Gratitudes to all who signed up to host Poetry Friday roundups in the first six months of 2026. It was a bit nip-and-tuck to fill the last few slots (thanks for the help, Irene!), but you poets always come through! The complete roundup can be found in the sidebar here, and if you’d like for me to send you the code so you can have the list on your blog, just let me know.
This month, the Poetry Sisters are in conversation with the theme of light, hope, and peace. No form requirements, no length rules.
When we chatted last Sunday, Sara mentioned that she might write a limerick. Not necessarily poetry on the theme of light, but definitely light poetry (heh heh).
I snagged her idea and combined it with a core memory from a past Solstice celebration. Unearthing a photo from that long ago celebration resulted in a fun conversation with the head engineer and fudge-maker. He reminded me that our Fudgehenge was built pretty close to scale. And…it was so very yummy!
Here’s what what the other Poetry Sisters created:
I know that many of the Poetry Friday regulars get the same array of daily poetry newsletters and so this poem landed in your inbox too. But it has stuck with me and compelled me to read it over and over again.
It is a love letter to terror.
It elaborates on all the wonders of life that would not exist without the darkness of terror. Here on the brink of the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere, the coexistence of darkness and light are played out right outside our windows. Here in the United States, the coexistence of darkness and light are played out in the graft of politics and the care of neighbors for each other.
Last night in a conversation with like-minded folks, we talked about the importance of inviting grief or depression or negative thoughts to come in for a cup of cocoa; the importance of letting those visitors have their say and then kindly showing them to the door. I feel like this poem does just that, treating terror with merciful respect, while celebrating all the positive that exists because of terror.
The (Palestinian) poet writes
“I wrote this poem because I was thinking about security—how, in its name, we wage wars, round up political activists, install surveillance cameras, build walls, carry more weapons. How we cross to the other side of the street when we see someone approaching, avoid love, suspect kindness, and villainize the stranger.” —Dalia Taha
and the translator writes
“While translating Dalia Taha’s ‘Enter Terror,’ I kept looking over my shoulder to check that ‘terror’ was, in fact, what was being so tenderly addressed—and not something much less sinister. The speaker in this poem cannot imagine a world without terror. If this poem acts subversively, it does so by repurposing the worst shape of fear—terror—as companion; like love, it keeps us restlessly awake to the world’s beauty and ruin.” —Sara Elkamel
Here are a couple of my favorite parts of Enter Terror:
Without you, no one would read the same sentence a second time, breathless, before setting the book aside to pace from one room to the next. And without you, there would be no lines to draw under striking lines in the books of poetry and philosophy that now rest serenely by your bed, after having moved universes; after changing worlds.
.
…without you people would not gather on pitch black nights; they would not light candles or invent lullabies. Without you, no one would ever know that stories told in whispers are the only way to contend with night.
Which lines resonated with you?
Michelle has this week’s Poetry Friday round up at MoreArt4All.
Interested in hosting a Poetry Friday roundup in January – June 2026? There are still spaces available! The signup is here.
This is December, as much or more than decorations and presents. This, plus oak leaves scuttling across a crust of snow, the dark silhouettes of winter trees, and heavy purple clouds hinting at the possibility of more snow later.
Linda has this week’s Poetry Friday roundup at A Word Edgewise.
Interested in hosting a Poetry Friday roundup in January – June 2026? There are still spaces available! The signup is here.
The Inklings challenge for this month came from Heidi, who encouraged us to write a poem of address to an article of clothing. After auditioning several ideas, I settled on my old friend Barn Coat. We’ve been through many winters together, and I know we’ve got many more yet to go.
Here’s how the rest of the Inklings met this month’s challenge:
It’s that time again. Six-ish months have passed since last we queued up to host the Poetry Friday roundups.
What is the Poetry Friday roundup? A gathering of links to posts featuring original or shared poems, or reviews of poetry books. A carnival of poetry posts. Here is an explanation that Rene LaTulippe shared on her blog, No Water River, and here is an article Susan Thomsen wrote for the Poetry Foundation.
Who can do the Poetry Friday roundup? Anyone who is willing to gather the links in some way, shape, or form (Mr. Linky, “old school” in the comments, or ???) on the Friday of your choice. If you are new to the Poetry Friday community, jump right in, but perhaps choose a date later on so that we can spend some time getting to know each other.
How do you do a Poetry Friday roundup? If you’re not sure, stick around for a couple of weeks and watch…and learn! One thing we’re finding out is that folks who schedule their posts, or who live in a different time zone than you, appreciate it when the roundup post goes live sometime on Thursday.
How do I get the code for the PF Roundup Schedule for the sidebar of my blog? You can grab the list from the sidebar here at A(nother) Year of Reading, or I’d be happy to send it to you if you leave me your email address.
Why would I do a Poetry Friday Roundup? Community, community, community. It’s like hosting a poetry party on your blog!
Put your request in the comments (blog URL is appreciated) and I’ll update the calendar frequently. Feel free to share this post on all the various socials. And if WordPress is not playing nice, feel free to email me: marylee.hahn at gmail dot com.
This post is my contribution to the Poetry Sisters’ challenge to write an “overheard” poem. For my overheard, I used my notes from NCTE, and in the image you can see my away-from-home-no-laptop process. It was fun to go back to the basics/old school. After I drafted in my notebook and did the cut-and-paste recombination, I began my post on my phone and a whole new learning curve emerged: how to format! Thank goodness I can at least bumble in html.
Edited to add a link to the roundup at Buffy’s blog. Only a couple of the Poetry Sisters managed a post this month, what with NCTE and Life and All. You can find them on the roundup. Edited also to add the sources for each of my quotes.
I’ve always been interested in finding the best books for transitional readers—readers who have learned to read and who are becoming more sophisticated readers. They often are new to chapter books, so finding books that support them as readers is important as they build skills and agency as readers.
I discovered the Bear and Bird series by Jarvis this summer. I love so much about this series and one thing I especially like is that the humor in the books appeal to a wide age-range of readers (maybe 3rd graders who are just starting chapter books).
The first Bear and Bird book I read with a child was “The Stick and Other Stories”. We both laughed aloud on the first page and we were both hooked. The first page made us laugh out loud and fall in love with one of the main characters at the same time.
Since that first book, I’ve enjoyed all of the Bear and Bird books and they have become one of my favorite new series for transitional readers. (I think there are 6 total books in the series now.) The latest book in the series is Bear and Bird: The Secret and Other Stories.
I love so much about this series. Most of all, while reading these books, I have the same feeling I had when I read Frog and Toad and Henry and Mudge books. Great stories about two friends -stories filled with humor and lessons in friendship.
These books are part of Candlewick’s “Sparks for New Readers” collection and as I have read these with children, I see the way that these books support transitional readers.
Each book has several stories within. The stories may be connected but they stand alone. This is important for readers new to chapter books as they learn to hold onto a story over time.
The characters are lovable and predictable. The more you read, the more you come to know the characters and the more you have expectations as readers. Getting to know characters with depth is important for transitional readers and each story allows us to get to know these characters through their relationship with each other.
The text and visuals are balanced. The illustrations match the text which I think is an important feature for this stage of reading. The illustrations also include some unique visuals (lists, signs, etc.)
The text is accessible to readers while also having features such as dialogue, parentheses and ellipsis that might be new to readers.
The themes in each story are very accessible to young readers and are common themes in friendship stories.
This is a great series for readers who are new to chapter books and who like great characters and a little humor! They make great read alouds for younger readers, too! Try one and if you love it, read the whole series!
Linda’s prompt for the Inkings challenge this month comes from Ethical ELA’s September Open Write by Kelsey Bigelow: “What is the happiest thing you’ve ever tasted?”
In brainstorming for the poem, I unearthed a memory of racing to the DQ to get a cone for Dad, and making it home before it melted. Being able to make him happy was sweeter than my own butterscotch dip cone.
Same thing with the good luck dumplings Nai Nai serves before I fly back to Ohio from San Diego. They are so SO yummy, but the best part is her happiness.
Three or four elections ago I brought some Nerds Gummy Clusters to snack on through the long day and to share with my fellow roster judges. This has become a tradition which we were delighted to share with a new member of our team on Tuesday. He had never had them. The look on his face was priceless.
Today I went for a long walk and brainstormed ideas for this poem. I drank in the delicious blue of the sky and savored the crispy crunch under my feet as I walked. Pure Fall happiness! (And that MOON last night!)
Here’s how the rest of the Inklings met this month’s challenge:
A(nother) Year of Reading 