Collected Poems for Children

by Ted Hughes, Raymond Briggs (Illustrator)

Ted Hughes has written some of the most captivating verse for children in recent times. This volume collects, for the first time, four decades of Hughes's children's poems, from Meet My Folks! (1961) to The Mermaid's Purse. Lavishly illustrated by Raymond Briggs, with two hundred original illustrations, the edition is carefully prepared by reading age, beginning with poems for younger readers and working up to Hughes's material for young adults. The Collected Poems for Children is a delight for children and adults alike. The only poet of such stature to have written so prolifically for children Beautifully illustrated throughout by the acclaimed and award-winning illustrator and writer Raymond Briggs All his children's poems collected together and arranged according to age for the first time An essential poetry collection for children of all ages and a perfect gift book Greens, blues, the goldfish adore them! Winter-long they're thankful for them. When snowy winds are slicing in through all the little crannies The shrubs and birds in our neighbours' gardens envy those in my granny's. ears, And cats that come asking for 'Titbits please' Go trotting away with little bootees. A frosty Octopus received a stout eight-fingered mitten. A Camel whose important hump tended to get frost-bitten Has a tea-cosy with tassels on it. A grass-snake has a sock with a bonnet. Folks can buy clothes at some shop or other. The creatures depend on my grandmother. My Other Granny My Granny is an Octopus At the bottom of the sea, And when she comes to supper She brings her family. She chooses a wild wet windy night When the world rolls blind As a boulder in the night-sea surf, And her family troops behind. The sea-smell enters with them As they sidle and slither and spill With their huge eyes and their tiny eyes And a dripping ocean-chill. Some of her cousins are lobsters My Aunt You've heard how a green thumb Makes flowers come Quite without toil Out of any old soil. Well, my Aunt's thumbs were green. At a touch, she had blooms Of prize Chrysanthemums - The grandest ever seen. People from miles around Came to see those flowers And were truly astounded By her unusual powers. At her water-can showers. Day by day it grew With ragged leaves and bristles Till it was tall as me or you - It was a King of Thistles. 'Prizes for flowers are easy, ' My Aunt said in her pride. 'But was there ever such a weed The whole world wide?' She watered it, she tended it, It grew alarmingly. As if I had offended it, It bristled over me. 'Oh Aunt!' I cried. 'Beware of that! I saw it eat a bird.' She went on polishing its points As if she hadn't heard. Pig I am the Pig. I saw in my sleep A dreadful egg. What a thing to have seen! And what can it mean That the Sun's red eye Which seems to fry In the dawn sky So frightens me? Why should that be? The meaning is deep. Upward at these Hard mysteries A humble hog I gape agog. But I'm all heart - Heart that could not Softer soften! 'An ugly girl, But often, often With a pearl.' Sea-anemone For such a tender face A touch is like a danger. But the dance of my many arms To the music of the sea Brings many a friend to me. None can resist my grace. All fall for my charms. Many a friend, many a stranger, Many an enemy Melts in my embrace. I am anemone

Genres: Poetry, Childrens, Nonfiction

Hardcover

First published October 6, 2005

About the author

Edward James Hughes was an English poet, translator, and children's writer. Critics frequently rank him as one of the best poets of his generation and one of the twentieth century's greatest writers. He was appointed Poet Laureate in 1984 and held the office until his death. In 2008, The Times ranked Hughes fourth on its list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945".
He married fellow poet Sylvia Plath in 1956, and they lived together in the United States and then in England, in a tumultuous relationship. They had two children before separating in 1962 and Plath ended her own life in 1963.

Reviews

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ranging from the deliberately daft (e.g. Meet my Folks, the Moon poems) to the serious but accessible (e.g. Season Songs), this collection brings together all the poetry for children Hughes wrote in one place. Nevermind the kids - read it yourself and see Hughes' more light-hearted and comedic side.

[Jane Scholey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a massive fan of Hughes but some of these poems are lovely.

[Jonathan Tennis · Rating 1 out of 5]

I recently read The Iron Man (aka The Iron Giant) by the author and enjoyed it thoroughly but was disappointed in this collection of Hughes' work.

I was hoping that this collection of poems would be like the British equivalent of Shel Silverstein. It was not. And that might be unfair to Ted Hughes and what he has meant to millions of readers but I was left disappointed.

Fortunately, I have a copy of Where the Sidewalk Ends and The Giving Tree to wash the taste of this away.

[Jesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hughes' poems for young people are arranged according to target age but well before you hit the halfway point you're in 9-99 territory. Even toward the front of the book, when you're dealing with the goofiest verse for the littlest tykes (see the selections from "Meet My Folks"), Hughes' work has far more heft than the "for Children" designation prompts the wizened reader to expect.

[Ben Lovegrove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just beautiful love them all but especially Season Songs and the one about Loch Ness Monster. Bought this because most were excluded from the Collected Poems (2003) which was only his adult poetry, but these are on a par with his best.

[Sacha]

Wondered if Hughes work for children would be less dark. This was not particularly dark nor was it resonant.

[Daire · Rating 4 out of 5]

pretty

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hate that I loved this book. I need to let it go and move on. But these poems were delightful, simple, clever, funny and numerous. Where did he find the time? Delightfully illustrated too with simple pencil sketches that do not distract from the words. I particularly enjoyed the Moon Whales and other Moon poems chapter, there was some quite fantastical verse in there. My only criticism is his subject matter, mostly flora and fauna, is very stereotyped. I don't think he really spent any time appreciating goats or hedgehogs or nasturtiums or the minutia of plants and animals because he comes across as so mean about them. Goats are horny and hairy, plants have bugs, hedgehogs have fleas, let me write a poem about it. Hedgehogs and nasturtiums are some of the most beautiful things in nature. But then so was Sylvia and look how he treated her.

Mermaid

Call her a fish,
Call her a girl.
Call her a pearl

Of an oyster fresh
On its pearly dish

That the whole sea sips
With gurgly slurps
And sloppy lips.

-Ted Hughes

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I came across this book by searching my library's card catalogue for Raymond Briggs (he being my favorite illustrator (sorry Lane Smith). I knew that Ted Hughes was an author and Sylvia Plath's widower. I had never read anything by him before. I just did not get into this book. I can't explain why. I found myself constantly moving my eyes over the words but not understanding what I had been reading. I went back and re-read. I had to read aloud to get the meter of his poems and sometimes he changed to no meter or rhyme in the middle of a poem. Made me wonder why he's published and I'm not.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, just when I thought I despised all poetry.

[Janice Durante]

These are remarkably rich poems that make for great read-alouds for older children.

[Alisa · Rating 1 out of 5]

None of these really grabbed me. Nothing he wrote made me want to read more. Everything was too wordy and too much about animals

[Melusine Parry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very very good, evocative and heartfelt.

[Drew]

Collected Poems for Children by Ted Hughes (2007)

[Hailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

The poems in this book are all really creepy.