Active and restless, “Bud” Riley, the boy who would grow to be one of the 19th century’s most popular and respected poets, had a hard time sitting still in school—unless he was drawing or writing the “poems he heard in his head.” Fine illustrations and text rich with history draw young readers into James Whitcomb Riley’s world on the edge of the Midwestern wilderness. Children fully experience Riley’s lively youth, from learning to swim (nearly drowning in the process) to acting as ringmaster in his own circus, complete with animal acts, music, and acrobats. Fun facts about James Whitcomb Riley provide children with a preview of the poet’s adult accomplishments and little-known facts about the man greatly admired by novelist Mark Twain and President Benjamin Harrison.