ACHUKA Book of the Day 16 Feb 2021
Valerie Bloom is one of ACHUKA’s favourite poets and this is her first new solo collection for several years. Bold black illustrations from Ken Wilson-Max throughout.
Organised into poems about Family And Friends, Fun With Forms, Our World, and Unbelievable.
Bloom is a poet who never seems short of material. She can write about anything. And there are poems here about welcoming a new child, pancakes, washing and tidying, hair combing, extreme weather, a volcano, a forest, dangerous animals, a dissatisfied nose, the colour of dreams and many more (in excess of 60 altogether).
The section giving examples of different poetic forms (Echo Verse, Rondel, Skeltonic Verse etc.) makes this an invaluable collection for teachers and young writers looking to experiment. And, more generally, Bloom’s mastery of rhythm and rhyme and the natural way in which she slips from the concrete to the figurative, will have readers spellbound.
Very highly recommended.