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Overview
This collection brings together the more than 250 children's poems Ted Hughes wrote throughout his career. They are arranged by volume, beginning with those published for younger readers and progressing to more complex and sophisticated poems that he felt were written "within hearing" of children. Throughout, Hughes reveals his instinctive grasp of a child's insatiable wonderment and sense of humor as well as his own instinctive and illuminating perspective on people and other creatures of the natural world.
With drawings that capture the wit, range, and richness of these poems, acclaimed illustrator Raymond Briggs helps make this a book any reader can return to again and again for amusement, inspiration, and reassurance.
Editorials
Children's Literature -
From the end of the 1950s until his death in 1998, Ted Hughes wrote poetry for children, publishing a variety of books such as Meet My Folks!, What Is the Truth? A Farmyard Fable for the Young, and Season Songs. In recognition of his talent and body of work, he was appointed England's Poet Laureate in 1984. This particular collection of poetry draws from some of his works for younger readers/listeners, and progresses to some of his most sophisticated works. It is a testament to the change in the times and cultural evolution that many of the poems seem to be suitable for older readers even though the writing evokes a scene or situation that would most naturally be deemed appropriate for the younger set. Perhaps, ambitious parents and teachers could introduce this lyrical amalgam of observations of nature and humanity with an eye toward stretching today's youngsters as listeners—provoking thoughtful enjoyment of this master's creativity, compassion, and expressed joy in everyday life. Religious motifs play throughout a number of the poems with poignancy, but without superficial sentimentality. Many of today's students will find this collection a challenge, but with careful guidance, it may well be used to introduce a higher level of appreciation of the many faces of poetry. Over 200 black and white sketches from the talented Raymond Briggs help to bring an additional spark of life and humor to Hughes' work—enhancing in places and supporting in other, but never detracting from the words themselves.School Library Journal
Gr 2–6
Hughes penned more than 250 poems expressly for children, which were previously published in The Mermaid's Purse, The Cat and the Cuckoo, Season Songs , and others. Now they are gathered together in one book beginning with the volumes most suited for elementary-age children and progressing in complexity. Some of Hughes's witty and irreverent verses require sophisticated and patient readers because he includes creative grammar when he wants them to rhyme ("Far undergrounded, Moon-miners dumbfounded") and uses mixed cadences within a single poem that confound reading aloud without practice. Words more commonly used in England, "your telly's there," and "pans spitting by sixes" may slow some American children; however, the sheer variety of poetic styles will please many others. Briggs's stellar ink, mostly realistic illustrations suffuse the sections for younger children, where animals and family are the subjects, and become sparer for longer narrative poems. Although the audience may be somewhat limited, this is an important addition to any large poetry collection.
—Kirsten CutlerCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.