Aimed at junior readers, this collection offers a diverse mixture of classic poetry chosen by Anne Fine, the 2001-2003 Children's Laureate. Well-loved poetry like Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky" or Tennyson's "Break, Break, Break" sit alongside poems from more modern poets like Kit Wright, Brian Patten and Diana Hendry. Other poets include Hillaire Belloc, Walter de la Mare, Eleanor Farjeon, Robert Graves, Kipling and many others. A collection of over 70 poems, the book also contains tips from Anne Fine to help children understand the poems.

Author Biography

Anne Fine was born in Leicester. She went to Wallisdean County Primary School in Fareham, Hampshire, and then to Northampton High School for Girls. She read Politics and History at the University of Warwick and then worked as an information officer for Oxfam before teaching (very briefly!) in a Scottish prison. She started her first book during a blizzard that stopped her getting to Edinburgh City Library and has been writing ever since. b> nne Fine is now a hugely popular and celebrated author. Among the many awards she has won are the Carnegie Medal (twice), the Whitbread Children's Novel Award (twice), the Guardian Children's Literature Award and a Smarties Prize. She has twice been voted Children's Writer of the Year at the British Book Awards and was the Children's Laureate for 2001-2003. She has written over forty books for young people, including Goggle-Eyes, Flour Babies, Bill's New Frock, The Tulip Touch and Madame Doubtfire. She has also written a number of titles for adult readers, and has edited three poetry collections. Anne Fine lives in County Durham and has two daughters and a large hairy dog called Harvey.