H is where the hyrax hootenanny’s at!
Today, I am stacking H-words till they sing (well, maybe even hurtfully, honestly)… starting with my hyrax poem with 13 rare gems (like ‘hagridden’ howls to ‘hamartia’ chills), plus 13 brilliant H-titled books
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How to Explain a Hyrax
Today’s NaPoWriMo prompt challenges us to try writing our own poem in the voice of an animal or plant, or a poem that describes a specific animal or plant with references to historical events or scientific facts. So here is …
Hyrax Hootenanny
Have you ever seen a hyrax?
Or maybe heard one?
Ooh the hagridden howls
Are fairly horrisonant,
Likely to have your heart
Heaving heavily.
The hyrax, you see,
Looks pure hebetude—
But no dullard this!
Clever and curious, it is.
A habitue
Of sun-warmed rocky ledges—
Pretty much a cutie
(Hypocorism worthy!)
And since you will often
See many at once, not just one,
A lively hootenanny!!
The hyrax, you see,
Is hardy yet hesitant –
A hobbledehoy hero
Of the hillsides.
A quick and lively creature,
Yet here’s its hamartia:
Come the chill of night,
Heat lost in haste.
Hugger-mugger they huddle,
Hoping dawn’s warmth will heal,
Half-frozen but hearty still.
Still, how can one help
But hold a bit of hagiolatry
For this humble kin
To elephants and manatees?
Little herald of the hills,
Hear how it hallelujahs
Its small but hearty hymn.
~ Vidya Tiru @ LadyInReadWrites
H-Handlist: 13 Hyrax Heroes
- Hamartia : a tragic flaw that leads to a character’s downfall
- Hyperbaton : an unusual or inverted word order for emphasis, like Yoda does (the actual word is not used, but a hyperbaton is used)
- Hootenanny : a lively gathering with music, fun, and informal performances
- Hagridden : troubled or haunted (emotionally or mentally)
- Hypocorism : a pet name or affectionate nickname
- Hebetude : mental dullness or sluggishness
- Habitue : a person who regularly visits a place
- Horrisonant : producing a harsh, bristling, unpleasant sound
- Hobbledehoy : an awkward or clumsy adolescent boy
- Hugger-mugger : secretive, disorderly, or chaotic behavior
- Hagiolatry: the worship of saints
- Hendiadys : expressing a single idea using two words joined by “and” (like with hyperbaton!)
- Hyrax: the animal described above!
Bonus H Words:
- Hapax legomenon : a word that appears only once in a text or language, like this “h” word will be for this post
- Handlist: a concise list of selected items, often kept as a quick reference or curated collection, especially when someone has handpicked the entries for a specific purpose (like the one above!)
How to Hype Your Bookshelves
- Harboring Hope by Susan Hood (10 years and up). A stunning novel-in-verse that tells the inspirational true story of twenty-two-year-old Henny Sinding who helped smuggle hundreds of Jewish families in occupied Denmark to safety in Sweden during the Holocaust.
- Here We Are: Feminism for the Real World edited by Kelly Jensen (Ages 14+). This is a must-read, powerful collection of poems, essays, stories, and art exploring modern feminism through diverse voices.
- Hey Black Child by Useni Eugene Perkins; illus. Bryan Collier (Ages 2–6). An uplifting poem that celebrates Black identity, dreams, and limitless potential. (
- The Hawk of the Castle: A Story of Medieval Falconry by Danna Smith; illus. Bagram Ibatoulline (Ages 4–8 years). Both the detailed masterful illustrations and the narrative (rhyming verse and informative text) combine to make this an engaging read.
- Here We Go: A Poetry Friday Power Book by Sylvia Vardell & Janet Wong (Ages 9 –12).
- Hummingbird Season by Stephanie V.W. Lucianovic (Ages 8–12).
- Hidden Powers: Lise Meitner’s Call to Science by Jeannine Atkins (Ages 10+). The inspiring true story of physicist Lise Meitner and her groundbreaking contributions to nuclear science.
- The Hope of Elephants by Amanda Rawson Hill (Ages 10+). A poignant novel in verse weaving together history, grief, and hope across generations.
- A Hatful of Dragons: And 13.8 Billion Other Funny Poems by Vikram Madan(Ages 3–7). A wildly imaginative and humorous collection of poems packed with wordplay, quirky scenarios, and laugh-out-loud surprises.
- Home Run, Touchdown, Basket, Goal!: Sports Poems for Little Athletes by Leo Landry (Ages 5–9). Energetic sweet poems celebrating sports, teamwork, and the joy of play.
- Home Is a Window by Stephanie Parsley Ledyard; illus. Chris Sasaki (Ages 4–8). A lyrical exploration of what “home” means across places, feelings, and experiences.
- Hidden City: Poems of Urban Wildlife by Sarah Grace Tuttle; illus. Amy Schimler-Safford (Ages 7–11). Poems and amazing collage-style artwork that reveal the surprising and vibrant wildlife living alongside us in cities.
- Hello, I’m Johnny Cash by Brad Meltzer; illus. Christopher Eliopoulos (Ages 5–9). A simple, engaging introduction to the life and legacy of legendary musician Johnny Cash.
Related Happiness
- Oh! I found this really adorable hyrax plushy that I hope to get for a loved one…
And Now, the End of This Post
Dear reader, which of these books have you read or will get first to read? Which of the ‘h’ words are new / old to you? Any other interesting ‘h’ words or books to share ? Do let me know.
I am linking up to A-Z, Blogchatter, UBC, NaPoWriMo. Also to Thursday 13 after a long while.
And you can find all my A-Z posts (this year and previous years’ as well) here:
