In October 2008 Mary Ann received the Children’s Poet Laureate award, serving for two years. During that time she continued to do what she’d done for over fifty years: spreading the delight of children’s poetry and poetry in general, as a sort of Pied Piper for children’s poetry. While continuing to write and recite her own poems, she presented the work of other wonderful children’s poets in talks and readings and videos.
Here is the Poetry Foundation announcement of the award.
And here is a piece by Charles Storch that appeared in the Chicago Tribune.
Another article, by Michael Atkinson.
An audio interview with Curtis Fox.
During Mary Anne’s time as Children’s Poet Laureate, she made an ongoing series of short videos for the Poetry Foundation, reading the poems of some outstanding children’s poets as well as some of her own. Here are the first three:
A group of poems from Laughing Time by William Jay Smith.
Some poems by Edward Lear.
Mary Ann reads one of her own early books, I Like Old Clothes.