What to Submit?
1 original poem on the theme of .............Little Black Sambo by Helen Bannerman
This is one of my all-time favorite children's books which got me into a hornet's of trouble when I first joined Soup. Just to be clear here is Wikipedias info on the book.
The Story of Little Black Sambo is a children's book written and illustrated by Scottish author Helen Bannerman, and first published by Grant Richards in October 1899 as one in a series of small-format books called The Dumpy Books for Children. The story was a children's favorite for more than half a century.
However, it would become an object of allegations of racism in the mid-20th century. Critics of the time observed that Bannerman presents one of the first black heroes in children's literature and regarded the book as positively portraying black characters in both the text and pictures,
Any form is acceptable.
Plot
Sambo is a South Indian boy [ALL OF OUR FRIENDS HERE FROM India - PLEASE JOIN IN!] who lives with his father and mother, named Black Jumbo and Black Mumbo, respectively. While out walking, Sambo encounters four hungry tigers and surrenders his colorful new clothes, shoes, and umbrella so they will not eat him. The tigers are vain and each thinks he is better dressed than the others. They chase each other around a tree until they are reduced to a pool of ghee (clarified butter). Sambo then recovers his clothes and collects the ghee, which his mother uses to make pancakes.
Now, you may not have taken the book or the story in the manner it was intended do to what was happening in society & your own life at the time you were exposed to the book. I UNDERSTAND this. Write of what you wish:
1) Your feelings when you read the book?
2) Did you think the main character was African? If so how did you think the child was portrayed?
3) You can even write the story over UPDATED for the 21st century.
4) Is the story a negative or positive story in your mind?
YOU DO NOT HAVE TO WRITE TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS BUT YOU MAY OR WRITE ANYTHING YOU WISH THAT REFERENCES BACK TO THE STORY.
Prizes
First Prize - Tenth Prize Glory
Twelve Honorable Mentions
Preparing Your Entry
Submit one copy of your poem online. Format your poem. Please make your entry easy to read — no illustrations or fancy fonts.
English Language
Poems should be in English. Poems translated from other languages are not eligible unless you wrote both the original poem and the translation.
A Note to Poetry Contestants
You are welcome to enter this contest, whether or not you won a prize in one of my previous contests.