Take Off Your Brave: The World through the Eyes of a Preschool Poet

Praise

This charming collection of original poetry is accompanied by vibrantly joyful illustrations. . . . Everything from cadence to word choice to imagery rings true to a preschool perspective, and audiences of all ages will enjoy the imaginative descriptions of and fresh insights . . these selections beg to be read aloud and will enhance classroom lessons and story hours.
—Booklist

The clear, expressive free-form pieces examine the cornerstones of a young person’s world: home, school, family, friends, sensations, memories, and emotions. . . . This unique collection will serve as an appealing introduction to poetry for children: reflecting their daily experience to them, bolstering their appreciation of the written word, and perhaps inspiring them to construct poems of their own
—School Library Journal

Accompanied by energetic illustrations full of buoyant, frolicking children of varying races, the results of [Nadim’s] first year of writing are striking: imaginative phrases, perceptive moments, and poems that feel finished in a unique way, with some bits and pieces you’d expect from a 4-year-old, not at all a bad thing. . . Teachers can use the structures of some of the lines as jumping-off points for students, and kids will be delighted to see the work of a peer in print. The poems themselves capture the newness and excitement of being a child. . . A colorful, warm collection that young readers and poets will savor.
—Kirkus Reviews

These pages collect poems that Nadim dictated to his mother, poems by Nadim’s sister, and some by his preschool classmates, too, on topics conceptual, experiential, and social-emotional. All feel fresh, spontaneous, and aware of important truths. . . With a loose line and sparky excitement, Ismail captures children of various abilities and skin tones in uninhibited play.
—Publishers Weekly

What on Earth could a preschooler have to say about the world? A tremendous amount, as it turns out — about love, school, flowers, life underground and favorite things. Some poems are profound in ways that only the very young, who wear their feelings out in the open, can be. . . . Nadim’s poems, both deep and light, are great inspiration for other young poets — and a promise of more exciting things to come from the young artist.
—The Virginian Pilot