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Poems to Live Your Life By
In Poems to Live Your Life By, Chris Riddell, political cartoonist for the Observer, has selected his very favourite classic and modern poems about life, death and everything in between.
This gorgeously illustrated collection includes forty-six poems and is divided into sections covering: musings, youth, family, love, imaginings, nature, war and endings. Chris Riddell brings them to life with his exquisite, intricate artwork in this beautiful anthology.
This book features famous poems, old and new, and a few surprises. Classic verses from William Shakespeare, Lewis Carroll, W. B. Yeats and Christina Rossetti sit alongside poems from Nick Cave, Leonard Cohen, Carol Ann Duffy, Neil Gaiman and Roger McGough to create the ultimate collection.
This gorgeously illustrated collection includes forty-six poems and is divided into sections covering: musings, youth, family, love, imaginings, nature, war and endings. Chris Riddell brings them to life with his exquisite, intricate artwork in this beautiful anthology.
This book features famous poems, old and new, and a few surprises. Classic verses from William Shakespeare, Lewis Carroll, W. B. Yeats and Christina Rossetti sit alongside poems from Nick Cave, Leonard Cohen, Carol Ann Duffy, Neil Gaiman and Roger McGough to create the ultimate collection.
208 pages, Hardcover
Published September 20, 2018
114 people are currently reading
2176 people want to read
About the author
Chris Riddell
376 books1,027 followersChris Riddell was born in Cape Town, South Africa, where his father was an Anglican priest and a member of the ANC. The family moved to England in 1963, when Riddell was one year old, and he spent his childhood in a number of different locations, as his father moved between parishes. Both of Riddell's parents continued to be active in the anti-apartheid movement.
Chris Riddell is an internationally acclaimed writer and illustrator whose many awards include the Nestlé Gold Award and two Kate Greenaway Medals—the most prestigious prize for illustration in the UK. He is the creator of more than one hundred books for all ages, including the immensely popular series the Edge Chronicles and his latest chapter book series, starring the irrepressible Ottoline Brown, which School Library Journal called "exceptional." Chris lives in Brighton, England, with his wife and three children where he invents his amazing characters in a very tidy shed in his yard.
Chris Riddell is an internationally acclaimed writer and illustrator whose many awards include the Nestlé Gold Award and two Kate Greenaway Medals—the most prestigious prize for illustration in the UK. He is the creator of more than one hundred books for all ages, including the immensely popular series the Edge Chronicles and his latest chapter book series, starring the irrepressible Ottoline Brown, which School Library Journal called "exceptional." Chris lives in Brighton, England, with his wife and three children where he invents his amazing characters in a very tidy shed in his yard.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 251 reviews
November 29, 2020
48 poems, suitable for all ages, from 42 poets (including one by Riddell), grouped into 8 themes, with every page illustrated in Riddell’s distinctive, dark pencil style. They’re a mix of funny and profound, ancient and modern, familiar and not. I accept song lyrics and excerpts of Shakespeare plays as poems, but not Gaiman’s Orphee, good as it is. The selection is not very diverse, but probably typical favourites for a 50-something middle-class white Brit.
Wordswith and pictures
I enjoyed most of the poems and illustrations, but the latter didn’t enhance my enjoyment of the former, except to slow me down, which can be useful with poetry. I mostly appreciated them separately. I’ve long loved Riddell’s work, but it fits better with some poems (Gaiman, obviously) than others: a Tim Burton-ish skeleton scarecrow illustrating Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death” (poem HERE) was particularly egregious:
My favourite poems in the book include:
Byron, “There is a pleasure in the pathless woods”, poem HERE.
I’ve been finding a lot of pleasure in local woods, with and without paths, lately. See my review of John Clare’s poems, HERE, which includes local photos.
Riddell’s atmospheric illustration is oddly short of trees, and reminds me of Caspar David Friedrich’s painting, Wanderer above the Sea of Fog, HERE.
Frost, “The Road Not Taken”, poem HERE.
In my woodland walks, an unexpected fork in paths always presents a choice I relish and yes, I’ll often pick the one less taken. I have sometimes been slightly lost, which is an anxious thrill as dusk approaches.
Keats’, “Ode to a Nightingale”, poem HERE.
I’d forgotten the undercurrent of apparent longing for death:
“Darkling I listen; and, for many a time
I have been half in love with easeful Death,
Call'd him soft names in many a mused rhyme,
To take into the air my quiet breath;
Now more than ever seems it rich to die,
To cease upon the midnight with no pain,
While thou art pouring forth thy soul abroad
In such an ecstasy!
Still wouldst thou sing, and I have ears in vain—
To thy high requiem become a sod.”
I can relate to finding solace and meaning in solitary immersion in the natural world.
Tempest, “Thirteen”, poem HERE.
Gender expectations diverge from childhood. As a former tomboy, I understand the poet’s sadness:
“The boys have football and skate ramps.
They can ride BMX
and play basketball in the courts by the flats until midnight.
The girls have shame.”
Shuttle, “Outgrown”, poem HERE.
The “freedom” and “prison” of being a mother whose child is no longer a child. I can relate to that, but not the final lines:
“Because just as I work out how to be a mother
She stops being a child.”
Parenting evolves all the time; one never fully works out how to do it. My child is now 26: an adult, but also and always my child. And I am, and always will be, their mother, even if they end up caring for me when I’m old and doddery.
Harrold, “I Miss You”, poem HERE (audio).
Charming, sometimes surreal similies for when you miss someone, “Like the silence misses the song”.
Yeats, “He Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven”, poem HERE.
A longstanding favourite, but I don’t think the rather lovely illustration fits at all.
Masefield, “Cargoes”, poem HERE.
I learned this poem by heart at primary school. Its accelerating and sometimes staccato rhythm is a delight, and the final verse is amusingly self-deprecating. But the first verse comprises exotic words clunkily strung together.
“Quinquireme of Nineveh from distant Ophir,
Rowing home to haven in sunny Palestine,
With a cargo of ivory,
And apes and peacocks,
Sandalwood, cedarwood, and sweet white wine.
Stately Spanish galleon coming from the Isthmus,
Dipping through the Tropics by the palm-green shores,
With a cargo of diamonds,
Emeralds, amythysts,
Topazes, and cinnamon, and gold moidores.
Dirty British coaster with a salt-caked smoke stack,
Butting through the Channel in the mad March days,
With a cargo of Tyne coal,
Road-rails, pig-lead,
Firewood, iron-ware, and cheap tin trays.”
Patten, “Minister For Exams”, poem HERE.
A poignant, quirky, and ultimately tragic critique of testing culture. (I’m not anti exams, but they can be too narrow and thus penalise those who think outside the box.)
“Q1. Describe the taste of the Moon.
It tastes like Creation I wrote,
it has the flavour of starlight.
Q2. What colour is Love?
Love is the colour of the water a man
lost in the desert finds, I wrote.”
Gaiman, “Witch Work”, poem HERE (audio).
Beautiful, dark, with quirky imagery in words and pictures, about a lovelorn witch who keeps her life in a box.
“The clocks whispered time which they caught in their gears…
She fed them on minutes. The old ones ate years.”
de la Mare, “The Listeners”, poem HERE.
Safely spooky for nervous children, but written beautifully enough for adults to appreciate.
Carroll, “Jabberwocky”, poem HERE.
Riddell’s artwork is perfect for Carroll’s playful fantasy.
Context
There is, of course, an index of authors and another of first lines, but I would have liked a sentence or two about each poem and poet. Thank goodness for Google.
Who is this man?
Many poems are illustrated with a smart bespectacled, middle-aged man. The shape of the glasses varies a little, but it seems to be the same man in most cases. Why? And who is he? (He looks nothing like Riddell.)
Image: Collage of the recurring figure
Words
I enjoyed most of the poems and illustrations, but the latter didn’t enhance my enjoyment of the former, except to slow me down, which can be useful with poetry. I mostly appreciated them separately. I’ve long loved Riddell’s work, but it fits better with some poems (Gaiman, obviously) than others: a Tim Burton-ish skeleton scarecrow illustrating Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death” (poem HERE) was particularly egregious:
My favourite poems in the book include:
Byron, “There is a pleasure in the pathless woods”, poem HERE.
I’ve been finding a lot of pleasure in local woods, with and without paths, lately. See my review of John Clare’s poems, HERE, which includes local photos.
Riddell’s atmospheric illustration is oddly short of trees, and reminds me of Caspar David Friedrich’s painting, Wanderer above the Sea of Fog, HERE.
Frost, “The Road Not Taken”, poem HERE.
In my woodland walks, an unexpected fork in paths always presents a choice I relish and yes, I’ll often pick the one less taken. I have sometimes been slightly lost, which is an anxious thrill as dusk approaches.
Keats’, “Ode to a Nightingale”, poem HERE.
I’d forgotten the undercurrent of apparent longing for death:
“Darkling I listen; and, for many a time
I have been half in love with easeful Death,
Call'd him soft names in many a mused rhyme,
To take into the air my quiet breath;
Now more than ever seems it rich to die,
To cease upon the midnight with no pain,
While thou art pouring forth thy soul abroad
In such an ecstasy!
Still wouldst thou sing, and I have ears in vain—
To thy high requiem become a sod.”
I can relate to finding solace and meaning in solitary immersion in the natural world.
Tempest, “Thirteen”, poem HERE.
Gender expectations diverge from childhood. As a former tomboy, I understand the poet’s sadness:
“The boys have football and skate ramps.
They can ride BMX
and play basketball in the courts by the flats until midnight.
The girls have shame.”
Shuttle, “Outgrown”, poem HERE.
The “freedom” and “prison” of being a mother whose child is no longer a child. I can relate to that, but not the final lines:
“Because just as I work out how to be a mother
She stops being a child.”
Parenting evolves all the time; one never fully works out how to do it. My child is now 26: an adult, but also and always my child. And I am, and always will be, their mother, even if they end up caring for me when I’m old and doddery.
Harrold, “I Miss You”, poem HERE (audio).
Charming, sometimes surreal similies for when you miss someone, “Like the silence misses the song”.
Yeats, “He Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven”, poem HERE.
A longstanding favourite, but I don’t think the rather lovely illustration fits at all.
Masefield, “Cargoes”, poem HERE.
I learned this poem by heart at primary school. Its accelerating and sometimes staccato rhythm is a delight, and the final verse is amusingly self-deprecating. But the first verse comprises exotic words clunkily strung together.
“Quinquireme of Nineveh from distant Ophir,
Rowing home to haven in sunny Palestine,
With a cargo of ivory,
And apes and peacocks,
Sandalwood, cedarwood, and sweet white wine.
Stately Spanish galleon coming from the Isthmus,
Dipping through the Tropics by the palm-green shores,
With a cargo of diamonds,
Emeralds, amythysts,
Topazes, and cinnamon, and gold moidores.
Dirty British coaster with a salt-caked smoke stack,
Butting through the Channel in the mad March days,
With a cargo of Tyne coal,
Road-rails, pig-lead,
Firewood, iron-ware, and cheap tin trays.”
Patten, “Minister For Exams”, poem HERE.
A poignant, quirky, and ultimately tragic critique of testing culture. (I’m not anti exams, but they can be too narrow and thus penalise those who think outside the box.)
“Q1. Describe the taste of the Moon.
It tastes like Creation I wrote,
it has the flavour of starlight.
Q2. What colour is Love?
Love is the colour of the water a man
lost in the desert finds, I wrote.”
Gaiman, “Witch Work”, poem HERE (audio).
Beautiful, dark, with quirky imagery in words and pictures, about a lovelorn witch who keeps her life in a box.
“The clocks whispered time which they caught in their gears…
She fed them on minutes. The old ones ate years.”
de la Mare, “The Listeners”, poem HERE.
Safely spooky for nervous children, but written beautifully enough for adults to appreciate.
Carroll, “Jabberwocky”, poem HERE.
Riddell’s artwork is perfect for Carroll’s playful fantasy.
Context
There is, of course, an index of authors and another of first lines, but I would have liked a sentence or two about each poem and poet. Thank goodness for Google.
Who is this man?
Many poems are illustrated with a smart bespectacled, middle-aged man. The shape of the glasses varies a little, but it seems to be the same man in most cases. Why? And who is he? (He looks nothing like Riddell.)
Image: Collage of the recurring figure
December 15, 2018
Food for the Soul! Gorgeous.
Whether you like to devour your poetry in one sitting, or prefer it in bite sized chunks, there is a poem here to suit every taste.
Poems of all shapes, sizes and styles are featured here. Chris Riddell has put together a beautiful anthology, from classics to modern day poems. They're each accompanied by his eye-catching illustrations, which certainly add to the sensory experience. This makes the perfect addition to your bedside table. Or coffee table or work desk. Keep it wherever it's most easily at hand. Dig in, and refer to it often.
I loved so many of these poems, all for different reasons. Some made me laugh and smile, while others made me pause for thought and feel sad. Others made me simply ponder and read in awe of what was written. The beauty of words! Like an arrow to the heart.
I know that poetry is a particularly hard genre for readers to be interested or bothered with. But this one would be the perfect starting place. I hope you get a chance to read it, and to lose yourself in its pages for a while.
✩✩✩ Bravo Mr Riddell, what an utterly wonderful book. ✩✩✩
One of the poems that particularly stood out to me, and brought a lump to my throat is "The Minister for Exams" by Brian Patten. I was so delighted to see him included in this book.
When I was a child I sat an exam.
This test was so simple
There was no way I could fail.
Q1. Describe the taste of the Moon.
It tastes like Creation I wrote,
it has the flavour of starlight.
Q2. What colour is Love?
Love is the colour of the water a man
lost in the desert finds, I wrote.
Q3. Why do snowflakes melt?
I wrote, they melt because they fall
on to the warm tongue of God.
There were other questions.
They were as simple.
I described the grief of Adam
when he was expelled from Eden.
I wrote down the exact weight of
an elephant's dream
Yet today, many years later,
For my living I sweep the streets
or clean out the toilets of the fat
hotels.
Why? Because constantly I failed
my exams.
Why? Well, let me set a test.
Q1. How large is a child's
imagination?
Q2. How shallow is the soul of the
Minister for exams?
Brian Patten
- The Minister For Exams
September 28, 2018
"Every hour wounds, the last one kills."
Neil Gaiman
This collection of poetry is pure magic!
A selection of frabjous Jabberwocky slayers, of charm-broken ladies of Shalott, of people wishing for the cloths of heaven, of thinkers pondering on being or not being, of soldiers spewing out their hatred of that old lie "dulce et decorum est", of desperate people not waving but drowning, of people choosing the road less travelled by, all put together and made come alive in the visual language of Chris Riddell's scarily beautiful drawings, full of mourning and pathos and humour.
It is a tale, told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
Tread softly, because you tread on humanity's dreams!
It is Shakespearean liveliness in word and image, and Yeats' yearning heart, joined together and illustrated in the language of a master of drawing. It is a treat!
Neil Gaiman
This collection of poetry is pure magic!
A selection of frabjous Jabberwocky slayers, of charm-broken ladies of Shalott, of people wishing for the cloths of heaven, of thinkers pondering on being or not being, of soldiers spewing out their hatred of that old lie "dulce et decorum est", of desperate people not waving but drowning, of people choosing the road less travelled by, all put together and made come alive in the visual language of Chris Riddell's scarily beautiful drawings, full of mourning and pathos and humour.
It is a tale, told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
Tread softly, because you tread on humanity's dreams!
It is Shakespearean liveliness in word and image, and Yeats' yearning heart, joined together and illustrated in the language of a master of drawing. It is a treat!
December 6, 2019
Amazing illustrations. Would have liked to see more diversity.
March 10, 2022
As contemporary poetry anthologies go, this one is just okay. As contemporary illustrated poetry anthologies go, it's great. What makes it special is Riddell's method. The words are laid out then given to Riddell, who does his pen or ink drawings directly on the pages. As his images literally interact with the text, going on, around and through it, the result is synthesis and symbiosis.
A favorite of mine is Emily Dickinson's Because I Could Not Stop for Death: it's perfect. Riddell frees her from the one authenticated photograph of her in which Dickinson, in a dark dress, looks plain-faced and dour. He draws her face as spirited, which she definitely was, and attractive, which she may have been, and dresses her in cheery white, the only color she wore in the last years of her life. It's transforming, refreshing and coincidentally contrasts better with Death. The visuals marry beautifully with the poem. Start to end it has movement. There's even a page with an inspired drawing of something not in the text; it adds to the atmosphere. I love what he's done with Dickinson's poem.
And I adore Riddell's rendition of The Lady of Shallott, and not a poem about which I get excited. His beautiful, exuberant illustrations are refreshing and so refresh the poem for me. The Lady, the castle and Lancelot's horse, everything he rendered for this poem I'd been in a sort of poem-rut with made it a pleasure to read again. There are others that are very well done including a powerful Dulce et Decorum Est, Smoke Signals, The Minister for Exams, which was new to me, and Leonard Cohen's Suzanne.
Some are a disappointment because the drawing isn't up to the rest or adds nothing to the text. These include The Road Not Taken, Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night, The Whitsun Weddings and Carol Ann Duffy's Valentine which, for example, is just a drawing of an onion.
Also included is Gaiman's short story Orphee, and though it doesn't belong in the anthology I don't mind because the pictures are superb. Also superb are Chris Riddell's drawings for Neil Gaiman's poem Witch Work. Riddell has illustrated Gaiman many times but this makes me wish Gaiman would publish a complete volume of his poetry illustrated by Riddell.
4 stars
A favorite of mine is Emily Dickinson's Because I Could Not Stop for Death: it's perfect. Riddell frees her from the one authenticated photograph of her in which Dickinson, in a dark dress, looks plain-faced and dour. He draws her face as spirited, which she definitely was, and attractive, which she may have been, and dresses her in cheery white, the only color she wore in the last years of her life. It's transforming, refreshing and coincidentally contrasts better with Death. The visuals marry beautifully with the poem. Start to end it has movement. There's even a page with an inspired drawing of something not in the text; it adds to the atmosphere. I love what he's done with Dickinson's poem.
And I adore Riddell's rendition of The Lady of Shallott, and not a poem about which I get excited. His beautiful, exuberant illustrations are refreshing and so refresh the poem for me. The Lady, the castle and Lancelot's horse, everything he rendered for this poem I'd been in a sort of poem-rut with made it a pleasure to read again. There are others that are very well done including a powerful Dulce et Decorum Est, Smoke Signals, The Minister for Exams, which was new to me, and Leonard Cohen's Suzanne.
Some are a disappointment because the drawing isn't up to the rest or adds nothing to the text. These include The Road Not Taken, Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night, The Whitsun Weddings and Carol Ann Duffy's Valentine which, for example, is just a drawing of an onion.
Also included is Gaiman's short story Orphee, and though it doesn't belong in the anthology I don't mind because the pictures are superb. Also superb are Chris Riddell's drawings for Neil Gaiman's poem Witch Work. Riddell has illustrated Gaiman many times but this makes me wish Gaiman would publish a complete volume of his poetry illustrated by Riddell.
4 stars
January 12, 2021
Lovely illustrations!
November 9, 2022
This is the 3rd poetry collection I've read where Chris Riddell not only brought together a variety of poems, classic and modern, describing an aspect of human existance, but for which he himself also did the illustrations.
After the theme of love and saving the world, this is about life itself - with all the events and feelings this encompasses. It might also be a collection showing us how to possibly live a good one. ;)
The chapters in this book are:
1) Musings
2) Youth
3) Family
4) Love
5) Imaginings
6) Nature
7) War
8) Endings
So yeah, we really do cover the whole spectrum, don't we? Some of my favourite poets & writers have managed to make the list, such as Shakespeare, Frost, Yeats, Sassoon, Carrol, Rossetti, Tennyson, Dickinson and Gaiman. But there were also some I knew less or nothing about.
And as I said, the poems varied from classic to modern, some being silly, others very serious indeed.
As for the illustrations, here are my favourite pairings (not from all chapters, sorry):
Naturally, not all the poems were a hit with me. However, that is normal as they are supposed to not only cover a variety of subjects but also appeal to a variety of people. Still, it was a very nice way to spend a couple of hours and I always like to discover new things.
After the theme of love and saving the world, this is about life itself - with all the events and feelings this encompasses. It might also be a collection showing us how to possibly live a good one. ;)
The chapters in this book are:
1) Musings
2) Youth
3) Family
4) Love
5) Imaginings
6) Nature
7) War
8) Endings
So yeah, we really do cover the whole spectrum, don't we? Some of my favourite poets & writers have managed to make the list, such as Shakespeare, Frost, Yeats, Sassoon, Carrol, Rossetti, Tennyson, Dickinson and Gaiman. But there were also some I knew less or nothing about.
And as I said, the poems varied from classic to modern, some being silly, others very serious indeed.
As for the illustrations, here are my favourite pairings (not from all chapters, sorry):
Naturally, not all the poems were a hit with me. However, that is normal as they are supposed to not only cover a variety of subjects but also appeal to a variety of people. Still, it was a very nice way to spend a couple of hours and I always like to discover new things.
November 9, 2022
I read this to my son, who is 9 years old, mostly at the rate of a poem a night. Sometimes we read more, something’s we split a poem over the course of a few nights. There were a few of poetry’s greatest hits, which we very much enjoyed, but most were from obscure or less prominent poets, some less successful than many of them. I was surprised by my son’s willingness to listen to poetry right before bed. I never made him analyze them though and only explained if I thought something was just really out there. Some poems he couldn’t make sense of at all (the older ones with vocabulary and syntax that is difficult for a modern child to understand) but I think he did really well with them, which is a tribute to the success of this collection.
Plus Riddell’s illustrations are gorgeous and do exactly what they are supposed to do. There was more than one poem that his drawing helped me better understand. I do like his style and I’ve enjoyed it in other books I’ve read to my son so, this was really enjoyable.
Plus Riddell’s illustrations are gorgeous and do exactly what they are supposed to do. There was more than one poem that his drawing helped me better understand. I do like his style and I’ve enjoyed it in other books I’ve read to my son so, this was really enjoyable.
December 19, 2022
In the introduction, Chris Riddell writes, "Poetry connects us with one another and reminds us what it is to be human," which I loved. Some of the poets included in this volume were well-known to me already, others - not so much. The poem that spoke to me in particular today is I Miss You by A.F. Harrold who is new to me. Here are the first lines of the poem:
"I Miss You
Like the puddle misses the snowman it was"
Each poem is illustrated by Chris Riddell and my favorite illustrations are the ones for the poems Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll and Witch Work by Neil Gaiman.
"I Miss You
Like the puddle misses the snowman it was"
Each poem is illustrated by Chris Riddell and my favorite illustrations are the ones for the poems Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll and Witch Work by Neil Gaiman.
October 26, 2020
Beautiful collection of poetry, some I knew, others I discovered. I absolutely loved the illustrations Chris Riddell composed for each work, they were astonishing and so moving.
March 7, 2019
This is a fun and also, emotional poetry collection illustrated beautifully by Chris Riddell. I've always been a fan of his work and his illustrations I felt bought this collection to life. I didn't enjoy all of the poems but most I liked, such as Not Waving But Drowning (which I had to study last year as part of an English Literature class). It's a quick read, that I do recommend for Poetry lovers and those new to Poetry, as some of the lengths are quite short and easy to approach.
February 1, 2023
A wonderful selection of classic poems, both old and new, made even better by Samuel West's beautiful narration. He clearly has a good understanding of the material. Modern poetry can be difficult to understand, but these poems were both accessible and resonant. Alas, I was not able to see the illustrations that are in the physical copy of the book, as I listened to the audio version. I might pick that up at some point. Would also make a wonderful gift I think.
September 12, 2019
Collection of mind-expanding meditations, some call poems. Esthetic experience through and through, and you had that feeling of piece of plaque unattaching from your soul every few verses and ray of light touching the ever dark, dusty corner of your grey matter attic. Definitely material for multiple readings.
August 30, 2021
5 stars for the illustrations! There is a nice variety of poems here but the overall bent gets a bit dark pretty fast. Normally I love that but I like my life-lessons with a bit less pessimism! Overall, quite enjoyable, though.
July 30, 2022
"Tread carefully, for you tread on my dreams."
A beautiful compilation of poems. I honestly had no idea I loved poetry so much and must make a point to check out more of it from my library!
A beautiful compilation of poems. I honestly had no idea I loved poetry so much and must make a point to check out more of it from my library!
October 13, 2023
his illustrations never miss and i loved the range of poetry selected
January 19, 2024
What a gorgeous little collection. I loved the illustrations accompanying the poems, and I thought the selection of topics was well done too. Some old and known poems and some new, some long and some short, there’s truly a poem for everyone to discover. A lovely gift <3
Read
December 28, 2022it has everything i need chris riddell illustrations and a phoebe bridgers song it’s so lovely
January 7, 2019
I guess beautiful is the best word here. It's a collection of poetry that tries to cover all aspects of life (in roughly chronological order), with a wide range of selected authors. For the most part, it succeeds.
The illustrations are spot on: they enhance the texts and make this just a beautiful book that's nice to hold. (One of those cases where an ebook just wouldn't cut it). The selection ranges from good old William Shakespeare to Kate Tempest or Carol Ann Duffy, stopping in a few mildly provocative places along the way (both Nick Cave and Cohen show up, with song lyrics, so at least someone agrees with the Swedish Academy's taste for Dylan). And we aren't spared any of the rough parts too: there is war, and there is a poignant section on death, maybe my favorite section.
But there's something that makes me hold out that last star. Maybe it's just that the selection leans too much towards texts that are a few centuries old for my (fleeting, influenced by whatever random poetry I read these days) tastes. Maybe it's the fact that some texts feel a bit too simplistic to be in here (though here I have my biases too; "The Language of Cat" might be a good example but it's about how cats rule dogs drool so then I like it)
(Thanks, Secret Santa! :) )
The illustrations are spot on: they enhance the texts and make this just a beautiful book that's nice to hold. (One of those cases where an ebook just wouldn't cut it). The selection ranges from good old William Shakespeare to Kate Tempest or Carol Ann Duffy, stopping in a few mildly provocative places along the way (both Nick Cave and Cohen show up, with song lyrics, so at least someone agrees with the Swedish Academy's taste for Dylan). And we aren't spared any of the rough parts too: there is war, and there is a poignant section on death, maybe my favorite section.
But there's something that makes me hold out that last star. Maybe it's just that the selection leans too much towards texts that are a few centuries old for my (fleeting, influenced by whatever random poetry I read these days) tastes. Maybe it's the fact that some texts feel a bit too simplistic to be in here (though here I have my biases too; "The Language of Cat" might be a good example but it's about how cats rule dogs drool so then I like it)
(Thanks, Secret Santa! :) )
September 25, 2018
First posted on www.instagram.com/p/Bn9Zt3kHAvX
For the longest time, I've been promising myself that I would pick up a book of poetry as it's something I've never really read before.
But of course, forgetful as I am, I just never got around to it 🙈
Thankfully @macmillankidsuk sent me this beautiful book of poetry curated by Chris Riddell, and what a book it is to start my collection!
I'm honestly now a poetry convert and I would love some recommendations on what to read next. (Although I don't know if anything can top this beauty!)
.
Poems to Live Your Life By is out published today and I recommend you pick up a copy ASAP!
For the longest time, I've been promising myself that I would pick up a book of poetry as it's something I've never really read before.
But of course, forgetful as I am, I just never got around to it 🙈
Thankfully @macmillankidsuk sent me this beautiful book of poetry curated by Chris Riddell, and what a book it is to start my collection!
I'm honestly now a poetry convert and I would love some recommendations on what to read next. (Although I don't know if anything can top this beauty!)
.
Poems to Live Your Life By is out published today and I recommend you pick up a copy ASAP!
December 14, 2020
3.5 stars, rounded up because I am obsessed with Chris Riddell's art work.
This collection of poems weren't bad, but I really only loved a handful of them. Like always, with any poetry collection, some just went straight over my head. I found that I also didn't particularly care for any of the longer ones or the ones with overt Christian morality weaved into them.
Here are my top 5 favorites from this collection:
The Minister for Exams by Brian Patten
Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare (yeah I am a basic bitch)
The Language of Cat by Rachel Rooney
There will Come Soft Rains by Sara Teasdale
Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night by Dylan Thomas
To be honest the title of this book is quite a big statement to make, so going into it I thought all of the poems would be meaningful to me or at least make me stop and think. However the top 5 that I listed were really the only ones I would "Live my life by." But Riddell's illustrations make this collection worth the read, and poems that I didn't like may be someone else's favorite!
This collection of poems weren't bad, but I really only loved a handful of them. Like always, with any poetry collection, some just went straight over my head. I found that I also didn't particularly care for any of the longer ones or the ones with overt Christian morality weaved into them.
Here are my top 5 favorites from this collection:
The Minister for Exams by Brian Patten
Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare (yeah I am a basic bitch)
The Language of Cat by Rachel Rooney
There will Come Soft Rains by Sara Teasdale
Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night by Dylan Thomas
To be honest the title of this book is quite a big statement to make, so going into it I thought all of the poems would be meaningful to me or at least make me stop and think. However the top 5 that I listed were really the only ones I would "Live my life by." But Riddell's illustrations make this collection worth the read, and poems that I didn't like may be someone else's favorite!
November 7, 2024
This little gem has a lot of lovely poems and beautiful artwork inside. Even though it’s for children, I think people of any age can enjoy it as the poems inside are from famous writers and poets on various topics such as nature and love.
January 5, 2020
Schade, klarer Fall von Fehlkauf.
Chris Riddell illustriert seine Lieblingsgedichte. Leider ist die Hälfte von Shakespeare. Ich hasse Shakespeare, innigst. Und grundsätzlich ist das Gedicht nicht unbedingt meine Lieblingsform des Ausdrucks. Zudem im Shakespeare Englisch für mich unverständlich. Ist ja schon im Deutschen anstrengend genug. Kurz: die Auswahl gefällt mir nicht. Bis auf Nick Cave und Neil Gaiman Ausrutscher sagt mir so ziemlich nichts zu.
Die Zeichnungen sind größtenteils recht lieblos dahingeklatscht. Es gibt Ausnahmen, ja. Aber insgesamt nichts wofür ich dauerhaft Platz im Regal mache, weil ich genau weiß, dass ich dieses Buch nie wieder anfassen werde - außer zum Abstauben.
Chris Riddell illustriert seine Lieblingsgedichte. Leider ist die Hälfte von Shakespeare. Ich hasse Shakespeare, innigst. Und grundsätzlich ist das Gedicht nicht unbedingt meine Lieblingsform des Ausdrucks. Zudem im Shakespeare Englisch für mich unverständlich. Ist ja schon im Deutschen anstrengend genug. Kurz: die Auswahl gefällt mir nicht. Bis auf Nick Cave und Neil Gaiman Ausrutscher sagt mir so ziemlich nichts zu.
Die Zeichnungen sind größtenteils recht lieblos dahingeklatscht. Es gibt Ausnahmen, ja. Aber insgesamt nichts wofür ich dauerhaft Platz im Regal mache, weil ich genau weiß, dass ich dieses Buch nie wieder anfassen werde - außer zum Abstauben.
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May 14, 20253/5 Stars
RTC
RTC
September 24, 2021
Whatever you think of the poems, there's no denying that Chris Riddell's illustrations are damn good ones.
June 28, 2020
Wonderful collection of poems and the illustrations by Chris Riddell are fantastic as usual.
September 24, 2023
Invitation to Love
Come when the nights are bright with stars
Or come when the moon is mellow;
Come when the sun his golden bars
Drops on the hay-field yellow.
Come in the twilight soft and gray,
Come in the night or come in the day,
Come, O love, whene'er you may,
And you are welcome, welcome.
You are sweet, O Love, dear Love,
You are soft as the nesting dove.
Come to my heart and bring it rest
As the bird flies home to its welcome nest.
Come when my heart is full of grief
Or when my heart is merry;
Come with the falling of the leaf
Or with the reddening cherry.
Come when the year's first blossom blows,
Come when the summer gleams and glows,
Come with the winter's drifting snows,
And you are welcome, welcome.
Paul Laurence Dunbar
Come when the nights are bright with stars
Or come when the moon is mellow;
Come when the sun his golden bars
Drops on the hay-field yellow.
Come in the twilight soft and gray,
Come in the night or come in the day,
Come, O love, whene'er you may,
And you are welcome, welcome.
You are sweet, O Love, dear Love,
You are soft as the nesting dove.
Come to my heart and bring it rest
As the bird flies home to its welcome nest.
Come when my heart is full of grief
Or when my heart is merry;
Come with the falling of the leaf
Or with the reddening cherry.
Come when the year's first blossom blows,
Come when the summer gleams and glows,
Come with the winter's drifting snows,
And you are welcome, welcome.
Paul Laurence Dunbar
May 28, 2021
Reflections and lessons learned:
Ooo, some lovely classics in this short read - nothing new but a fabulous collection for those not familiar - another one for the print purchase list so I can enjoy the illustrations, but this audio version did the job for starting a work holiday
Ooo, some lovely classics in this short read - nothing new but a fabulous collection for those not familiar - another one for the print purchase list so I can enjoy the illustrations, but this audio version did the job for starting a work holiday
June 23, 2019
Such a beautiful collection supplemented with stunning drawings😍
December 6, 2018
When I ordered this book, I thought all the poems were written by Chris Riddell. Oops. I missed the “chosen and illustrated by” notation. Only one of the poems is by Riddell. The others are old friends or new to me, by poets as diverse as Shakespeare, Robert Frost, Leonard Cohen, and Neil Gaiman.
Though published by Macmillan Children’s Books, I wouldn’t buy this book for anyone under seventeen years old. These are not children’s poems. However, they would be well appreciated by any adult. The book is sumptuously illustrated–a beautiful gift book.
Though published by Macmillan Children’s Books, I wouldn’t buy this book for anyone under seventeen years old. These are not children’s poems. However, they would be well appreciated by any adult. The book is sumptuously illustrated–a beautiful gift book.
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