Though it's a bit of a gamble that mixing poetry with math will make either any less baffling, Lewis' grab bag of classic poems rewritten to include numbers puzzlers has an undeniably fun spirit. The math ranges from simple (asking how many cuts it takes to make 10 pie pieces in a reworking of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven") to muddied (in the spin on A. A. Milne's "Us Two," the line "eight plus two times two" can really go in either of two ways) to downright challenging (asking kids to calculate the tax on a train ticket, and then a tip on the ticket plus tax, in the poem inspired by Langston Hughes' "April Rain Song"). Slack's ebullient artwork matches the goofy tone of the poems, and the answers to each problem are printed upside-down on each spread. This book could come in handy for a variety of different classroom purposes, but confirmed "mathletes" are probably the best bet for an audience.

Inspired by the works of different poets, from Poe to Silverstein, each of fourteen poems suggests a brain-teasing math question with the answer (and the arithmetic required to solve it) provided, upside down on the right-hand page. The level of difficulty fluctuates wildly. Biographical information about the poets is appended. Slack's over-the-top digitally created cartoon art adds an air of outright hilarity.

Going a step beyond his Arithme-Tickle (illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz, 2001), Lewis cleverly combines math and language arts with this collection of humorous poetry parodies that present readers with math word problems to solve. Fourteen famous poets and some of their more prominent works are the basis for Lewis' parodies, which are all in good fun and retain the structure, rhyme and rhythm of the originals. Each poem presents children with at least one math problem to solve, and many of them require several steps to get to the final answer. The level of difficulty varies as much as the poems themselves. Teachers will appreciate the wide array of mathematics required to solve the puzzles. In addition to the four basic operations, the challenges test knowledge of fractions, percentages, decimals, area, perimeter and money. But language arts teachers are not to be left out of the fun. While the original poems are, sadly, not included, backmatter does include a very short bio of each poet. From Lear, Whitman and Dickinson to Hughes, Nash and Silverstein, this is like a who's who of famous poets. Slack's digital illustrations match the whimsy and fun of the poems, the tongue-in-cheek humor in full gear. While the illustrations provide no clues as to how to solve the math, the answers are printed upside down on each spread. Humor, math and poetry--who knew they were such a good combination? (Poetry/math. 8-12)

Gr 4-6 Lewisever the innovatorhas used poetic license once again, offering this collection of poems with two twists. Each original selection is written in the poetic trope of a well-known classic, the name of which is included in the title (e.g., "Edgar Allan Poe's Apple Pie," inspired by "The Raven"), and every poem contains one or more math problems (answered in fine print, at the bottom of the page). "A. A. Milne's Spooky Garden," inspired by "Us Two," asks for the perimeter and area of the garden in order to decide how much wire to buy for the fence; the narrator of "Shel Silverstein's Hippo-po-tah-tum," inspired by "Boa Constrictor," wonders how many bites it would take for the creature to eat all of him (a percentage problem). Slack's brightly colored, stylized cartoons carry off the same bizarre tone as the poetry. A mustachioed cowpoke and his horse, clad in their "tightie whities," stand before a clothesline hung with colorfully printed boxer shorts; a girl eating a doughnut "flies" above a lengthy train with the help of three birds holding her umbrella aloft with their feet. Brief introductions to the 14 poets—each accompanied by a small caricature likeness—appear on the final pages. Teachers and parents might challenge youngsters to try solving the math problems, then introduce them to the classic poems by reading them together.— Susan Scheps, formerly at Shaker Heights Public Library, OH