This is Chrissie Gittins’ first collection of poetry for children, originally shortlisted for the 2003 CLPE Poetry Award. Review:

 ‘What Does Poetry Do?’ asks the title of the final poem in this collection and amongst its answers is one which captures much of the spirit of Gittins’ verse: ]“it puts great wheezing slices of life into bun trays, with or without punctuation.] The energy, vitality and fun of everyday life run throughout these poems, providing entertainment alongside flashes of the profound.

It is no surprise that the collection is dedicated to the poet’s children, for much of her inspiration appears to come from sharing life with them: the struggle to get out of bed in the morning, the painful encounter with the pet hamster, or the desolation of a playground abandoned in the rain. Gittins even breathes life into the inanimate, giving voice to the sulks of a cuddly toy hung up to dry in ‘Bradshaw Plots his Revenge’ or exploring the contrast between Turkey and Catford in the experience of ‘The Well-Travelled Tortoise’. With a childlike imagination, she seems to be suggesting, the mundane can offer doorways into adventure and delight; flights of fancy are waiting to be taken with a ‘travelling wardrobe’ or with brochures stored in the garage.

 Language itself takes on a zany life of its own in her many poems devoted to wordplay, from the tongue-twisting ‘Fate of the Butternut Squash’ and the crazy rhymes of ‘Government Health Warning’ to the stretching of idioms in ‘Driven to Distraction’. I particularly enjoyed the sequence of poems which playfully explored the rules (and misuses) of punctuation – a resource sure to enliven many a grammar lesson. Several of her free verse poems would also make great models for children’s own poetry – ‘The Listening Station’ and ‘Messages from the Heart Scarab’ seem to particularly invite this.

Sharply observant, warm-hearted and shamelessly eccentric, this collection offers much to enrich the KS2 classroom.

2010-01-03