Why are booksellers afraid of children's poetry?

Teachers, parents and poets alike know how children thirst for poetry. Now it's up to booksellers and publishers to save it from extinctionChildren dive into poetry with the same natural ease as swimmers into water, climbers into trees and sleepers into dreams. I've seen this alchemy at work on countless visits to schools, visits which have convinced me that poetry's narrative, rhythm and vibrant imagery is the real language of childhood. But poetry written for children is in danger of dying out, of sliding into fossilised irrelevance, cut off from modern verse. A classic such as Robert Louis Stevenson's A Child's Garden of Verses may be lovely, but it can't sustain the vital connection between children and poetry. Children also need poets who are still breathing.The delicate machine which brings poetry books into the hands of children is in desperate need of repair. I used to help choose the poems for the Children's Poetry Bookshelf, the Poetry Book Society's book club for ages seven to 11, and I watched with horror as the submissions from publishers gradually dried up. Starved of funding and support, the club had to stop taking on new members in 2011. As PBS director Chris Holifield said, it seemed that "children's poetry in book form was close to extinction, with just a small number of new titles being published and not much backlist being kept in print." Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2014-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #vital connection #book form #small number

Other news stories related to: "Why are booksellers afraid of children's poetry?"


HC buys children's trilogy

Written By: Laura Richards Publication Date: Mon, 21/02/2011 - 15:24 HarperCollins Children’s Books has acquired three titles aimed at girls aged nine-and-over, billed as "Chocolat for young girls". read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #young girls #titles aimed


Australia's largest bookselling chains fall into administration

Written By: Philip Jones Publication Date: Thu, 17/02/2011 - 09:34 The Australian book trade has been hit by the surprise collapse of REDgroup, which owns the country's largest bookshop chain Angus & Robertson, as well as Borders and the Whitcoulls chain of newsagencies in New Zealand. It... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


HarperCollins Children's Books acquires four

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Mon, 14/02/2011 - 17:21 HarperCollins Childrens Books publishing director Helen Mackenzie Smith has bought her first books since joining the publisher from Random House earlier this year. She bought four books by picture author and illustrator Rachel... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary agency #world rights #harpercollins children #books acquires


Phaidon Press to triple children's output

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Thu, 10/02/2011 - 16:03 Phaidon Press is aiming to triple its output of children's titles to 30 new children's books by 2012, up from eight in 2010. Phaidon's children's list covers children aged up to 12 years with a focus on pre-school and picture... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #tomi ungerer #phaidon press


Dominic Kingston to leave Macmillan Children's Books

Publication Date: Thu, 10/02/2011 - 07:55 Senior publicity manager Dominic Kingston is to leave Macmillan Children's Books (MCB) at the end of April. Kingston has been with the publisher since 2005, when he joined as publicity manager. Lauren Ace will join the team as publicity manager on 7th... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #tiger press #7th march #lauren ace #publicity manager #books mcb


Debut author wins Waterstone's Children's Book Prize

Publication Date: Wed, 09/02/2011 - 20:05 Debut author Sita Brahmachari has won the Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize for her coming-of-age novel about life, death, friendship and love. She was awarded the £5,000 prize this evening [9th February] for Artichoke Hearts, published by Macmillan... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #macmillan children #book prize


S&S Children's acquires "Arthurian" series

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Tue, 08/02/2011 - 08:20 Simon & Schuster Children’s Books has acquired an adventure series inspired by Arthurian legend. Venetia Gosling, fiction editorial director at Simon & Schuster, bought world rights to eight books from Ben... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #successful children #hothouse fiction #ben horslen #simon schuster #venetia gosling #arthurian legend #ss children


Teach Your Children Well

While many media pundits purport that magazine readership is dropping or that printed magazines are soon to be extinct, the truth emerges that year after year magazine readership continues to grow. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-02-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Emma Hopkin to leave Macmillan Children's Books

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 04/02/2011 - 16:42 Emma Hopkin, managing director of Macmillan children's books, is to leave the company on 21st April to "pursue an exciting new challenge elsewhere in children's publishing". Hopkin said: "It's been fantastic and I've... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #exciting opportunity #macmillan children


Penguin Children's Books creates new licensing wing

Written By: Benedicte Page A new Media and Entertainment group has been created within Penguin Children’s Books under newly promoted publishing director Eric Huang. The group combines the BBC Children's, Sunbird and Ladybird licensing teams. Penguin Children's Books m.d. Francesca Dow said... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #francesca dow #bbc children #entertainment group #benedicte page #penguin children