Forgive Me, I Meant To Do It: False Apology Poems

Forgive Me, I Meant To Do It: False Apology Poems
Written by Gail Carson Levine
Illustrated by Matthew Cordell

My rating: ★★★

ISBN: 9780061787256
Publisher: HarperCollins
Date of publication: March 13, 2012
Age: Grades 2 - 6
Genre: Poetry

Themes: fairy tales, non-rhyming poetry, apologies, wickedness

Inspired by William Carlos William’s poem “This Is Just to Say,” this book is a collection of false apologies: forgive me, not really. Using various fairytales or real life experiences, these poems are a representation of how tricksters and pranksters my really feel about their work. Or how Rapunzel really felt about the prince climbing her hair. Here's an example:

“I baked
a cottage
made all
of gingerbread

which
you and your sister
will be unable
to resist

Forgive me
I am hungry
and I prefer my food
young”

Some of the poems are fairly disturbing, but Levine does warn the reader that this is not “a nice happy book.” Indeed, rather hilarious and awfully snarky, you can tell Levine had a lot of fun writing this book. Cordell’s illustrations, in the style of Shel Silverstein, add some additional laughs, but it is really the poems that shine through. This is the perfect book to get kids to try their own hands at poetry—because who hasn’t given a false apology?

Find it at your library or on Amazon