Poetry

As I mentioned in my last post, poetry is my strength. I absolutely love to immerse myself in poems; whether reading or writing them. Therefore, I’m hoping it’s going to be quite prominent within my teaching practice, and my future classroom. Of course it won’t all be poetry, but poetry will be there (hopefully) as a positive influence.

I know the current anthology for GCSE is Moon on the Tides. My work as a Teaching Assistant has allowed me to read some of the poems included in the anthology, and to see some of them being taught. Absolutely fantastic experiences, and I really enjoyed reading the poems, but I’m not going to talk about that in this post.

I believe poetry’s got a bit of a bad reputation, especially among teenagers, so I intend to have a bit of a crusade to prove that poetry can be written and read by absolutely anyone. It does not solely belong to scholars, Oxbridge, the fabulously rich or the poor: it is for everyone. Now I’m not quite a one-man army: Shake the Dust is a fantastic opportunity for young writers and performers; and I’m gathering information about other performance poetry events, and more traditional readings. I hope to attend more of these during the coming year(s) so I can prove to students just how vibrant poetry can be; that it doesn’t just belong on the page; and perhaps even give them the opportunity to showcase their own work. [This is me being a dreamer again].

Until then, however, I’ve been doing what I do best: reading. I’ve been reading quite a range of poetry, from the established poets, to new poets and works I’ve stumbled across online; but I’ve barely even scratched the surface of the immense world of poetry.

So, I’ve been flicking through The Bloodaxe Book of 20^th Century Poetry (ed. Edna Longley).  The blurb describes this book as an “epoch-marking anthology”, in which “Longley shows you the key poets of the 20^th Century, and through interlinking commentary points up the connections between them as well as their relationship with the continuing poetic traditions of these islands”. That pretty much sums it up. For a less professional review: this book is a great introduction to the work of 20^th Century poets from Britain and Ireland. It features the work of 59 poets, ranging from Hardy, Yeats and Lawrence to Shapcott, Duhig and Armitage; via Sassoon, MacCaig and Adcock. Longley’s introductions accompanying each poet are great summaries of the poet’s works and place within the UK’s poetic traditions (Ok, now I’m stealing phrases from the blurb). I really love dipping in and out of this book. It’s already led me to go out and buy further works by some of the featured poets: Muldoon and Shapcott, particularly. I enjoy Longley’s writing style too. One day I will read her critical essays.

 

 

I mentioned Caroline Bird in my previous post, but her collection, Watering Can, really impresses me. I hope to have a copy of this in my classroom, and I will be recommending it to older pupils. It’s such a witty collection of poems. I especially like ‘Impartial Information’. It is a poem that doesn’t get lost in tangled word-play. It is raw, blunt, direct. Brilliant. This collection contains such a fantastic variety of poetic styles and techniques. I really love it, and its potential as a classroom aid and a good collection for older students to read.

I’ve also been reading Jen Campbell’s The Hungry Ghost Festival. This is a collection that I would recommend to both the older pupil and adult alike. It’s a collection about growing up, looking back on the growing up process. Again this collection demonstrates a wide range of poetic styles, but I think what really comes through here is a strong voice. This is story telling through poetry. This is what makes it so accessible. This collection is witty and poignant and strengthened by a sense of the real and the honest. I can believe the stories in the poems. I really hope to incorporate this collection into my teaching.

And finally, I stumbled across the work of Rachel Fenton. I really love it. I found these examples of her work. I think such poetry will be great to use as examples of how poems do not have to be written in Standard English. They could also be used as great starters to discussions as to why poets don’t write in Standard English; and what are the strengths and weaknesses of using colloquial spellings. So much potential.

As I said, I’ve barely even scratched the surface of poetry. I want to read more Laurie Bolger and John Agard to name but two. And I really want to use the next year to get more involved with the performance poetry scene- for both personal and teaching value.

A Monster Calls (and other reading)

This blog really is becoming Teenage Fiction Review Central, but reading is all I can do until I receive more paperwork from the University (apparently a book list and a Welcome Pack are heading my way).

After reading this review/ shining endorsement of Patrick Ness and Siobhan Dowd’s A Monster Calls, I thought I’d give it a try. I was not disappointed. I finished it last night (it took me about two days to read, around work commitments) and so, after drying my eyes, I posted my review to Goodreads. This is what I thought (Warning: contains spoilers):

                

 Oh my! I am somewhat devastated. I have just finished A Monster Calls and it's left me in pieces.

Simply put, A Monster Calls tells the story of how 13 year old Conor O'Malley is affected by his mother's terminal disease. But that really is simplifying things.

In order to cope with his mother's illness, Conor invents (or does he?) a monster who visits Conor to tell him three stories, with the proviso that Conor will then share a story with the monster. A story which will be the truth behind Conor's recurring nightmare. While sharing his stories, the monster encourages Conor to destroy his Grandma's living room, and attack Harry, the school bully, before finally confronting his own truth.

The book is undoubtedly aimed at a younger audience, which is shown through the style of writing, the phrases employed by Ness, and the short chapters. This did grate slightly with me; but will work brilliantly with the younger reader. Nevertheless, Ness does not shy away from the very real effects of living with a terminal illness: he portrays how Conor's life is not that of a normal 13 year old; how the looks and special treatment he receives at school don't make Conor feel any better; and how Conor, while understanding the eventual outcome of his mother's disease, does not understand fully the actions of the other adults who are affected.

In addition to Ness' fantastic writing and Siobhan Dowd's brilliant ideas are Jim Kay's illustrations. They are the perfect complement to the words on the page: they reveal just enough to fuel the imagination's fire, without giving away all the elements of the scene. I love how the main characters are never fully drawn. The colour scheme of black, grey and white really serves to add mystery and support the tone of the book. Furthermore, they are drawn to be a part of the story; not a separate picture that the reader can choose to ignore. Like the branches of Conor's monster, the words and the images are intertwined throughout the book.

Despite this being aimed at the younger reader, do read it if you're an adult. It is so brilliantly written. I made the mistake of reading the first chapter just before going to sleep. Needless to say, it was an uneasy sleep.

Seriously, do give it a try. I’m going to recommend it to everyone I know.

Aside from being scared (just a bit) and left an emotional wreck from reading A Monster Calls I’ve been compiling a book list of teenage fiction, drama and poetry. Admittedly the drama and poetry is (currently) based on what I find from searching around the school syllabus, but it’s all on my ‘intend to read over the next year’ list. The teenage fiction is a mix of books that pupils will be taught in school, and just general fiction- books to be read for interest. I’m especially keen in finding books/ authors that appeal to boys, as my conversations with current English teachers suggest that this is an area on which to focus.

I’m really hoping, also, to have an emphasis on poetry when I have my own class (dreamer, but it’s good to have goals). Poetry is my interest and my strength. I want to bring it to teenagers, to change the perception of it being seen as fuddy-duddy, boring, and belonging solely to realm of scholars. Poetry is for everyone! Anyone can read, write and perform poetry. Events such as Shake The Dust are an inspiration and are definitely things that I hope to introduce to future students. With that in mind, I’m seeking out poetry. Not the poetry that kids have to study, but – as with the teenage fiction – poetry for enjoyment. Poetry that they’ve chosen to read/perform. I think the next things that I’ll be reading are poems. I discovered the work of Caroline Bird earlier this year, and her collection Watering Can is fantastic! Caroline Bird inspired the activity that I used to get on to the PGCE course, so her work will definitely have a space within my teaching practice.  Last night I stumbled upon the work of Jen Campbell. Her debut poetry collection, The Hungry Ghost Festival, was released this week and I think that’ll be the next thing I read and blog about.

And now, I have a confession to make, I am really struggling with Pride and Prejudice. I’m not getting into it as much as I did with Northanger Abbey. I know it’ll show up on required reading during the course of the next year, so I really have to read it. I’m very tempted to get the audiobook, but I’m afraid I’ll miss out on the nuances of the writing. Northanger Abbey showed me the humour and subtleties within Jane Austen’s writing, so I almost feel as if I’d be cheating if I “read” Pride and Prejudice via audiobook.  Opinions please.