The New Faber Book
of Children's Poems
edited by MATTHEW
with illustrations by
SARA FANELLI
ff
faber and faber
SWEENEY
Contents
Introduction xi
Manners
ELIZABETH BISHOP I
Monkeys PADRAIC COLUM 2
Child on Top of a Greenhouse THEODORE ROETHKE 3
Allie ROBERT GRAVES 4
Thrum Drew a Small Map SUSAN MUSGRAVE 6
Following a Lark GEORGE MACKAY BROWN 8
'A narrow Fellow in the Grass' EMILY DICKINSON I O
TheFly MIROSLAV HOLUB I I
Oranges and Lemons ANONYMOUS 13
LittleFan JAMES REEVES 13
A Case of Murder VERNON SCANNELL 14
Don't-Care ANONYMOUS 16
The Dumb Soldier ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON 16
True Story SHEL SILVERSTEIN 18
The Sands of Dee CHARLES KINGSLEY 19
What Has Happened to Lulu? CHARLES CAUSLEY 20
'Who is the East?' EMILY DICKINSON 21
The Worms at Heaven's Gate WALLACE STEVENS 21
Beachcomber GEORGE MACKAY BROWN 22
Birches ROBERT FROST 23
The Sea Boy WALTER DE LA MARE 25
form A Christmas Childhood PATRICK KAVANAGH 26
What Does the Clock Say? GEORGE BARKER 28
At a Country Fair THOMAS HARDY 28
'What's your name?' ANONYMOUS 29
Cottleston Pie A. A. MILNE 30
'The Wind' EMILY DICKINSON 31
John Mouldy WALTER DE LA MARE 31
Bog Face STEVIE SMITH 32
The Fiddler of Dooney w. B. YEATS 33
Green Man in the Garden CHARLES CAUSLEY 34
The Ballad of Barnaby w. H. AUDEN 35
Joshua Fit de Battle of Jerico ANONYMOUS 38
AbouBenAdhem LEIGHHUNT 39
'Mips and ma' THEODORE ROETHKE 40
Humpty Dumpty's Recitation LEWIS CARROLL 40
Sliver
LANGSTON HUGHES
42
A Riddle JOHN MOLE 43
The Song of the Mad Prince WALTER
Purkis JOHN HEATH-STUBBS 44
DE LA MARE
43
0 Why Am I so Bright w. s. GRAHAM 45
Lower the Diver RICHARD EDWARDS 46
The Song of Wandering Aengus w. B. YEATS 46
'Come into the orchard, Anne' A. C. SWINBURNE 47
Calico Pie EDWARD LEAR 48
Nothing Poem SPIKE MILLIGAN 49
'A Bird came down the Walk' EMILY DICKINSON 51
Two Cuckoo Rhymes ANONYMOUS 51
The Song of the Dumb Waiter JAMES REEVES 52
The Old Sailor WALTER DE LA MARE 53
TheCharcoal-Burner A. A. MILNE 54
The Frozen Man KIT WRIGHT 54
'There was an old man who said, "Well!"' EDWARD LEAR 56
Harold'sLeap STEVIE SMITH 56
'Amelia mixed the mustard' A.E.HOUSMAN 57
On the Death of a Female Officer of the Salvation Army A.E.HOUSMAN 57
On the Planet of Flies CHRISTIAN MORGENSTERN 58
The Mad Gardener's Song LEWIS CARROLL 58
April Fool LOUIS MACNEICE 61
The Monotony Song THEODORE ROETHKE 62
Off the Ground WALTER DE LA MARE 63
Old Ballad CHRISTOPHER REID 66
'0 what is that sound which so thrills the ear' w. H. AUDEN 67
Charm BEN JONSON 68
Death in Leamington JOHN BETJEMAN 68
'why did you go' E. E. CUMMINGS 70
'hist whist' E. E. CUMMINGS 70
The Devil's Swing FYODOR SOLOGUB 72
The Old False Leg GEOFFREY GRIGSON 74
The Angry Pigeon ERIC ROLLS 75
The King's Breakfast A. A. MILNE 76
'There was an old man in a tree' EDWARD
Roman Wall Blues w. H. AUDEN 81
TheListeners WALTER DE LA MARE 81
LEAR
80
Hi! WALTER DE LA MARE 8 3
The Lady and the Bear THEODORE ROETHKE 83
The Table and the Chair EDWARD LEAR 84
A Crime to Report RICHARD EDWARDS 86
The Knee on Its Own CHRISTIAN MORGENSTERN
'Alice is gone' w. H. AUDEN 88
Poker CAROL ANN DUFFY 88
87
Sun a-shine, rain a-fall VALERIE BLOOM 89
Song of the Death- Watch Beetle JOHN HEATH-STUBBS 90
The Cat and the Moon w. B.YEATS 90
'I started Early' EMILY DICKINSON 91
Overheard on a Saltmarsh HAROLD MUNRO 93
They Call to One Another GEORGE BARKER 94
Song Sung by a Man on a Barge... KIT WRIGHT 95
Lines Written by a Bear of Very Little Brain A.A.MILNE 95
TheSongoftheJellicles T.S.ELIOT 96
TheMules OGDEN NASH 97
The Wapiti OGDEN NASH 98
Song of the Hat-raising Doll JOHN MOLE 98
0, Dear ANONYMOUS 99
Time to Rise ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON 99
The Brave Man WALLACE STEVENS 99
Clock a Clay JOHN CLARE 100
Toad NORMAN MACCAIG 1 0 1
MoOSes TED HUGHES 1 0 2
The Gondoliers of Greenland ADRIANMITCHELL 104
Snow in the Suburbs THOMAS HARDY 104
'There was a man of double deed' ANONYMOUS 105
Ballad of the Bread Man CHARLES CAUSLEY 106
The Land of Counterpane ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON I I O
ABoy'sHead MIROSLAV HOLUB I I O
Godolphin Home HILAIRE BELLOC 112
Queens CAROL ANN DUFFY 113
TheTwa Corbies ANONYMOUS 116
Windy Nights ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON 117
In the Formal Garden PHILIP GROSS 118
TheLong-Haired Boy SHEL SILVERSTEIN 119
On the Ning Nang Nong SPIKE MILLIGAN 122
The Owl and the Pussy-cat EDWARD LEAR 122
Stocking and Shirt JAMES REEVES 124
Pride KITWRIGHT 125
The Carrion Crow JOHN HEATH-STUBBS 127
I Saw a Jolly Hunter CHARLES CAUSLEY 127
To a Squirrel at Kyle-na-no w.B.YEATS 128
The Law of the Jungle RUDYARD KIPLING 129
A Boy in a Snow Shower GEORGE MACKAY BROWN 131
Hunters in the Snow JULIE O'CALLAGHAN 132
The Leader ROGER MCGOUGH 133
Dumb Insolence ADRIAN MITCHELL 133
The Blackboard ADRIAN MITCHELL 134
Kidnapped SHEL SILVERSTEIN 135
Matilda HILAIRE BELLOC 136
The Boy who Laughed at Santa Claus OGDEN NASH 139
Miss Strawberry
ERIC ROLLS 141
The Sea JAMES REEVES 143
The Old Ships j . E. FLECKER 144
In Goes Robin ELEANOR FARJEON 146
The River in March TED HUGHES 147
Don't Call Alligator... JOHN AGARD 148
Sardines SPIKE MILLIGAN 148
Let's Hear it for the Limpet KITWRIGHT
A Colossal Glossary PAUL MULDOON 150
149
The Visitor IAN SERRAILLIER 153
The Angel RICHARD EDWARDS 154
The Devil SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE 155
The New Vestments EDWARD LEAR 155
TheMummy EDWIN MORGAN 157 ,
The Little Ghost's Song BRI AN PATTEN 160
Gust Becos I Cud Not Spel BRIAN PATTEN 160
FirstDay at School ROGER MCGOUGH 162
The First Men on Mercury EDWIN MORGAN 163
The Courts ROY FULLER 165
Two Riddles GEORGE SZIRTES 166
Goose to Donkey LES MURRAY
Hedgehog jo SHAPCOTT 167
166
TheLegend CAROL ANN DUFFY 167
COWS TED HUGHES l 6 8
Bull Song ANONYMOUS (Dinka people, Sudan) 169
Teaching the Parrot RICHARD EDWARDS 170
'There was an Old Man with a gong' EDWARD LEAR 171
The Minstrel ROY FULLER 171
Evidence Read at the Trial of the Knave of Hearts
Jabberwocky LEWIS CARROLL 173
Korfs Clock CHRISTIAN MORGENSTERN 174
The Balancing Man JOHN MOLE 175
Wheelbarrow ELEANOR FARJEON 176
Two on a Skateboard CHRISTOPHER REID 176
Song: Lift-Boy ROBERT GRAVES 177
NottamunTown ANONYMOUS 178
W JAMES REEVES 179
'Go, my son' JACK PRELUTSKY 179
GRACE NICHOLS
Me and Mister Polite
179
Pebble MICHAELROSEN 181
Dream Dust LANGSTON HUGHES 182
Daybreak in Alabama LANGSTON HUGHES 182
Hurricane ARCHIBALD MACLEISH 183
T h e H a w k GEORGE MACKAY BROWN 1 8 4
Five Eyes WALTER DE LA MARE 184
LEWIS CARROLL
172
JokerasTold LES MURRAY 185 'TheRunaway ROBERT FROST 186
AMinorBird ROBERT FROST 187
Burying the Bird JOHN W H I T W O R T H 188
The Bat TED HUGHES 189
The New Foal TED HUGHES 190
Old Deuteronomy T. S. ELIOT 190
'We're all in the dumps' ANONYMOUS 192
'I saw Esau' ANONYMOUS 192
So-Sojoe JOHN AGARD I 9 3
Jim Jay WALTER DE LA MARE
193
The Son of the King of Nowhere M I K E H A R D I N G 194
Seumas Beg JAMES STEPHENS 195
Who's In? ELIZABETH FLEMING I 9 6
Mushrooms.SYLVIA PLATH 197
Snail TED HUGHES 198
Take-over by the Garden ROY FULLER 199
Mole TED HUGHES 199
Too Many Daves DR SEUSS 2 0 0
Something to Worry About BENJAMIN ZEPHENIAH 2 0 2
The Sound Collector ROGERMCGOUGH 2 0 3
The Pied Piper of Hamelin ROBERT BROWNING 2 0 4
'He was a rat' ANONYMOUS 215
TomBone CHARLES CAUSLEY 215
Hallowe'en M I C H A E L LONGLEY 216
The Babes in the Wood ANONYMOUS 217
ADirge JOHN WEBSTER 218
Please to Remember WALTER DE LA MARE 218
The Lonely Scarecrow JAMES KIRKUP 219
'Hopping frog' CHRISTINA ROSSETTI 219
The Snare JAMES STEPHENS 2 2 0
Memoirs of a Fallen Blackbird PAULDURCAN 2 2 0
'There's been a Death' EMILY DICKINSON 221
'Bee! I'm expecting you!' EMILY DICKINSON 222
Winter Trees ZOLTAN ZELK 223
Disillusionment of Ten O'clock WALLACE STEVENS 2 2 3
Dinky THEODOREROETHKE 2 2 4
'The night was growing old' ANONYMOUS 225
MegMerrilies JOHN KEATS 225
What I Did in Town MICHAEL ROSEN 226
Buying Your Voice JULIE O'CALLAGHAN 2 2 7
Ten Pence Story SIMON ARMITAGE 2 2 7
'ISaw' ANONYMOUS 2 2 9
The Crystal Cabinet W I L L I A M B L A K E 2 3 0
Our Bog is Dood STEVIE S M I T H
231
Ariel's Song W I L L I A M SHAKESPEARE 233
Night School
PHILIP GROSS 233
History Lesson PHILIP GROSS 234
Stevie Scared RICHARD EDWARDS 236
Dear Mum BRIAN PATTEN 236
BlackDay WILLIAM SOUTAR 237
The Sea-Shell WILLIAM SOUTAR 238
ItWasLongAgo ELEANOR FARJEON 238
Blind Man's Bluff ELEANOR FARJEON 240
Waiting at the Window A. A. MILNE 240
Paper Boats RABINDRANATH TAGORE 242
Armies in the Fire ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON 243
The Secret Brother ELIZABETH JENNINGS 243
A Boy MATTHEW SWEENEY 245
Bits of Early Days
JAMES BERRY
246
The Railway Children SEAMUS HEANEY 248
Holly SEAMUS HEANEY 248
On the Frozen Lake WILLIAM WORDSWORTH 249
Meet-on-the-Road ANONYMOUS 250
Timothy Winters CHARLES CAUSLEY 251
'Out, Out-' ROBERT FROST 252
Whirlpool CAROL ANN DUFFY 253
FairyStory STEVIE SMITH 254
'Soldier, soldier, won't you marry me?' ANONYMOUS 255
'Piping down the valleys wild' WILLIAM BLAKE 256
Child's Song ROBERT LOWELL 257
BrendonGallacher JACKIEKAY 257
The Way Through the Woods RUDYARD KIPLING 258
Castaway R. S. THOMAS 259
The First Music
ELIZABETH JENNINGS
260
Phizzog CARL SANDBURG 2 6 l
Buffalo Dusk CARL SANDBURG 262
Poem from aThree-Year-Old BRENDAN KENNELLY 262
SeaWind: A Song DONALD JUSTICE 264
How She Went to Ireland THOMAS HARDY 265
Heart Burial GEOFFREY GRIGSON 265
Brian 0 Linn ANONYMOUS 266
FairyTale MIROSLAV HOLUB 268
ATent CHRISTOPHER REID 269
My Papa's Waltz THEODORE ROETHKE 269
Back in the Playground Blues ADRIAN MITCHELL 270
Song of the Galley-Slaves RUDYARD KIPLING 271
The Arrest of Oscar Wilde at the Cadogan Hotel JOHNBETJEMAN 272
Acknowledgements 275
Index of Poets 279