Making comparisons is one way that authors can use words to "paint" a better picture in our minds. Metaphors and Similes are two examples of comparisons that authors might use.
We read the story My Dog Is as Smelly as Dirty Socks by Hanoch Piven. This story is full of playful language! A young girl sketches a portrait of her family for school, but the young girl doesn't like the portrait. She feels that there are so many things about her family members that can't be seen in the sketch. So she makes her picture better by creating portraits of all her family members — and their dog — using a variety of objects that describe their personality traits. She uses metaphors and similes to teach us that her dad is "as stubborn as a knot in a rope," and "as fun as a party favor."
We are going to begin writing our own version of this great book to have some practice using literary language.