"How We Are Smart" by W. Nikola Lisa

This is a poem book that has eight different poems that talk about different influential historical figures that all have different skill sets they excel at. One page is separated into the poem of the famous figure, and the other side of the page is a water-color based illustration of the person. One aspect of the story that I really liked was that right below the person's poem on each page, it gave a mini biography about the famous person. This is beneficial to students who are not knowledgeable regarding the famous person - in that they are able to read and gain background information about this famous person. Each poem talks about how these different historical figures are unique and skilled, and at the end of each poem it asks "Are you smart like _______?" I thought this is a great poem compilation for young children because it shows that even though everyone has their own personal things that they excel at. So if a student is not good at something like reading very well, maybe they excel at art. Thus, this book helps open up new role models for a variety of students with different skill sets.