Well-Versed Owlet: Otto the Owl Who Loved Poetry by Vern Kouskey

As far as the other owls in the woods go, Otto is out of it.

YOU SEE, OWLS ARE SUPPOSED TO ROOST IN THE HOLLOWS OF TREES.

BUT OTTO WOULD RATHER READ BOOKS.

AND OWLS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE HUNTING IN THE DARK OF THE NIGHT.

BUT OTTO FINDS A SECRET SPOT TO RECITE HIS FAVORITE POEMS.

Lonely little Otto spouts lines from "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," by T. S. Elliot and "Who Has Seen the Wind?" by Christina Rossetti. The little mice are enchanted, but the other owls hoot at his recitations.

"HERE COMES BLOTTO THE BARD" THEY SCOFF.

But then Otto comes up with a poem that appeals especially to his own cohorts.

"I'M NOBODY. WHOOOOO ARE YOU?"

Now Otto is singing their song, and the other owls give him their rapt attention. They roost in reverie as Otto recites, and all the forest listens to his poetry together.

Vern Kousky's just-published Otto the Owl Who Loved Poetry (Nancy Paulson Books, 2015) comes along just in time for April Poetry Month, with his tale of an odd bird who finally finds popularity among his peers with a bit of Emily Dickinson and a lot of passion for his poems. Kousky's nocturnal illustrations in subdued shades and hues of blues and purples are lovely, while his characters, from the out-of-the-loop Otto to his fans the mice, add a touch of humor to this taste of the great poets.