Module 3: Poetic Form (Haiku)

 

Guyku: A Year of Haiku for Boys

 

Bibliography

Raczka, Bob. (2010). Guyku: A year of haiku for boys. Art by Peter H. Reynolds. Houghton Mifflin Books for Children. ISBN: 9780547240039

 

Summary

Guyku: A Year of Haiku for Boys is a collection of haiku poems written by Bob Raczka with nature and boys in mind.  There is not a table of contents, and the haikus are not titled; however, each section is broken up with a two-page seasonal title page that notifies the reader of the theme for the next set of haiku poems.  All the poems are about activities boys like to do outdoors throughout the year and in every season.  The book also includes information from the author and illustrator as to why they wrote/illustrated the book.  The author also goes into a brief discussion about haikus, how they are created, and why he chose to use this style of poetry in his letter to the reader.

 

Analysis

The poems may be geared towards boys and what they like to do outdoors in nature, but as a girl who grew up in the country with brothers, I can relate to nearly all of these poems too.  I think all students can appreciate the experiences described throughout this book and the collection of poems included in it.  The combination of haiku poems with the related illustrations gives the reader a perfect glimpse into each seasonal activity that is described.  The illustrations are simple and either take up one or two pages, but they are also essential in telling the story of each short poem.  Each illustration is in a gray scale style with a different pop of color for each season (green for spring, yellow for summer, brown for fall, blue for winter).

The collection of poems are the best reflection of activities that elementary aged students will be familiar with and relate to, however older students and adults will be given a hint of nostalgia and longing for childhood adventures.  Raczka does a wonderful job of combining many different poetic elements within his specific poem style of haiku.   He uses language that is easy for students to understand, but also includes some vocabulary that will encourage students to pay attention to their word choices when writing poetry, especially haikus.  For example, he uses the word “ember” to describe the end of a stick pulled from a campfire and “squadrons” to describe the abundance of seed helicopters falling from trees.  He also uses figurative language to help the readers feel like they are there and to help them understand the author’s experiences.  For example, he says the silence under snow covered tree boughs feels “like hibernating” or the sound of the end of summer he attributes to someone “turning off the crickets”.

 

Poem

With the ember end

of my long marshmallow stick,

I draw on the dark.

 

Activity

I would love to use this book as an introduction to the writing of haiku poetry.  I would read aloud the book to students and then have them begin by writing a list of their own outdoor/nature related activities they enjoy doing throughout the year.  After students complete this list I would discuss the mechanics behind the haiku poem and allow students to choose one of their activities to start experimenting with in writing a haiku.  This would be a great poetry activity for any elementary grade, but especially upper elementary.  I also know many girls may find the fact that the book is geared towards boys upsetting, so I would challenge my girl students to think of some activities we could put into a “Galku” book of our own or maybe we could find a more inclusive title as a class.  Students could even illustrate their poems if they finish early or feel drawn to do so.