Andrea Potos: grace and glimmerings (+ a giveaway)

~ jama ~ 28 Comments

“Work of sight is done, now go and do heart work on all the images within you.” ~ Rainer Maria Rilke (“Turning Point,” 1914)

Writers are often asked where they get their ideas. What inspired them? Who are their muses, and what sustains them through creative lulls?

Since it’s National Poetry Month, thought I’d share several poems about writing and publishing from one poet’s point of view. Whether you’re working on a poem-a-day challenge, making headway on an ongoing project, or simply flexing your poetic muscles for the first time, I think you’ll find these gems from Andrea Potos’s latest collection, The Presence of One Word (Fernwood Press, 2025) illuminating and relatable.

From a fledging writer fueled by girlhood dreams, to a published author of a dozen books, Andrea is a poet who writes with grace and reverence, searching the rooms of her heart, drawing from “the deep cup of time.”

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A young Andrea began by emulating Louisa May Alcott.
A BELATED THANK YOU TO MISS JOANNE MARTINS OF CATHEDRAL SQUARE PUBLISHING COMPANY IN MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, circa 1971

You must have guessed how, at eleven years old, I craved
to be Jo March, scribbling in a garret,
mice scuffling under the floorboards, a heap of apple cores
beside me while rain battered the windowpanes.
By hand I wrote my 103-page novel modeled
not secretly enough after Little Women,
and I mailed it off to you.
Bless you Miss Martins for writing me back
three weeks later, for your neatly typed
bullet points of advice: Keep this manuscript
in a safe place, every month reread, you'll be surprised
at the improvements you can make.
Read as much as you can, get a library card.
When you describe an object or person, pretend
you are talking to someone who is blind.
Save your money and invest in a typewriter -- a must!
Or ask your parents for one for Christmas.
When you tell your story, write as if
you are talking to a friend, the way you would talk
about something that happened at school.
A writer must always remember
his best friend is the reader. Please do not be
discouraged at receiving your first rejection.
Page 2 of Miss Martins’ cherished letter.
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2026 National Poetry Month Kidlitosphere Events Roundup

~ jama ~ 13 Comments

Happy April and Happy National Poetry Month!

It’s time once again to read, write, share, and simply indulge your love for poetry in every way. I’m happy to be back rounding everyone up this year and look forward to checking in with all of you throughout April.

New to National Poetry Month and wondering about ways to celebrate? Visit the NPM webpage at The Academy of American Poets (poets.org) for a cool list of activities, events, initiatives and resources. You can learn about Poem in Your Pocket Day (April 30) or the Dear Poet Project, and sign up for Poem-a-Day to receive poems in your inbox (curated this year by Dorianne Laux). So many options, whatever works for you — online, at home, in the classroom, or at readings/events near you. Do as much, or as little, as you please. Just enjoy!

The Dear Poet Project invites students in grades 5-12 to engage directly with these six poets by writing letters in response to poems written and read by them. Submissions close May 15, 2026.

The 2026 NPM poster features design and illustration by Alfredo Richner. Lines excerpted from the poem, “The Chance” by Arthur Sze, from The Redshifting Web: New & Selected Poems (Copper Canyon Press, 1998). Download a PDF of the poster here.

This year, there’s a new archive of all NPM posters commissioned since 1996. Click here to view.

Now, here’s a list of what some kidlit bloggers are doing. If you’re also celebrating National Poetry Month with a special project or blog event, or know of anyone else who is, please email me at: readermail (at) jamakimrattigan (dot) com, so I can add the information to this Roundup. Thanks, and have a beautiful, inspiring, uplifting, productive, and memorable April!

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[whiskery review + recipes] Peter Rabbit Goes to London by Jane Riordan and Eleanor Taylor

~ jama ~ 12 Comments

If you were a country rabbit, what could be more exciting than to visit a big city for the very first time?

In Peter Rabbit Goes to London, the latest title in The World of Peter Rabbit’s popular lift-the-flap picture book series, Peter tags along with his mouse friend Timmie Willie on a trip to the faraway place he had heard so many wonderful stories about.

It all started when Timmie Willie received an invitation to visit his friend Johnny Town-mouse in London. Since he’d dropped Johnny’s letter in a puddle, he couldn’t quite read the whole thing. Never mind, that didn’t dampen their spirits one bit. Peter begged his mother to let him go and she approved as long as he promised to be careful and stay safe. So Peter packed his best shoes and a large radish into a pocket handkerchief.

Art by Eleanor Taylor.

Just so happens the very next day the vegetable cart was heading to London, so Peter and Timmie Willie jumped in. Was Johnny Town-mouse already in the cart? No, Timmie Willie guessed he’d probably meet them once they arrived.

Peter fell asleep during the long bumpy ride. He was awakened by the strange sound of the cart’s wheels clattering along cobbled roads — not at all like the muddy country tracks he was used to. And there were buildings everywhere, the biggest of which was the Tower of London. Timmie Willie explained the Crown Jewels were kept there.

Art by Eleanor Taylor.

Soon the cart stopped alongside the Thames River. Peter had never seen any river like it before. It was bustling with activity — lots of boots, hooves and wheels. Once the vegetables were lifted down from the cart, Peter and Timmie Willie peeked out to see if Johnny Town-mouse was around. No, but Samuel Whiskers gave them a warm welcome.

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twilight musings

~ jama ~ 16 Comments

“Twilight drops her curtain down and pins it with a star.” ~ Lucy Maud Montgomery

“Leafless Trees Under Orange Sky” by Brett Jordan.

Magical, enchanting twilight — whether at dawn or dusk — is a beautiful time of day inviting introspection and contemplation. The soft half-light between day and night, marked by a sense of calm and serenity, gives the world space to gear up or wind down.

TWILIGHT
by Louise Glück

All day he works at his cousin’s mill,
so when he gets home at night, he always sits at this one window,
sees one time of day, twilight.
There should be more time like this, to sit and dream.
It’s as his cousin says:
Living—living takes you away from sitting.

In the window, not the world but a squared-off landscape
representing the world. The seasons change,
each visible only a few hours a day.
Green things followed by golden things followed by whiteness—
abstractions from which come intense pleasures,
like the figs on the table.

At dusk, the sun goes down in a haze of red fire between two poplars.
It goes down late in summer—sometimes it’s hard to stay awake.

Then everything falls away.
The world for a little longer
is something to see, then only something to hear,
crickets, cicadas.
Or to smell sometimes, aroma of lemon trees, of orange trees.
Then sleep takes this away also.

But it’s easy to give things up like this, experimentally,
for a matter of hours.

I open my fingers—
I let everything go.

Visual world, language,
rustling of leaves in the night,
smell of high grass, of woodsmoke.

I let it go, then I light the candle.

~ from A Village Life (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2010).
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[tasty review] All Who Are Hungry, Come and Eat! by Leslie Kimmelman and Alyssa Russell

~ jama ~ 4 Comments

With Passover coming up next week, I was happy to hear about a new picture book containing all the right ingredients for a delicious, satisfying read.

All Who Are Hungry, Come and Eat!: A Passover Story by Leslie Kimmelman and Alyssa Russell (HarperCollins, 2026) checks the essential boxes of good food, family, friends, and cultural traditions. While illuminating the rich customs of the holiday, this delightful story also celebrates the joy of community.

When it came to Passover, Ethan believed there was no such thing as too many guests: “the noisier the table, the happier he felt.” But this year, their usual guests probably wouldn’t be able to make it. It might be just him, his parents, and their poodle Sadie. Would such a small seder be enough?

When Ethan set the table for the four of them, he couldn’t help but notice how big and empty it looked. However, his parents remained optimistic about the possibility of unexpected guests. His father reminded him that everyone was welcome at the festival of freedom, while his mother quoted the Haggadah: “Let all who are hungry come and eat.” She then set an extra place for the prophet Elijah, “whose arrival at dinner, God willing, would bring peace to the whole world.”

As the seder service began with the lighting of candles and pouring of wine, they heard a KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK. Ethan wondered if it was Elijah.

No, it was their neighbor bearing a bowl of haroset. He explained that the friend he’d invited was sick. Could he join them? Ethan answered quickly, “Of course! All who are hungry, come and eat!”

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