Doggedly Onward: A Life in Poems

by Pam Ayres

448 pages, Hardcover

Published October 3, 2024

About the author

Pam Ayres is a poet and published author of children's books. Some of her published credits include Guess Who, Guess What, Piggo and the Fork Lift Truck.

Reviews

[Adele]

It’s an opus, all her best work in one handy collection
It includes all those we regale with affection
All the ones guaranteed to whip up a crowd
Her most requested for reciting out loud
It’s a book that deserves your undivided attention

She’s a whizz with a pen as she crafts on a page
Pieces she loves to perform on the stage
She’s observant, so topical, satirical, quite lyrical
Using just the right words what she does is a miracle
There’s something to suit every age

You’ll find a poem for every occasion
All to be enjoyed, regardless of gender, ethnicity or political persuasion
They’re witty, they’re wry, and some make you cry
If you read them you’ll understand why
When Opportunity Knocked she found her vocation

Under no bushel was her talent hid
She brought verse to the masses and i’m so glad she did
This book is a triumph, a must-have, a classic
Be warned though, it may well leave you brassic
The glossy new hardback is twenty-five quid!

[Natalie]

I’m going to see Pam Ayers at the theatre next month so thought I would read this ahead of my visit. There are some great poems, some amusing, some sad. It is very long though so by the end they start to feel a bit samey. Probably better to dip in and out of this rather than read it all in one go.

[Jane West]

Contains some amusing poems.

[Oz]

Mixed bag, as with any collection, and while I love that the wasp poem was included and apologised for, it makes me notice the (otherwise thankful) absence of that one minstrel show poem.