Relatively Speaking

by Ralph Fletcher, Krudop

Genres: Poetry

48 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1999

About the author

Ralph Fletcher is a friend of young writers and readers as well as writing teachers. He has written or co-authored many books for writing teachers includng Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide, Teaching the Qualities of Writing, Lessons for the Writer's Notebook, Boy Writers: Reclaiming Their Voices, and Pyrotechnics on the Page: Playful Craft That Sparks Writing. Ralph has worked with teachers around the U.S. and abroad, helping them find wiser ways of teaching writing.

Ralph's many books for students include picture books (Twilight Comes Twice, Hello Harvest Moon, and The Sandman), novels (Fig Pudding, Flying Solo, and Spider Boy), poetry (A Writing Kind of Day and Moving Day), and a memoir, Marshfield Dreams: When I Was a Kid. His novel Uncle Daddy was awarded the Christopher medal in 2002. He has also written a popular series of books for young writers including Poetry Matters, Live Writing, and A Writer's Notebook. Ralph lives with his family in New Hampshire. He is a strong environmentalist who believes we all must work together to live in a more sustainable way. His other passions include travel, good food, dark chocolate, growing orchids, and sports.

Reviews

[Beau Jarmosco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very relatable sense I'm the youngest until he had a younger sister easy quick read and I just added stuff to my school reading assignment. (THIS BOOK IS POEM)

[jennyreadit · Rating 5 out of 5]

The master of Writing Workshop, Ralph Fletcher, has published this book of poems that really tell his story growing up from being the youngest to becoming the middle child. I rated it for older students due to the poem about his brother's girlfriend's "hickey" and his uncle drinking.My favorite poem is, "Grandpa," describing his ancestors being archers. "I tell him archery is pretty cool, but I want to be a writer when I grow up. Well then, he says, what feathers will you use to make your words fly straight and true?"
LOVE!! <3

[Autumn Campbell · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book follows the life of an unnamed, eleven-year-old boy and his family dynamic. His brother is sixteen, and used to be his best friend, but now ignores him for his other friends and girlfriend. After the narrator has given up on trying to connect with his brother, his mom says that she is pregnant again, seemingly embarrassed. The narrator does not know what to say, because he does not really care. He believes that being the middle child, he will now not have to worry about rules around the house.

There's a poem where it talks about the narrator's brother falling through ice and being in the ICU for a long time, on a respirator. There are a couple poems talking about how he has healed, but we see none of the healing process or the real trauma his family is going through. After this, we are thrown to stories about the grandparents, and then thrown into the family reunion.

At the family reunion, we have a large segment of poems. They each describe a different family member and what they contribute to the overall family dynamic. Once a family member has been written about, they are not brought up again. The mother gives birth to a daughter, a baby the narrator calls perfect and whole. They then begin to change how they walk and talk, so as not to wake the baby.

In the end of the book, we see the narrator with his grandfather, a war hero. They talk about their ancestors and what they did in life. Then they talk about the narrator's future, and he says he wants to be a writer when he grows up. It ends beautifully with the grandfather asking "what feathers will you use to make your words fly straight and true?"

[Christy Manning · Rating 4 out of 5]

I need 3 poems from this book emailed to me! Can anyone help! Thx!!
christysidehustle@gmail.com

[Calista · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book for a grade 6 classroom, some iffy content (a girlfriend having hickies). Interesting that all the poems are about one person. One poem near the end about babies, and how everyone always cares whether or not they are a boy or a girl and not the colour of the hair.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book could almost be a novel in verse. All the poems are told from the point of view of a boy who is describing his family and events that happen to them, including the birth of his baby sister.

[Timothy Coen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought the poems were interesting and short, but overall a great poem book for casual read

[Lily Bogas]

Funny, true, and relatable.

[Keri · Rating 1 out of 5]

okay