"Popcorn" by Alex Moran

For this post, I wanted to challenge myself a bit. I found a box of old books in my house and decided I would read and talk about the first book of poetry I found. The book I eventually stumbled on is titled "Popcorn" by Alex Moran.

This emergent level poetry book, oddly enough, starts out as a cookbook, describing in simple terms the process of making popcorn.

“Popcorn. Popcorn. Put it in a pot.

Popcorn. Popcorn. Get the pot hot.”

After making the popcorn, the unnamed characters quickly realize there is WAY too much popcorn, as it overflows, with the characters attempting to catch it as it flies into the air. Eventually, it fills up the house and flows out the door. All is well in the end as everybody enjoys the snack.

“Popcorn. Popcorn. Get it while it’s hot.

We are happy. We like it a lot!”

At fourteen pages, with only one or two sentences per page, the book is obviously intended for beginning readers. Each stanza makes use of rhyme, as evidenced in the quotes above. The phrase “Popcorn. Popcorn.” is repeated throughout the book, signifying the use of repetition, a qualifier of poetry books. You know when you look at a word so many times it starts to sound weird? That’s what the word “popcorn” is to me right now.

Illustrations take up roughly 75% of each page, with each image directly correlating to the particular stanza. The first two pages have a drawing of the characters, who appear to be a rabbit, cat, raccoon and two children, gathering around a pot, with the phrase “put it in a pot” located directly under the image. This is a strategy by the author and illustrator to help beginning readers draw a connection between the words on the page to the physical item they represent. This is continued throughout the book with images of popcorn, a door, and smiling faces corresponding with the words “happy” and “like.”

This book is, altogether, a short poem at most. In this short poem, we find repetition and rhyming. Sight words are prevalent and multi-syllable words are few and far between, but are located within the text. The illustrations and use of poetry tag-team to give context clues to the reader.

If you are looking for a book to introduce sight words or multi-syllable words to a beginning reader, or if you are looking to learn how to make popcorn, I highly recommend this book.