Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices

Paul Fleischman

I was born in a fine old edition of Shiller

While I started life in a private eye thriller

We're book lice who dwell in these dusty bookshelves.

We're book lice who dwell in these dusty bookshelves.

Written to beread aloud by two voices--sometimes alternating, sometimes simultaneous--here is a collection of irresistible poems that celebrate the insect world, from the short life of the mayfly to the love song of the book louse. Funny, sad, loud, and quiet, each of these poems resounds with a booming, boisterous, joyful noise.

1989 Newbery Honor Books:

In The Beginning: Creation Stories from Around the World (Virginia Hamilton)

Scorpions (Walter Dean Myers)

Last updated: December 2003