We Are Britain

by Benjamin Zephaniah

A new poetry collection from renowned performance poet Benjamin Zephaniah, celebrating the diversity of British society. A unique portrait of British children, Benjamin has written 12 poems, each one about a child in his or her home environment. The children are from a range of backgrounds and cultures and the book challenges traditional perceptions of the way children live. It shows that despite their differences, children have many similar preoccupations whatever their cultural background. We Are Britain springs from the rich interaction between many peoples which characterises modern Britain. Illustrated with Prodeepta Das' vibrant photographs, this is a fascinating and fun collection which children will love.

Genres: Poetry

32 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2002

About the author

A British-Jamaican writer, dub poet and Rastafari. He was included in The Times list of Britain's top 50 post-war writers in 2008.

Reviews

[Nazia Ahmed · Rating 5 out of 5]

We are Britain, is a very well put together collection of poetry celebrating the uniqueness of twelve different ethnic children giving a very true reflection of modern Britain today.

The poems talk about us all being individuals, the way we dress and the foods we eat through to our different culture and identities.

The poems are very easy to read with lots of rhyme and rhythm. Adding photographs of children to each of the poems make the poem more 'real' for the reader.

This is an excellent resource to have in the classroom as it really does celebrate our uniqueness and multi-cultural society. I have used this book with children aged 7 and above and they absolutely loved the poems! We are Britain could be used during circle time with children and open discussion about how different we all are, ultimately teaching them, 'it's ok to be different'

Mr Zephaniah is a true genius! Highly recommended!

[Elishia · Rating 4 out of 5]

We are Britain is a collection of texts and poems by Benjamin Zephaniah about 12 different cultures relating to children in the book.
The book features children from across the UK who all have very different cultural backgrounds. It aims to give an insight in to these differences but at the same time, demonstrate the similarities amongst the children.
I really enjoyed this book and feel that Benjamin Zephaniah seeks to give an understanding of young peoples cultural and religious backgrounds whilst also promoting multiculturalism and equality in our society. Another brilliant read by the talented Mr Zephaniah - a great classroom favourite I think!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This beautifully put together book of poetry reflects the diverse fabric of modern Britain and deals with culture, identity and the uniqueness of what being British can mean to every individual.

Each of the twelve poems takes an intimate look at the journeys, experiences and dreams of a wide range of young Britons from different ethnic backgrounds. The cleverly constructed poems are both modern and rhythmic, and the class I worked with really enjoyed reading them out loud. The candid-style images of the featured children add depth to the text and help bring the poetry to life.

We Are Britain! is a fantastic classroom resource that emphasises the importance of recognising and valuing each other's differences, as well as the diversity we all bring to British society. This would be a brilliant book to use for circle time.

[Una (EX) precaria tra i libri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review at: https://precaria-tra-i-libri.blogspot...