"Poetic Pete" by Rob Jones

Poetic Pete has a problem, at least as far as the other kids are concerned. He likes to rhyme when he talks. 

He’s considered something of a freak. He tries to keep his mouth shut and avoid others, but then there’s Billy the Bully, who seems to go out of his way to harass Poetic Pete. The bully laughs at what Pete has written, which, of course, are poems, and poems that rhyme. The poor boy writes poems to push the pain away.

 

Both of his parents have his back, offering comfort and encouragement. His father tells him to stay strong, because, he says, there’s magic inside of him that will inspire people. His mom finds a poetry contest for him to enter.

 

Rob Jones

And then Poetic Pete wins the contest and discovers what Billy is such a bully. The world begins to change.

 

Poetic Pete by author Rob Jones is a delightful children’s book, aimed at those of us who’ve always felt a little bit weird for liking, or writing, something like poetry. And it’s a bit more: a story for any child who feels out of place. I think it’s wonderful that it’s a story told in rhyme. And the illustrations by Lily Grace Jackson are lovely -- simple, clean, and help tell the story beautifully.

 

Jones is a poet, songwriter, and musician. He’s previously published The Hidden Work: Poems Inspired by the Writings of C.S. Lewis, Re-Enchanted: Poems for the Imagination and Inspiration,  the novel Bad Boys of the Kingdom, and the children’s book Here Comes the Night.

 

Read Poetic Pete, and cheer on the child poet in all of us. 

 

Some Monday Readings

 

The Juvenile Almanack and Costume of the Metropolis – Spitalfields Life. 

 

Summer of ’73 – poem by Gigi Ryan at Society of Classical Poets.

 

The Diary of a Tree Standing on its Head – artwork (video) Jack Baumgartner at The School of the Transfer of Energy.