Calef Brown's Polka-bats and Octopus Slacks is a humorous collection of rhyming story-poems. The subjects of these poems are often nonsensical and disturbing, a fun combination for children and adults. Brown's strange pairings leave you shaking your head. One of my favorite poems is about octupus slacks:
Kansas City Octopus
is wearing fancy slacks.Bell-bottom,
just got 'em,
fifty bucks including tax.
Red corduroy,
and boy-o-boy,
they fit like apple pie.
Multi-pocket snazzy trousers
custom made for octopi.
Fantastic plastic stretch elastic
keeps 'em nice and tight.
Kansas City Octopus
is looking good tonight!
Brown's poems have a nice rhythm that make for an appealing read aloud.
The illustrations of Polk-bats and Octopus Slacks serve to enhance the text. His illustrations alternate between full bleed across either one or both pages. The colors serve to highlight the topics of the poem. For example, in Lonely Surfer, a sun-burned surfer who makes his home in the desert for fear of sharks is shown with his surfboard atop a prickly pear in shades of yellow and orange that give us the sensation of warmth and heat.
This collection of poems is strange and fun rolled into one. The odd topics will have you shaking your head even as the catchy rhymes will stick in it.
The following links are provided for those interested in reading Polka-bats and Octopus Slacks:
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