Beast Feast: Poems & Paintings

by Douglas Florian

In this hilarious collection of twenty-one original animal poems and paintings, the animals are out in all their finned, furry, and feathered glory. From lobsters to rheas to fireflies, kiwis to camels to chameleons, here’s a beast for everyone to love!

Genres: Poetry, Animals, Picture Books, Childrens, Science, Nonfiction, Humor

47 pages, Paperback

First published June 6, 1994

Reviews

[Toryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great collection of amazing poetry! Florian's poems are always hilarious and entertaining. In this book, he goes through several members of the animal kingdom, such as the anteater, the barracuda, and others. Some of the verses are short, and some are long, but all of them are wonderful.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short poems about various animals with humorous watercolor paintings that accompany each. The poems remind me somewhat of Shel Silverstein, with their short length and the way that the words are often shaped in various sizes and fonts to help convey the meaning of the poem. Fun book to read aloud.

[Caitlin Mayer · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. This book is not only a book of poetry; the poems are also informational. Many of these poems are humorous for children. While reading, students are being exposed to poetry, some which rhyme, some that don’t, some with visual interest and some with pain text. These are all elements that students will see while studying poetry.
2. This text is great to use to expose students to various elements within poetry. In like how in addition to reading and learning poetry, students are learning facts about different animals. The illustrations are detailed and engaging.
3. I would pair this book, with another poetry book, like Where The Sidewalk Ends, because this book, unlike Beast Feast, has a fictitious background.
4. I would use this book when teaching poetry to my students. I would use it to highlight non-fiction information within poetry as well as demonstrating that not all poetry rhymes.

[Olivia Hoist · Rating 4 out of 5]

beast feast by Douglas Florian
11/20/18
4/5
Poetry, Grades 2-4
This book was set up in a really cool way. Each poem was a titled a different animal. They were pretty short and easy to read, so I enjoyed it. I liked that some of the words traveled in a different pattern. The illustrations were also unique to each page. I really liked this poetic children's book!

[Carlie Raybuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

These short poems are informational about animals. This book would be a great source to use when learning about animals to introduce or incorporate poetry. It has some figurative language and rhyming. Kids will love the puns within this poetry book. It is very imaginative and the illustrations with every poem are simple but colorful and creative.

[Jessica Tirone · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book would be a fun one to introduce poetry with. the water color pictures really just set the mood for the poetry theme. Each poem is about a different animal and the poet are sometimes written in different shapes or even the shape of the animal. It kept my attention and I would defiantly read it to a classroom for a poetry lesson.

[ashley folman · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Beast Feast is one of many poetry books about animals. This one is about a Beast. This would be a great book for in the classroom of introducing poetry and also introducing different types of animals to students. Its also fun and creative for the students.

[Emily Rella · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute picture book, with various poems about a selection of animals. I enjoyed the illustrators use of water colors. Also, I found this book informational as well. Therefore, it can be an asset to any classroom. - Also, useful in many content areas.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as much science as I'd like, but at least no actual 'bad science.' Poems are more clever than funny. Good addition to a classroom library to make sure there are books about critters that aren't quite as charismatic.

[Marcos Cortes · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Lobster See the hard-shelled Leggy lobster Like an underwater With two claws to catch Worms and mollusks Into mush And antennae Long and thick Used for striking Like a stick. So be careful On Vacation Not to step on This crustacean.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun poems about animals that may spur children on to want to learn more about these fascinating creatures.

[Tessa Zimmerly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genre: poetry
Grade: Pk-2nd

I liked this book. It is informational as well as creative. The pictures were very interesting and the poems were silly.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

The pictures are done in water color which I love the poems are adorable !

[Bobby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great poems. Not cheesy, some were long and some were short.

[Raven Black · Rating 3 out of 5]

Each poem is a fun poem-story about critters. Florain's style comes alive on each page (poem and illustration).

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

While not normally a fan of poetry, I loved the ease of the short poems. A great way to start introducing poetry to small children, with adorable colorful drawings of animals to go along with the poems.

[Megan Cureton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beast feast is a book that consists of different types of poems all about different kinds of animals. The animals range from a walrus to a kangaroo. I like how the author used different types of techniques when writing his poems. When he was talking about the poem on the anteater, he used his words to go down the page, like a word per line. It really gained my attention and I thought it was a nice touch to the poem. The only thing I didn't care for about this book was sometimes the author made up words to make sure that the poems rhymed. I understand why he did this, and I also understand that this makes the poems funny and some people like the made up words, but it just kind of bothered me because I am a stickler on spelling words right and using correct English. I guess its just a pet peeve of mine. It doesn't make sense that my favorite story happens to be the kangaroo poem because the author used a made up word in this poem. "The kangaroo loves to leap. Into the air it zooms, while baby's fast asleep inside its kangaroom." I like baby kangaroos so this one stood out to me, even though there is a made up word in it. I would have this book in my classroom library and a read aloud for my first through fourth grade students. I think I could incorporate a couple different subjects after reading this story to the class. I could have them try to write their own poem about their favorite animal for writing. I could even have them make a beat and sing their favorite poem from the book out loud to the class in groups for music and art. I think the students would enjoy these activities and still learn from them. I enjoyed these poems and appreciated the humor.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book of poems would be perfect for a brain break. I like how short the poems are and that most of the poems are witty. These poems would be great for an animal unit or for brain breaks. I liked this book.

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/bo...
Interest Level
Grades K - 2
Reading Level
Grade level Equivalent: 3.9
Lexile® Measure: Not Available
DRA: Not Available
Guided Reading: Not Available
Genre
General Nonfiction
Poetry and Rhymes
Theme/Subject
Birds
Animals

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPT(S) https://mrslacazeslibrary.wordpress.c...
ALA Notable Children’ Book Award
Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award
National Parenting Publications Honors Award
NCTE Notable Children’s Trade Book in the Language Arts
Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List

[Jonathan H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beast Feast in a poetry anthology. It has twenty-one poems about various creatures. Most poems were rhyming poems, but there where a few picture poems. The poems talked about what was unique about each animal, or what was a special feature. This book really helps people learn about the animals and what is unique about each.
The poems were written by Douglas Florian. Florian is an artist and writer from New York City. Florian included a water color painting of each beast with the corresponding poem. This book is a very easy read, and I recommend it to any one looking for a break from long books. The book was awarded the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award in 1995. It also received an ALA award as a notable book.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Relying on short lines with carefully chosen words, the poet offers readers 21 different poems that ruminate about the nature of various beasts. Thus, one poem ("The Walrus") ponders what "Makes the walrus/ Walrusty" (p. 6)while another one ("The Whale") describes how the whale "spew[s] a spout" (p. 22), insuring that everyone notices him. Most fun to read aloud, though, has to be "The Boa," which ends "There's moa and moa and moa and moa" (p. 13). The poems alternate with intriguing full-page watercolor illustrations painted on "rough French watercolor paper," according to the endnote. These are all lively and fun to share with others while also providing insight into the natural world.

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

SUCH a great book for little dudes. Henry loves the enormous watercolors, and I love reading him the poems. Some are just a few lines long while others are about a page. My favorite is the rhea:

The rhea really isn't strange
It's just an ostrich, rearranged.

Henry was kind of upset by the lobster upon our first reading. The lobster, you see, is a mobster. Henry does not support organized crime.

[Dorothy Carder · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations were drawn to make each animal look scary, in part probably because of the title of the book. These were short poems, which would make it easy for a young student to read them. I also thought because of the content of the "scary" animals the book would be better geared towards little boys.

[Marissa Pezzullo]

This was a poem book about animals. I enjoyed reading the little poems because they made me feel a little different in each one of them. I would have this in my classroom and probably share this with the children if we talked about certain animals at certain times. That way they could be exposed to poems in a fun form.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't like the pictures so much (water colors) some creepier than others, but the poems were very original and well written. Fun little book!!! (The author has very traditional poems, but then plays with words occassionally to make it fun)

[Lindsey Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book with short poems about small animals. Great book to discuss the many characteristics that animals have in our world. The easy rhyming is great for ESOL students and can help them become more fluent.
The topic is animals and diversity among animals.
I would use this book in grades K- 3.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

a poem book about various animals. it is a good books for young children specially boys. this book talked about many animals and each animal has a poem in fort of his picture. this book also encourage kids to start writing poems. I like it

[Brent Rogers · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a poetry book that features many different animals. The pictures are not the greatest, but he poems are fun and entertaining for children. It is an easy-read for first grade and up. Douglas Florian wrote the poems and illustrated the pictures.

[Kristen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Third grade +.

Twenty-one poems, all written by Douglas Florian. Each one focuses on a specific animal.

Sweet books; rhymes are catchy. Good descriptive words to increase vocabulary. A picture for each poem. Excellent!

[Kelly Wickham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Creative and intelligent poems about different critters on our planet with beautiful pictures to accompany them. Although, I am not sure that me or the kids enjoyed it much. I think that they could take it or leave it, probably preferably leave it.

[Lisa Ford · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book of animal poems! very creative!