of examples for learning about types of poems.

Lexile range (unofficial): 410L - 600L
Decoding difficulty: 4/5
Vocabulary difficulty: 4/5
Sentences difficulty: 4/5
Patterns difficulty: 5/5

Illustration style: Quirky colorful monsters are on one page, while the other side has the poem. The monsters are drawn with watercolor. They have enough detail that I could point out the colors, shapes, and components. I think it would be a fun activity for children to draw their own monsters.

Reality-based: Monsters aren't real, fortunately (or maybe unfortunately because these monsters seem fun). However, the sadness, fear, anger, sickness, and other emotions are relatable and real. This may make discussing those emotions easier.

Disclaimer: Thank you, LibraryThing Early Reviewers, and booksforward, for this title. All opinions are my own. ( )

This poetry collection is sure to delight young readers through the lively word play from the author Shovan and the abstract monster art provided by the illustrator Rothenberg. Onomatopoeia, alliteration, and powerful words create the poetry. Poems that engage readers with emotions such as sadness, "When I Cry" and anger, "Green Cave" allow children to understand that their emotions are normal and perhaps to help them see a little humor in their emotions. Illustrations of monsters using abstract shapes and normal images create loveable monsters that will engage the readers.
Reading the story behind the book helps explain the process for creation--both Shovan and Rothenberg worked through their own grief while writing and illustrating. Teachers could use the poems as a read-aloud as students draw their own version of the monster, then compare to the illustrator's version. Additionally, students can write and illustrate their own monster poems.
An excellent edition to any library. (My only wish is that the publisher had placed the text farmer away from the gutter and more in the center of the page. Perhaps this was just due to an early copy of the book.) ( )

If only I had my baby or grandbabies on my lap while reading Monsterville. One of the most entertaining children's books that takes the scariness out of monsters and puts them in a child's perspective. There is no fear here just rhymes of funny kinds of beings with pictures to show it is all just a bit of fun and no harm done. I recommend this highly to parents as a fun book and a good one to take the scaries away if there are any.
My husband, who has dementia, and I read this together and not only got a good laugh going but reminisced about the little ones we once had.

Thank you to Lauren Shovan for gifting me her masterpiece but also to the illustrator Michael Rothenberg for adding to this delight. ( )

Cute little book of poems with wacky little illustrations to go with each. Might be good for a poetry unit in lower elementary.