Poetry Walk

Children’s book writer Mem Fox famously said that “writing a picture book is like writing War and Peace in haiku.” So what about a children’s picture book about writing and creating haiku?

In Kiyoshi’s Walk, by Mark Karlins and illustrated by Nicole Wong, a boy asks his poet grandfather,

Where do poems come from?

A simple, but deep question that Grandfather Eto responds to by suggesting going for a walk in the neighborhood. Good advice for all writers and creative thinkers. After Eto takes his pen and some paper, he and Kiyoshi wander their urban neighborhood. He shows Kiyoshi that poems come from looking, listening, and using their imaginations and feelings. When they hear the sound of birds flying overhead, he writes,

 The sky calls to us - 
 Pigeons, the whir of feathers. 
 Our arms could be wings.  

They continue their walk, stopping to write poems until they reach the end of their journey by the river. Kiyoshi and his grandfather sit quietly with their thoughts, and then Kiyoshi bravely asks to write his own poem.

The detailed illustrations allow the reader to follow along with Kiyoshi and Eto. There are close ups of small moments of city life as well as bird’s eye views and different angles of the two walking through their vibrant neighborhood. You can see and feel the close relationship between grandfather and grandson.

The word haiku is never mentioned in the story, but there is an author’s note at the end that describes the poetic form, and it says,

If we look with a poet’s eye, everything becomes poetry.

I couldn’t help but think about how much the story was a good description of the writing process in general, and how many writers not only like to go on long walks, but need to. I know I do. There’s nothing like a good walk in nature, in the city, or just around the block to clear out the mental cobwebs and find inspiration for my latest work-in-progress. So in honor of Mem Fox’s quote, I had to try my hand at writing my own haiku about writing picture books.

 Writing picture books 
 requires thought-provoking walks 
 and many rewrites.