He was 24 at the time, and the poems appeared in his first book, A Gopher in the Garden and Other Animal Poems, in 1967. [1] He stated that "sometime in elementary school I had a teacher who, in retrospect, did not like poetry herself. What a Day It Was at School! Prelutsky claims to have hated poetry when he was younger. I was a skinny kid with a big mouth. Be Glad Your Nose Is on Your Face and Other Poems (2008) (illustrated by Brandon Dorman) Ride a Purple Pelican (1984) (illustrated by Garth Williams) In 2006, the Poetry Foundation named Prelutsky the inaugural winner of the Children's Poet Laureate award.[4]. They have lived in Arizona, Boston, New York, and Olympia, Washington. The Mean Old Mean Hyena (1978) (illustrated by Arnold Lobel) Prelutsky has written more than 50 poetry collections, including Nightmares: Poems to Trouble Your Sleep (1976), It's Halloween (1977), The Mean Old Mean Hyena (1978), and Something BIG Has Been Here (1990). The Beauty of the Beast: Poems from the Animal Kingdom (1997) (illustrated by Meilo So) Poetry Monday's Troll (1996) (illustrated by Peter Sís) This page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia Jack Prelutsky; On September 8, 1940, Jack Prelutsky was born in Brooklyn, and attended Hunter College in New York City. The Random House Book of Poetry for Children (1983) (illustrated by Arnold Lobel) Although he claims to have hated poetry through most of his childhood, he rediscovered poetry later in life, and has devoted many years since to writing fresh, humorous poetry aimed specifically at … Nilsen, A. P. and Nilsen, D.L.F. He served as the first U.S. Children's Poet Laureate (now called the Young People's Poet Laureate) from 2006-08 when the Poetry Foundation established the award. Kermit's Garden of Verses (1982) (illustrated by Bruce McNally) Prelutsky has garnered many awards in his long career including citations as: New York Times Outstanding Book of the Year, School Library Journal Best of the Best Book, International Reading Association/Children's Book Council Children's Choice, Library of Congress Book of the Year, Parents' Choice Award, American Library Association Notable Children's Recording, an Association for Library Services to Children Notable Book and Booklist Editor's Choice, among others. Prelutsky has written more than 50 poetry collections, including Nightmares: Poems to Trouble Your Sleep (1976), It's Halloween (1977), The Mean Old Mean Hyena (1978), and Something BIG Has Been Here (1990). The syllabus told her she had to recite a poem once a week. Me I Am! After stints as a truckdriver, photographer, folksinger, and more, he is now the author of more than forty collections of original verse and anthologies of children's poetry, including: Stardines Swim High Across the Sky: and Other Poems (2013); The Swamps of Sleethe: Poems From Beyond the Solar System (2009); Pizza, Pigs, and Poetry: How to Write a Poem (2008); Be Glad Your Nose Is on Your Facey And Other Poems (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins, 2008); Behold the Bold Umbrellaphant and Other Poems (2006); The Beauty of the Beast: Poems from the Animal Kingdom (2006); The Random House Book of Poetry for Children (1983); Nightmares: Poems to Trouble Your Sleep (1978), and The Queen of Eene (1976).