Sue Heap

Splinters Sue Heap

This is a book of very short poems, most of them about 4 lines long. They're like splinters -- short and sharp. The poems are written by those wellknown for their work for children like Ogden Nash, Elizabeth Coatsworth, Walter de la Mare, Jane Yolen and Carl Sandburg. But the anthology also provides a delightful introduction to the more sophisticated work of poets such as Osip Mandelstam, Emily Dickinson, ee cummings, A. E. Housman, and Ezra Pound. Thanks to the poems' brevity and Sue Heap's whimsical line drawings -- reminiscent of Stevie Smith -- these writers are rendered quite accessible to younger readers.

Little Fish

The tiny fish enjoy themselves
in the sea.
Quick little splinters of life,
their little lives are fun to them
in the sea. -- D. H. Lawrence

This little gem of a book will make an ideal gift for child and adult alike.

MICHAEL HARRISON is a teacher, anthologist, and author who lives in England. His most recent books include The Curse of the Ring and, as co-editor, The Oxford Treasury of Children's Poems. SUE HEAP's illustrations have appeared in several Oxford books.
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