SuitabookMichael Rosen’s Book of Very Silly Poems
Michael Rosen
- Reading
- Dip in rather than read for plot: choose a poem, hear it aloud, then compare its rhythm, repetition or twist with another. Try acting, choral reading or inventing a new version.
- Themes
- Silliness as a way into poetry: The collection presents silly subjects, jokes, twists and playful language across poems of different forms. The book clearly celebrates silliness as a legitimate and engaging way to encounter poetry.
- Poetry as performance: Many poems are described as suitable for choral reading, character voices and experimenting with pace, volume and expression. Performance is presented as a central, participatory way of engaging with the poems.
- Traditional and playground material: The collection includes traditional rhymes from different places, playground material, original poems and contributions associated with other authors and children. The book’s stance on this remains unclear.
- Worth knowing
- Preview individual poems if playground humour or traditional rhymes matter to your family. One quoted rhyme includes a cigar, while the wider collection is described as including subversive playground material.