Hay Festival: Alex Wharton

Lat week, I had the great pleasure of seeing Alex Wharton at the Hay Festival. His poetry collection, ‘Daydreams and Jellybeans’ is one of my favourites and I have used many of his poems in school with great success.

Full of energy and enthusiasm, Alex had the audience instantly captivated. He started with his poem, ‘Jellybean’ and soon had us all performing with him. Whilst queuing for the event, the man behind me had expressed concerns to his friend about whether the two little boys he was taking in would manage to stay engaged for the whole session- he need not have worried! They loved it, even taking part in reading a poem on stage with Alex!

Alex’s love of the natural world shines through his work and he explained how being in nature helps him to make ‘space and freedom’ in his brain to create- something which he encouraged the audience to try. He likened poetry to a therapy, saying that when we write, it helps us to untangle our feelings- something I have often found when using poetry with children in school.

Alex shared a selection of his poems, offering insights to the inspiration behind them, and encouraging everyone to join in and have fun. His passion for poetry was infectious, making this an excellent and enjoyable session for all. Most excitingly, he mentioned a new collection might be on the way soon…

Whether you consider yourself a poetry lover or not, ‘Daydreams and Jellybeans’ is a must have collection for everyone!

You can read my review of ‘Daydreams and Jellybeans’ here.

We Sang Across the Sea: The Empire Windrush and Me

Written as a poem, ‘We Sang Across the Sea: The Empire Windrush and Me’ tells the story of Mona Baptiste, a singer who left her Trinidadian home for England. It is a moving story, beautifully told and illustrated.

The happiness of Mona’s childhood on the island is brilliantly captured with her passion for singing celebrated on every page. Her courage and determination when leaving her family aboard the Empire Windrush to accomplish her hopes and dreams is shared in the faces of the others depicted waving farewell to their loved ones and homeland in search of pastures new. It offers the perfect opportunity for discussing the reasons for migration and encouraging empathy, as well as excitement, for those in search of a different life and celebrating the skills and cultural richness they carry with them.

Mona’s experiences as a ‘singing sensation’, travelling and performing all round the world, show she achieved her desire to share her love of singing, bringing joy to all who heard her. However, the difficulties she faced as a ‘Caribbean girl’ are alluded to, offering a great opportunity for further discussing her experiences and those of others who came on the Windrush. A little note about Mona Baptiste at the end of the book adds to the story and might inspire children to explore her life further.

The text is perfect for reading aloud and children will naturally join in with the repeated refrain. The book is sure to become a firm favourite and is a poignant reminder of the arrival of the Windrush, celebrated each year on Windrush Day, the 22nd June.

Benjamin Zephaniah’s dedication in the book is every bit as beautiful as the story itself:

For all children who love to sing

and children who love listening

Regardless of your colour or race,

please make this world a better place.

Wise words indeed!

We Sang Across the Sea: The Empire Windrush and Me

Benjamin Zephaniah, illustrated by Onyinye Iwu

Scholastic ISBN: 978-0702311161

Published 7th April 2022

Dulce et Decorum Est…

Last night, I was delighted to be able to attend The Wilfred Owen Association’s Annual Birthday Lecture and listen to the very talented Martin Impey talk about the inspiration and research behind his incredible illustrations for Owen’s poem, ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’.

I first fell in love with Martin’s work when I read the ‘Poppies’ series of books, written by Hilary Robinson, which are full of his detailed and endearing illustrations, chronicling the lives of best friends, Ben and Ray, and later, Lily, through the First World War. This is a series I have often used with children in school as each book conveys very poignant and ‘difficult’ subject matter in a way children can easily understand. The bonds of friendship and loyalty, the sense of hope and love these books convey, supported by Martin’s powerful illustrations, make them perfect for starting and developing discussions and their attention to detail offers a teacher many opportunities to deepen learning about and understanding of this time.

In addition to this series, Martin and Hilary collaborated on ‘A Song for Will and the Lost Gardeners of Heligan’, one of my all-time favourite books and again, one which I often share in school. The level of detail and research in this book is incredible and I have spent a happy afternoon at Heligan Gardens, matching the locations depicted by Martin in the book to the real life sites. With children, I have looked at the census returns and other historical documents which show that these were living, breathing people whilst enjoying the story these master story-tellers have developed.

Knowing how thoughtfully Martin researches his subjects, I was not surprised by the stunning and deeply poignant images he created for ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’, but listening to his talk, I was completely mesmerised by the lengths he had gone to before he had developed his images. Martin’s understanding of Owen and his work- his letters and opinions as well as his poems- was incredible and there were many links and references in the pictures which I had missed, making me realise (once again!) how magical it is to be able to listen to authors and illustrators talk about their work.

The Association is clearly full of members who are passionate about Owen and his work and the question session which followed Martin’s talk was full of interesting points which can really only be raised by those with a deep knowledge and understanding of the subject, but I listened with interest and have decided to re-read the two biographies which I have about the man himself with fresh eyes and fresh interest.

Thanks to the Association for hosting such an interesting event and thanks to Martin for being as fascinating as ever!

Dulce et Decorum Est poem by Wilfred Owen, illustrated by Martin Impey

Strauss House Productions ISBN: 978-1527218253

Razzmatazz: The Poetry World of Roger Stevens

If you’re talking about poetry in school, Roger Stevens is a name which is sure to be mentioned! Ever-popular with children and adults alike, he has written poems which are often full of fun and laughter, but also those which capture poignant moments and make the reader reflect.

‘Razzmatazz!’ brings together a collection of his poems, most of which have been selected from the many books and anthologies he has written and contributed to. The result is a wide range of work which is sure to inspire and delight. If you have a child in your class who claims not to like poetry, there is sure to be something here to change their mind!

Many of the poems are perfect for performing. In fact, it’s almost impossible to read ‘Dad, Don’t Dance’ without feeling your foot tapping. The embarrassment of ‘dad dancing’ is universal and the repeated alliteration of ‘dad, don’t dance’ makes the poem easy to learn. Different groups of children could perform different verses, deciding how to bring the lines to life- and have great fun doing so! Another performance gem is ‘Get Your Poems Here’. Full of word play- and poetic terms- children could create their own additional verses about other types of poems, ‘selling’ their features to their audience. There are many other poems to be performed in this book and Roger’s notes at the end of some pieces share how he and others have used them, invaluable support for any who might need it!

There are many poems here which could be used as models to inspire children to write their own. ‘Half a Dozen Senyru’ offer a good starting point for investigating and playing with this Japanese form whilst the section entitled ‘Nursery Rhyme Fun’ shows how familiar verses can be reimagined with entertaining results! Mike Smith’s black and white illustrations add much to the collection- I particularly like his ‘Mosquito’ and know children enjoy creating pictures in this way too.

I could comment on each and every poem in the collection, but my advice is to get a copy and enjoy browsing the poetry world of one of our best poets!

Razzmatazz!: The Poetry World of Roger Stevens

Otter-Barry Books ISBN: 978-1913074418

Out on the 6th January 2022