Age 7+. A wonderful treasury of more than 250 poems, old and new from old favourites by Rudyard Kipling and Hilaire Belloc to new poems by some of the best contemporary poets for children such as Michael Rosen and Carol Anne Duffy. Beautiful illustrations complement the poems making a collection to savour.
To coincide with the centenary of Oxford Children's Books we are proud to present this definitive new collection. Including all the major children's poets, and with a wonderful range of both classic and modern favourites, this is a book that will be treasured for a lifetime. The poems are enhanced with black and white artwork from a number of top children's illustrators to create a truly special package, which should be on every child's bookshelf.
Michael Harrison was born and educated in Oxford and later went to Durham University, where he gained a BA in Philosophy. He then taught at a farm school in North Queensland, Australia as a member of the Bush Brotherhood. He milked the herd of cows daily and travelled the bush taking services and funerals. Michael returned to Oxford to get a teaching qualification (A.C.E.) at the University, and has since taught in Hartlepool, London, and now in Oxford.
He has written for his own pleasure for as long as he can remember but now finds, to his surprise, that people will pay him for it. In his own words:
"Editing anthologies is hard work because you have to find what you know you want. It may take hours in the Bodleian looking for the one poem you need for a particular page. Poetry should be like a wholemeal bread and honey: immediate pleasure but with some roughage working its way through the system."
Michael has worked extensively with Christopher Stuart-Clark and their anthologies, including The Oxford Treasury of Time Poems and The Oxford Book of Christmas Poems, are regarded as some of the nation’s best.
Michael is married with two sons and lives in Oxford.
