Review of THE COMPANY OF CROWS by Marilyn Singer

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Singer, Marilyn. 2002. THE COMPANY OF CROWS. Ill. by Linda Saport. New York: Clarion Books. ISBN 0168083405

2. PLOT SUMMARY

This collection of poems includes 24 illustrated selections, some from the point of view of the crow. We also hear the voices of humans and other animals eloquently describe their interactions with crows. In the end, the author gives us factual information about the crow, as well as why she chose to write about this much overlooked creature.

3 CRITICAL ANALYSIS

I enjoyed this collection, because the author so obviously loves and admires the crow. I think her use of rhyme and metaphors to describe encounters with this bird will be enjoyable for older children. I think some of the vocabulary might not be familiar to younger children. As an adult, I thought the poems were beautiful and display this bird, which most think is nothing more than an annoyance, in a whole new light.

Younger children will love the illustrations. The pastels used in the illustrations create beautiful and colorful pictures. In their simplicity, they are childlike because of their lack of details and bold strokes. I wish the text used, had been a color other than black or white, and also bolder and larger. The script of the poem doesn’t go with the boldness in the title name. It almost disappears on the page, especially with the bold, primary colors used on the pages.

I also wish there had been a Table of Contents. The book is 48 pages long, and that would have made finding certain poems easier. I also wish the author’s note had been placed at the first of the book, instead of at the end. Students would be able to understand the poems better if they knew more about the crow before reading. The students would also understand why the author picked to write about this particular bird species.

I also didn’t like that the titles to a few poems had the same name. I think that will be confusing to students, and will have to be explained. It would have been much simpler to just name each poem something different. Students will be asking, “Why is this poem named “The Father,” and this poem named, “The Father?” They will understand that it is from a different point of view, but why not just name one of them, “The Crow Father?” I would love to ask Ms. Singer why she did this.

4. REVIEW EXCERPTS

PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY Review:
“Despite the striking full-bleed art and the author's enthusiasm for her subject, this collection of poems about crows may not fly with the target audience. For starters, youngsters may have trouble reading the poems, printed as they are in thin font against deep-colored backgrounds. The design compounds the problems sometimes the titles, contained within the art, appear below the poem, so that readers may not recognize that a new poem has begun. The slightly abstract quality of her compositions makes them best viewed from a slight distance, whereas close proximity is needed to make out the text. Ages 5-9.”

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL Review:
“Children will enjoy the illustrations and language and take pleasure in the thoughts posed in these selections.”

5. CONNECTIONS

This book of poems would be best read after a nonfiction picture book about the crow. This will help students to understand the poems in this selection.
CROWS by Sylvia A. Johnson, would be a good companion book. Students could discuss their ideas about crows and how they agree or disagree with the new information. The class could make a before and after reading chart to display the new information learned.

Students could make an Acrostic poem using the word, Crow, and make their own illustrations.

Students could pick another bird species or animal, and write and illustrate their own poem.

Teachers could download videos of crows doing some of the activities talked about in the poem. You Tube, has several that go along with the poems. This would give students a visual to help understand some of the author’s observations.