|
Recommended by both the Poetry Society and
the Poet Laureate Andrew Motion, Animal Antics is
the first collection of poems for children by the leading Bengali/English
writer and poet Debjani Chatterjee. Well known for her poetry and other
writing for adults, this work was inspired by a year spent as Writer
in Residence at the Sheffield Children’s Hospital. "I have
been writing for children for a long time,” says Debjani,who lives
in Sheffield. “ The book is about animals - elephants, snakes,
monkeys, etc - because children love animals and so do I." |
| Children of all ages will chuckle at the pranks of her menagerie. The invisible elephant in “Comparing Pets” who is so superior to other children’s hamsters and gerbils. The teacher who “kept his cool” when a “snake had come to school.” Adults as well as children will enjoy the poet’s ecological reason for not dusting her flat as it is: “providing privacy to arachne livestock.” The poet has also drawn the lively, engaging cartoons which illustrate the book described by the Poet Laureate Andrew Motion as "beguiling and heartening, by a poet full of wit and charm." There are still relatively few books for children by South-East Asian writers and this collection represents a valuable addition to the multicultural bookshelf as well as providing not only laughter but also some thought provoking moments couched in terms which will appeal to young people . |
 |
| from good bookshops (£5.95)
ISBN 1 873378 12 2 |
See also
|