Changes

I was worried, initially, that all these poems were going to be about pirates. How would Roger Stevens keep the interest going if he was confined to the staple diet of treasure maps and skull and cross bonescrossbones? In fact , there are only three pirate poems but they are the first three and the book cover gives little indication of the variety within. ''I Wish I had Had a Pirate Hat'' contains forty -five poems grouped into Fun Time, School Time, Home Time. No poem is longer than a page and there’s sufficient range of form and tone to keep one reading. There’s also sufficient consistency to allow one to drop in at random and with confidence.

The poems are generally charming, simple and varied and will help young children experience the joy of words. Teachers may also find this book helpful when explaining techniques such as the use of similes - ''as quick as a scribble in a green notebook''. Just occasionally the tone may tip towards the twee, becoming overly self-conscious in adopting the child’s point of view and therefore patronising. This is only occasional however and I will have no hesitaion hesitation in handing this volume directly to my grandchildren as well as reading it with them.

Budding writers would certainly benefit from Roger Stevens's advice and examples in [[What Rhymes With Sneeze? by Roger Stevens|What Rhymes with Sneeze]]. A lovely gift for slightly older children would be Michael Rosen's collection [[A To Z - The Best Children's Poetry From Agard To Zephaniah by Michael Rosen|A to Z The Best Children's Poetry from Agard to Zephaniah]]. You might also enjoy [[A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea: Favourite Rhymes from an Irish Childhood by Sarah Webb and Steve McCarthy]].