Children's Own Longfellow

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

This handsome volume contains eight of the most popular of Longfellow's poems, including "The Wreck of the Hesperus," "The Village Blacksmith," "Paul Revere's Ride," and excerpts from "The Song of Hiawatha."This title has been selected as a Common Core Text Exemplar (Grades 6-8, Poetry)

Genres: Poetry, Classics, Fiction, Childrens

104 pages, Hardcover

First published September 9, 1908

About the author

An extremely popular American poet in his own lifetime, Longfellow's best-known works include The Song of Hiawatha (1855), a translation of the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, done in 1864-67, Paul Revere's Ride and Evangeline. He's one of the New England poets now typically referred to as the Fireside Poets.

Longfellow graduated from Bowdoin College in 1825, and after studying in Europe for several years subsequently became Bowdoin's professor of modern languages and librarian. After further study in Europe, he moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts to become professor of modern languages at Harvard in 1836. Meanwhile, Mary Potter Longfellow, his first wife, had died in 1835, following a miscarriage.

His first published collections of poetry were Voices of the Night (1839) and Ballads and Other Poems (1841). In 1854, he retired from teaching to focus on his writing. His second wife, Frances Appleton Longfellow, died in 1861 of burns sustained when her dress caught fire. After her death, for some time Longfellow had difficulty writing original poetry, and focused on translations from foreign languages.

Longfellow wrote lyric poetry noted for its musicality, and often presented stories of mythology and legend. He frequently imitated European poetic styles (and his work was popular in Europe in his day, as well as in the U.S.). As a Romantic poet, he seeks primarily to express and to evoke emotion in his poetry.

Reviews

[Katja Labonté · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars & 5/10 hearts. I love Longfellow’s poetry, and this one has a couple my favourites of his works. I absolutely love Evangeline. And I was so excited when I found out that actually it is a longer poem and this book doesn’t contain the whole of it! The Wreck of the Hesperus is really sad, and it irks me that the skipper was too confident and proud and so lost all. The Village Blacksmith is one of my very favourite poems. Hiawatha’s Sailing & Hiawatha’s Fishing are really nice, and so is The Building of the Ship. The Castle-Builder is very sweet; Paul Revere’s Ride is simply pure classic; and The Building of the Long Serpent is fun to read. :)

A Favourite Quote: “Toiling,—rejoicing,—sorrowing,
Onward through life he goes;
Each morning sees some task begin,
Each evening sees it close;
Something attempted, something done,
Has earned a night's repose.”

A Favourite Beautiful Quote: “Long ago,
In the deer-haunted forests of Maine,
When upon mountain and plain
Lay the snow,
They fell,—those lordly pines!
Those grand, majestic pines!
’Mid shouts and cheers
The jaded steers,
Panting beneath the goad,
Dragged down the weary, winding road
Those captive kings so straight and tall,
To be shorn of their streaming hair,
And naked and bare,
To feel the stress and the strain
Of the wind and the reeling main,
Whose roar
Would remind them forevermore
Of their native forests they should not see again.”

[Jane Dugger · Rating 3 out of 5]

As my first foray into a book of poetry it was more enjoyable than I expected it to be. I read them a loud to myself and think that may be the key for reading more poems.

Most favored: The Wreck of the Hesperus, The Village Blacksmith, Evangeline & The Building of the Long Serpent

Least favored: The Song of Hiawatha & Paul Revere's Ride (surprisingly enough the only two I recognized)

[Rosie Gearhart · Rating 5 out of 5]

We love Longfellow! This particular book is a good intro to his poetry, especially for children/teens.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

VOICES OF THE NIGHT:
A Psalm of Life 4.5⭐
The Light of Stars 3⭐
Flowers 3⭐

BALLADS AND OTHER POEMS:
An April Day 3.5⭐
Woods In Winter 3⭐
The Skeleton In Armor 5⭐
The Wreck of the Hesperus 5⭐
The Village Blacksmith 5⭐
It is not Always May 3.5⭐
To the River Charles 3.5⭐
Maidenhood 3.25⭐
Excelsior 4.5⭐
The Slave's Dream 5⭐
The Slave in the Dismal Swamp 4⭐

Serenade, From "The Spanish Student" 3.25⭐
"Serenade" is a poem from Longfellow's play titled "The Spanish Student". The poem takes place while Preciosa is asleep in her chamber before Victorian enters the scene by the balcony. The two are in love.

THE BELFRY OF BRUGES, AND OTHER POEMS:
Carillon 4⭐
The Belfry of Bruges 4⭐
The Arsenal at Springfield 3⭐
The Norman Baron 3.25⭐
Rain in Summer 3⭐
The Bridge 4⭐
The Day is Done 5⭐
To the Driving Cloud 4⭐
Walter Von Der Vogel Weid 4⭐
The Old Clock on the Stairs 5⭐
The Arrow and the Song 5⭐
Curfew 4.5⭐

NARRATIVE POEMS:
Evangeline (Part I) 5⭐
The Song of Hiawatha (Hiawatha's Sailing VII; Hiawatha's Fishing VIII) 5⭐
The Courtship of Miles Standish (The Sailing o£ the Mayflower) 5⭐

THE SEASIDE AND THE FIRESIDE:
The Building of the Ship 3.5⭐
The Secret of the Sea 3.5⭐
Twilight 3⭐
Sir Humphrey Gilbert 3⭐
The Lighthouse 3.5⭐
The Builders 2.5⭐
Gaspar Becerra 3⭐
Pegasus in Pound 3.75⭐

BIRDS OF PASSAGE:
The Phantom Ship 4⭐
The Warden of the Cinque Ports 3.25⭐
The Emperor's Bird's-Nest 3.25⭐
Victor Galbraith 3⭐
My Lost Youth 3.25⭐
The Ropewalk 4⭐
The Discoverer of the North Cape 3.5⭐
The Fiftieth Birthday of Agassiz 3.5⭐
Daybreak 3.25⭐
Sandalphon 3.75⭐
The Children's Hour 5⭐
Enceladus3⭐
The Cumberland 3⭐
Snow-Flakes 3⭐
A Day of Sunshine 3.5⭐
Something Left Undone 3.25⭐
Christmas Bells 5⭐
The Castle-Builder 4.5⭐
The Brook and the Wave 3.25⭐
The Old Bridge at Florence 3.25⭐
Travels by the Fireside 5⭐
The Sermon of St. Francis 3⭐
Songo River 3.5⭐
A Dutch Picture 3.5⭐
Castles in Spain 3.5⭐
The Revenge of Rain-in-the-Face 4⭐
A Ballad of the French Fleet 3.5⭐
The Leap of Roushan Beg 4.5⭐
The Three Kings 3.5⭐
The White Czar 3⭐
From My Arm-Chair 3⭐
Robert Burns 4⭐
The Windmill 2.5⭐
To The Avon 2.75 ⭐
Mad River 4⭐
Decoration Day 2.5⭐
The Monk Felix, from "The Golden Legend" 4⭐

TALES OF A WAYSIDE INN:
Paul Revere's Ride 5⭐
King Robert of Sicily 4⭐
The Building of the Long Serpent 3⭐
The Bell of Atri 4⭐
The Ballad of Carmilhan 4⭐
The Legend Beautiful 3⭐
Charlemagne 2⭐

[Susan Molloy · Rating 5 out of 5]

✒️ What a fun book of poetry that I thoroughly enjoyed from cover to cover. The Children's Own Longfellow: Legendary Tales of Courage in Melodic Verse: Classic American Poetry for Kids - Illustrated with Biography and Commentary is an early 20th century collection of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poetry, curated especially for young readers. Gathering some of his most cherished works, the volume presents Longfellow’s storytelling in a form that is accessible, engaging, and rich with imagination. Long celebrated as “the children’s poet,” Longfellow weaves themes of creativity, adventure, virtue, and wonder—making his poems ideal companions for nurturing a child’s moral sense and love of beauty. The collection includes well known pieces such as The Wreck of the Hesperus, Evangeline, Paul Revere’s Ride, and selections from The Song of Hiawatha. Each poem offers vivid imagery and compelling narrative, inviting young readers into tales of heroism, love, and the natural world. Accompanying illustrations further enliven the text, helping the stories take root in a child’s imagination. Through Longfellow’s lyrical rhythms and gentle moral undercurrents, this volume introduces children to poetry that both delights and instructs.

CONTENTS:
Contents
The Wreck of the Hesperus
The Village Blacksmith
Evangeline
Part the First
The Song of Hiawatha:
Hiawatha's Sailing
Hiawatha's Fishing
The Building of the Ship
The Castle-Builder
Paul Revere's Ride
The Building of the Long Serpent

📕Published: 1908. In the public domain.
જ⁀🍋 Read illustrated e-book version on Project Gutenberg. 🟡
જ⁀🍇 Read e-book version on Kindle. 🟣
༺༻🌹 ༺༻🌹 ༺༻🌹 ༺༻

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the story. I was disappointed that Mrs. Dove-Lyon played only a cameo role in this story. There is a major surprise that I did not expect but was interesting. The two main characters, Thenie and Spencer, I loved how they interacted with each other and the ending HEA. I liked that previous characters appeared in this story which were great additions. Definitely a story worth reading.
I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley and are voluntarily leaving a review.

[Lisa H · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot going on....

Maybe a bit too much in a short read? Thenie needs rescuing after ruining herself.
Spencer Wright-Symthe is a Baron, who is a relic hunter. Thenie's cousin Lottie (who seems very cool) brings him to Thenie to rescue her from herself. There's a lot crammed in here.

[Shae · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite two are " The Wreck of the Hesperus" and "Paul Revere's Ride."

[Laurie Wheeler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely collection of poetry that we read in our homeschool Rhetoric literature studies.

[Kim Hampton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the illustrations and the poems are definitely classics.

[Kerrific Kerr · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you've been reading the Lyon books then this one is a don't miss. Not as spicy as some but a delightful read with an unexpected twist.

[Jessica Mcmillan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great series and great book! Don’t miss this one! If you haven’t read the series before I suggest you get started!

[Felicity · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this in one day. So it is pretty short. It's only 104 pages long. I normally hate poem books. Well, they are OK...but...I guess they just aren't exciting enough. Haha! This one had a couple story/poems in it and one of the stories was a poem but it didn't rhyme and I know some poems don't rhyme but it made it hard to read because they would split up the sentances. I don't know...you would just have to see. But my favorite poem of all was Paul Revere's ride. =)

[Cindi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't completely finished this book yet, but I'm just loving Longfellow's poetry. I remember one poem "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere" from my school days and snippets of others from the Anne of Green Gables movie. They are really, really lovely to read aloud, but some are just tragic!

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just catching up on some poetry that I never read as a kid. Quick and easy.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not having read anything by Longfellow since my school days, I had forgotten what a masterful poet he was.