Dirt On My Shirt by Jeff Foxworthy

I know, I know Jeff Foxworthy as a poet? I am not a redneck, but have always thought his good natured jabs were well intended and funny. I saw that he had written a book of poetry and was pleasantly surprised to find it pretty good.

I enjoyed the quick, sharp stanzas about various humerous topics close to his own childhood experiences. The watercolor pictures went along with the text wonderfully and helped increase meaning. The words used were simple, but the rhyming made them enjoyable. The light tone of these poems would be appealing to many readers, but probably best for beginning readers as the vocabulary isn't very intense.

I think my favorite poem was entitled Snakes Alive! It talks about a boy seeing a snake out in the backyard and sending his dad out to look. Dad didn't find it and the boy concluded that he hadn't looked that hard (I wouldn't either). The watercolor illustration on that page was a fun addition.