Rutherford B., Who Was He?: Poems About Our Presidents

Forty-three presidents receive thirty-nine poems, touching on subjects such as political ideology, foreign policy, and domestic programs. A quote from George Washington in a bold hand-lettered font opens the book; in some cases, the richly colored art overwhelms the text. Brief biographical notes of each president give pertinent, but abbreviated, background information; sources are included.

"Who were these men / who had what it took / to be commander in chief of all the armed forces, / to suggest what to do with our country's resources?" Forty-three presidents receive thirty-nine poems here; Grover Cleveland gets two--one for each nonconsecutive term in office. Unlike Susan Katz's The President's Stuck in the Bathtub (rev. 5/12), which focused on quirky traits, this volume touches on more sophisticated subjects such as political ideology, foreign policy, and domestic programs. In a single poem Thomas Jefferson and John Adams debate their political differences. Zachary Taylor, Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce, and James Buchanan engage in a four-way conversation about states' rights, while Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren examine Manifest Destiny in a two-voiced poem. (Poor old William Howard Taft, however, is still stuck in the bathtub, as his corpulence seems to override national issues.) A quote from George Washington in a bold hand-lettered font opens the book, and with the poem positioned on the facing page, readers have space to contemplate its meaning. In other cases, however, the richly colored art overwhelms the text; for example, William Henry Harrison's poem is lost in the swirling storm that surrounds him as he delivers his inaugural address (but then again, that weather also overpowered the man, causing the pneumonia that killed him). Brief biographical notes of each president give pertinent, but abbreviated, background information; sources are included. betty carter