TWIST: Yoga Poems

Bank Street – Best Books of the Year

Garden State Children’s Book Award NomineeI wrote this book as a gift for illustrator Julie Paschkis years before the current children’s yoga craze swept this country. Now there are thousands of young yogis out there—and here’s a book to help them wrap their minds around what they’re doing with their bodies. Julie had just finished working on Knock on Wood and I wanted to offer Julie an irresistible subject for their third collaboration. Since Julie is an avid practitioner of yoga, I suspected that Julie would be passionate about painting the images for this book and, luckily, she was!

Encourage your P.E. teachers to try yoga with your students—and try it in your classroom, too!

Published by Simon & Schuster (Margaret K. McElderry Books)
ISBN 9780689873942

“This collection of 16 poems touches on the uplifting and emotional aspects of yoga, putting words to the spirit of the poses and evoking the energy and feelings of the practice. Wong’s simple verses read almost like haiku, using imagery to get to the essence of the positions, rather than teaching how to perform them. On each spread, Paschkis’s watercolor paintings frame both the poem and a child performing the pose with colorful fauna, flora, and people that suggest India as well as that particular exercise. The youngsters are varied ethnically though all wear clothing with Indian colors and patterns. The words and images blend together effortlessly, with energy and beauty.”
—School Library Journal

“Your family will get moving and stretching with this inspiring poetry collection. Become a slithering cobra, a roaring lion, or a warrior. Stunning illustrations by Julie Paschkis depict principal yoga poses and the animals they represent.”
—Scholastic Parent & Child