Friday, November 20, 2015

Poetry Friday: Julie Paschkis's Flutter and Hum (Aleteo y Zumbido)



What can I say about Julie Paschkis's new book Flutter and Hum / Aleteo y Zumbido: Animal Poems / Poemas de Animales?

Well, how about this: I want to take every student I ever taught at the University of Washington and at Vermont College of Fine Arts and tell them, belatedly, "Here. Sit down. Read this. This is what Evelyn Glennie meant in her TedTalk, 'How to Truly Listen," about hearing with your whole body. This is what Leonard Bernstein meant about language being musical. Poetry, prose, it doesn't matter - in order to make the language right, you have to listen to the sound it makes. You have to try to make it sing some kind of song, try to hear it as if each word is new to you. Start with individual words, say them aloud, then stack them up, make them chime, play with rhyme, investigate rhythm.  Read what Julie Paschkis does in this book. Then try your hand at it."

Of course, I've left something out here - something important - about the process of listening carefully to language. Julie learned it while writing the book: It's easier to hear the music of a language that is new to us and fresh - that is, a language which still surprises us - than to hear the music of our own first language. After all, as adults we've gotten so used to English that we've almost forgotten how to really hear it. Kids do a bit better - they're still surprised...and often, delighted, when they "hear it new."

What Julie did was begin to learn Spanish. Over the course of her studies, she fell in love with the language.  I experienced this myself when I lived in Mexico as a new bride; my husband, who grew up in Mexico, was feeling the same way about English. It's a giddy time, starting out with a new language, kind of like looking up into the sky at night and seeing a super moon, brighter than normal. Language - the sound the words make - is usually familiar, but it suddenly surprises you.

Julie Paschkis and Friend

I think Julie wrote the poems in Flutter and Hum / Aleteo y Zumbido as a kind of love letter to Spanish. She started with individual words - many free-standing words float into, above, under and around the pages.  Then she did the stacking and chiming and rhyming I mentioned before - she formed the poems. She wrote them first in Spanish, then translated them into the kind of English that also sings and surprises. The result is very exciting, because the poems please both heart and mind. And ear! Here's an example (if you know any Spanish, definitely read the poems aloud -- and if you don't know Spanish, just give it a shot - it's basically phonetic, and a double L is pronounced as a Y):

     La Polilla

     La polilla
     bombardea
     la bombilla,
     buscando la luna.

     La lucierniga
     aletea ---
     su propia estrella.

     La luna
     no ve
     ni la polilla,
     ni la bombilla,
     ni la lucierniaga.

     ***

     Moth

     The moth
     bombards
     the lightbulb,
     looking for the moon.

     The firefly
     flutters by ---
     its own star.

     The moon
     doesn't notice
     the moth,
     the lightbulb,
     or the firefly. 

(Be sure to click on this to make it larger!)
  
I guess what I want to suggest on this Poetry Friday is simple: "Here. Sit down. Read this poem and its translation. Then try your hand at it."

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 The Poetry Friday round-up today is being hosted by Tricia over at the fabulous Miss Rumphius Effect (she's posted a beautiful poem by Robert Frost - "My November Guest.") Head over there to see what other poems have been posted by the Poetry Friday crowd. And don't miss Julie's new post over at Books Around the Table today!

18 comments:

  1. I love, love, love this book! I work at a Dual Language school and work hard at my Spanish every single day. I'm not fluent though and can't imagine being able to write a whole book in Spanish!

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    1. I can't imagine it either, Carol - and to get the poems in both languages to be so musical, translated correctly - that's quite an accomplishment!

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  2. Love reading your wonderful words about Julie's book, definitely one of my fave poetry picture books of the year. Simply exquisite in every way. I've always been interested in the musicality of language, trying to find ways to better listen with the whole body. :)

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    1. Be sure to watch that Evelyn Glennie TedTalk, Jama, which I linked - it's so interesting. And hey - Happy Birthday!!!!! BTW: I hear Colin and others are visiting you for your special day.... :-)

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  3. Such a thoughtful review of this gorgeous, sensory-rich book! Thank you, Julie.

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    1. And thanks for coming over to The Drift Record to read it today, Michelle.

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  4. I love this book, Julie, submitted it for the Cybils Awards. I did try to read the Spanish too, although I know French, not Spanish. It is a lilting moment of the voice always. Thanks for sharing some of your thoughts and background, love thinking of the "love letter to Spanish".

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    1. I was SO happy to see you had nominated it, Linda! And you're right about the lilt - it's a special something that catches the ear and makes you sit up and listen more carefully. Not easy to write, we both know!

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  5. This is so special. I don't know Spanish, but it didn't matter (I knew some of the words though), the language is beautiful. Translated so well, too! What a gift for today! Thanks.

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    1. Absolutely right - sometimes not knowing the language (or only a few words...or only the pronunciation...) is enough to hear how lovely it is. Thanks for visiting The Drift Record, Donna.

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  6. The opening stanza of the moth -- what gorgeous imagery.

    I grew up in a three-culture household. The sounds of language, the different accents we use and turns of phrase, are fascinating. Looking forward to reading this book.

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    1. Laura, I think hearing multiple languages around you when you're young really helps with the learning of a second language later - not to mention the good luck of multiple traditions with food and customs in general.,How lucky you were!

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  7. Your enthusiasm is quite contagious! I'm convinced I need to immerse myself in this book. Interesting I commented yesterday to my daughter that I'm enjoying a CD of music in Italian, even though I don't understand the words. (An ignorance/a not-knowing that would have troubled me, even just a few months ago). When she suggested I research the songs/find the English translations, I admitted that I simply do not want to...There's something very powerful about being moved by the musicality/the beauty of the language and letting that speak to my soul. I was thinking that's how it must have been for us when we were infants...Thanks for this confirming and inspiring post. God bless you!

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    1. I had a strange experience with opera once, where English translations of what was being sung in Italian were being posted to a big readerboard over the stage. It ruined things for me! All I wanted was the emotional register as it was sung, not the literal translation. As you said, there's definitely something to letting the music wash over you (yes, like a lullabye, or like other pre-verbal "language."

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  8. Julie - thank you so much for this post. It means SO MUCH to me coming from you. You make my heart clatter.
    Julie (Paschkis)

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  9. And, the effect of the illustrations is the icing on the cake! Brava, Julie P.!

    Julie L., I'm glad you mentioned Evelyn Glennie. I haven't watched the TedTalk, but, I have seen her DVD, Touch the Sound. It was so powerful I went out and bought a copy to share with a friend. (If you haven't seen it, I checked the Seattle P. L. catalog and they have several copies available.)

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    1. Diane, I'm putting a reserve in for that DVD today. Thanks for the heads-up!!

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  10. Hi, Julie--thanks for stopping by last week to comment on my NCTE post. I'll be overviewing my activities and takeaways today. However, what I want to say about Flutter & Hum is that this book INSTANTLY leapt to the top of the list of Books I Wish I Had Written (and never before have I wished so fervently to be the artist who could illustrate it, also). This book is such genius in its conception, and I have barely scratched the surface of its execution. (And did you know it was Julie Paschkis that I suggested to illustrate both of my books, in case there was any chance of it?) Thanks for this post which further elucidates the brilliance of Flutter & Hum.

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