A poet's notebook Book

This particular version is illustrated in a way that makes a four-year-old and that child's mama think maybe we can tackle it now.


My son noticed that the British soldiers were identical. "What's his name? And his name?" We talked about soldiers remaining nameless and identical and how that makes it easier not to think of them as people.

He then noticed that the soon-to-be Americans were not identical and in fact were not even soldiers. I couldn't resist. I told him not that it was because we always humanize our side, but that we weren't soldiers. We were just a bunch of hippies, activist farmers, fighting for what we believed in.

The poem of course didn't really keep him too absorbed, with all those big words. I explained the story first. That helped. I also had him clap out a hoofbeat while I read it, explaining that the poem was supposed to sound like Paul Revere riding.

The illustrations of soldiers from later American wars at, "through all our history, to the last" made me well up. There is a patriotic fool inside me and this illustrator brought it out even after I've grown used to the poem.

The kid liked it and I liked it so I say it was a winning read.