A book of poems on social studies

Siebert, Diane. TOUR AMERICA: A JOURNEY THROUGH POEMS AND ART. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books LLC, 2006. ISBN 9780811850568

SUMMARY

Diane Siebert travels through America with her husband and visits some of the most spectacular places. Writing her thoughts about the factual concept, natural beauty and geographical insights, Siebert matches her work with award winning illustrator, Stephen T. Johnson. Some as stereotypical as Las Vegas, Nevada and others as factual as Baldlands, South Dakota and then there is the opinionated Mount Rushmore, North Dakota that all add character to this collection of American places.

Stephen T. Johnson used a mixture of watercolor on graphite and photography to create his amazing illustrations for TOUR AMERICA. These outstanding pictures help blend art literature with geography and history for student audiences. With some of the landmarks and places being unfamiliar - this allows the readers and audiences to get a visual of what it would be like to view these places with their own eyes.

My favorite illustration in the book is the one of Alaska's northern lights. It would be a dream come to true to experience Johnson's art in a real life experience.

LAS VEGAS

Nevada

Las Vegas glitters in the night

And shimmers in the day;

She opens arms of neon light

To those who come her way

With hopes of placing one good bet

And finding Lady Luck

While playing blackjack or roulette -

Well, OOPS! There goes a buck!

Read TOUR AMERICA to anyone and any age! If this were larger, it could be a table book for a living room coffee table. In fact, this book could be used for a library like section of a classroom. All age groups would enjoy the pictures of Siebert and Johnson work. The writing and poems are geared more towards middle school age students. High school students would still take interest if there was a classroom connection or there was direct interest because of their own personal reasons. I think that history, geography and social studies educators could use this book for a variety of poetry breaks and for quizzes and resources for research.

TOUR AMERICA can be used for

* History

* Geography

* Art

* Poetry

* American History

* Social Studies

The facts and findings of the American landmarks and tourist attractions makes this book a fun travel buddy. Some of the research that Siebert conducted to add additional value and to make this book attractive to many ages, also brings a special interest to history lovers.

REVIEWS

"Siebert once again mines her knowledge of the United States, gained during a ten-year motorcycle odyssey with her husband, to produce poems that celebrate sites famous and lesser known. The combination of familiar sights, like the Golden Gate Bridge and Mount Rushmore, with less celebrated landmarks such as Lucy the Elephant (found in N.J.), helps to give the book a fresh appeal, as do the evocative illustrations by Johnson, which are executed in a variety of media"

- Kirkus Review

"This distinguished offering blends poetry, geography, art, and history."

-Lee Bock

"Johnson uses a wide range of art and mediums and lists them in the back of the book. Watercolor, oil, collage, photography, colored pencil, and more have been used, sometimes alone and sometimes mixed, and the results are amazing."

- Sharon Salluzzo, CHILDREN'S LITERATURE

Other books by DIANE SIEBERT

Train Song

Sierra

Cave

Mississippi

Heartland

Award winning books by STEPHAN T JOHNSON

A is for Art

My Many Colored Days

My Little Yellow Taxi