Our Recommended Reads from May 2013

Check out the reviews section of our website for the latest recommended reads - from children's fiction to poetry and classic reads we're sure there is something for everyone. We also welcome your reviews too - email them to 'Reviews' at info@bookapoet.co.uk and we'll let you know when we use it!

Below are the titles we recommended during May 2013. (You can read our reviews and recommendations here.) If you'd like to get your book on our reading list send us an email that includes a press release and we'll get in touch!

‘The KnowHow Book of Spycraft’, Published by Usborne Publishing
‘Lucy Ladybird’ by Sharon King-Chai, Published by Templar Publishing
‘Wereworld: Storm of Sharks’ (Book 5) by Curtis Jobling, Published by Puffin Books
‘If Dinosaurs Were Alive Today’, Published by Ticktock Books
‘Stitch Head – The Spider’s Lair’ by Guy Bass, Illustrated by Pete Williamson, Published by Stripes Publishing
‘After Tomorrow’ by Gillian Cross, Published by Oxford University Press
‘Moon Bear’ by Gill Lewis, Published by Oxford University Press
‘Hagwitch’ by Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick, Published by Orion Books
‘Out of this World’ by Ali Sparkes, Published by Oxford University Press
‘Varmints’ by Helen Ward and Marc Craste, Published by Templar Publishing
‘Lost Worlds’ by Andrew Lane, Published by Macmillan Children’s Books

June's recommended reads will start to appear on the website from this week. A selection of reviews will be published here too, as well as on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/BookaPoet) and links from our Twitter account (@bookapoet).

Featured Poem for June 2013: 'Virganomics' by Fran Isherwood

She picks out and flicks through the Boy's Own Book of Weather.

The page headed “Cumulus” has accumulated a crust of dust.

He pounces upon it. A sunbeam smile penetrates the clouds.

He breathes deeply to expand his lungs

before expounding his viewpoint of the dew point.

Concentration evaporates as brain assimilates

nimbostratus, stratocumulus, altocumulus, cirrocumulus and altostratus.

“Try explaining that to the Man on the Clapham Cumulomnibus”,

she quips. Sighing, he explains that Virga is precipitation in hesitation then evaporation.

A shaft of light penetrates the fog, “Dry Rain?”

Almost thunderous now, “Yes”

“So even the rain can’t be bothered sometimes?”

She ducks as book take flight showering her with loose pages.

© Fran Isherwood 2013
Please do not use without the poet’s permission.

For further information about Fran Isherwood and her work please visit Fran's page here. 

 

 

 

 

Author Events in Peterborough this June!

An Evening with Brian Mawhinney
talking about his memoir ‘Just a Simple Belfast Boy’

Peterborough Central LibraryWednesday 5th June, 7.00pm at Waterstones Peterborough Branch
Tel 01733 864280

Well known local personality Baron Brian Mawhinney will be talking about his life and his new memoir, ‘Just a Simple Belfast Boy’.

As MP for Peterborough and North West Cambridgeshire, Minister of State for both the Northern Ireland Office and Chairman of the Conservative Party, he found  himself at the centre of some of the most tumultuous events of recent British history – the peace process in Ireland, Britain in Europe, Thatcher versus Major.

His autobiography is full of the acerbic wit and outspoken opinion that characterises Brian Mawhinney – the man and the politician.

Copies of his book will be available for purchase and signing.

http://www.vivacity-peterborough.com/event/an-evening-with-brian-mawhinney


 

A Mediterranean Crime Evening - with Author Anne Zouroudi

Tuesday 11 June, 7pm
John Clare Theatre, Peterborough Central Library
Tickets £5 (£4 concessions and reading group members)
Including refreshments
Book at any Peterborough Library, or Waterstones Bridge Street

Anne Zouroudi is the creator of Hermes Diaktoros, the Greek Detective.

Her highly-acclaimed series of novels is set amongst the beautiful landscapes of Greece – between the olive groves and sparkling blue seas – where time has little meaning, and the pressures of modern life are easily forgotten.

Anne will be talking the latest novel in the series, The Bull of Mithros.

Born in Lincolnshire, Anne lives in the Peak District. Having lived in Greece for seven years her attachment to the islands remains strong, inspiring much of her writing.  She was the winner of the East Midlands Book Award and was nominated for the ITV Crime Thriller Awards.

http://www.vivacity-peterborough.com/event/a-mediterranean-crime-evening-with-author-anne-zou

 

Meet Rachel Joyce
Talking about her new book - Perfect

Peterborough Central Library
Thurs 11th July, 1pm
£5 (£4 concessions & reading group members)

Tickets from any library or Waterstones Peterborough
Tel 01733 864280
 
Rachel Joyce, author of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, will be at Central Library speaking about her new novel Perfect.

In 1972 two seconds were added to time.
Were they to blame for what happened next?

“It was all because of a small slip in time, the whole story. The repercussions were felt for years and years. Of the two boys, James and Byron, only one did not flounder. Only one kept on course.”  Rachel Joyce’s latest novel is about misunderstandings, the small acts of kindness that make the difference and the redemptive nature of time.

Rachel Joyce is the author of the bestseller The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, which was longlisted for the 2012 Man Booker Prize and for which Rachel Joyce was awarded New Writer of the Year 2013.

http://www.vivacity-peterborough.com/event/meet-rachel-joyce

Guest Blog from Pete Cox, Poet

“And so my residency at St. John the Baptist came to an end. When I started there in April 2012 my vague ambitions were to try to write a poem a month, to raise some publicity and possibly write something in the style of a Medieval Mystery play (provisional title ‘Bring me the Head of John the Baptist’). What I actually got out of the year at the church were:
New poems, I actually wrote over fifty and they were poems that I wouldn’t have otherwise written. Every poet, I suspect, needs some inspiration at times and this proved to be mother-lode, though I did have to put a couple of other projects aside. Also this work was intentionally accessible as I know sometimes my work can be obscure or obtuse. We have a small grant so I’m hoping we can put a book together of the poems to sell in the church, but that is still to be sorted out.

New audience, around twenty of the poems were used in the regular parish newsletter and some others were used on websites associated with the church. I also got to perform individual poems at events in the church and at the inter-denominational service for Good Friday. Surely bringing poetry to a fresh audience is something every poet should aim for.

A new act, out of those poems I’ve put together an act of 30 – 40 minutes in length to offer around based around the fact that had you asked me before my year (and, indeed, as I was asked on radio at the very start) I’d have said I was an atheist and did that year shake my doubt?
As for my aspiration of publicity, I regret I only got one piece in the local newspaper, one piece in a local listings magazine and four times onto the local radio station. I had been sending out releases every two/three months but the fish weren’t biting in that pond.

The Mystery play remains a set of outlines and drafts of the loosest sort. From my mixing with the local amateur dramatic circuit I know who I’d want to play God (she’d be sitting at the top of a ladder reading the Weekly World News) and Gabriel (to be played in the style of a brash reporter, all “Exclusive: Virgin Birth in Bethlehem. Pictures on page 2”). From my few performances with a local burlesque troupe I had an idea of who’d play Salome. Perhaps something for the future.

The one remaining function (at the time of writing) is to help select my replacement. I know that the number of applicants is down on last year and when I recently attended the final of the Poet Laureate of Stamford competition they’d had less entrants as well. I have to wonder if a successful holder of such posts might not put other people off, because they then realise that these aren’t some easy sinecure but rather something that deserves hard work befitting the honour of the position.

Now though I’m not looking for anything similar straight away, but if something comes along, you can be sure I’ll give it a good consideration.”

News from Dean Atta, Poet, plus competition to win tickets to Point Blank Poets and 2 signed poetry books ...

I have recently been to New York for a week and taught in a High School in Brooklyn. Back home in London I led a poetry workshop for young people at City Hall and Jadan and Will Smith came to visit us. And I was invited to speak at London Southbank University alongside Doreen Lawrence about the legacy of her son Stephen Lawrence. These have all been incredibly inspiring and humbling experiences from which I have drawn great strength. They have also prompted me to reflect and take a pause, give thanks and know that I am on the right path. 

I don't have time to pause for very long as the month of June is looking incredibly busy! I've put up all the dates on the events page of my website (including shows in Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, London and Wales) but I wanted to let you know about one particular show this Saturday 1st June at Southbank Centre with Point Blank Poets. This show will invite questions and discussion with the audience in between poetry from myself, Bridget Minamore, Deanna Rodger, Chimene Suleyman, Hollie McNish, Sabrina Mahfouz and a special musical guest Josh Osho. 

You can read more about the show here and win a pair of tickets and a signed copies of mine and Hollie McNish's poetry books: http://uprise.org.uk/chance-to-win-a-pair-of-tickets-to-point-blank-poets-at-the-southbank-1st-june/

Check out the events page on Dean's website for all his June shows: http://deanatta.co.uk/

You can also follow Dean on Twitter at http://twitter.com/deanatta

Doctor Who 50th Anniversary: PATRICK NESS revealed as fifth author

Eleven Doctors. Eleven months. Eleven authors. Eleven stories.

A year long celebration for the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who!

The fifth instalment in a sensational series of stories celebrating the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who is written by Patrick Ness, highly acclaimed author of the Chaos Walking trilogy and A Monster Calls, winner of the 2012 CILIP Carnegie medal.

Doctor Who is the longest running sci-fi TV show in the world and celebrates its 50th anniversary on 23rd November 2013. To celebrate, Puffin – in partnership with BBC Worldwide – is publishing an exclusive series of eleven ebook short stories each based on one of the Eleven Doctors, priced at £1.99 and released on the 23rd of each month from January to November 2013. Each story is written by a different author, bringing together some of the most exciting names in children’s fiction, from commercial blockbusters to literary award-winners. These authors will each bring their own interpretation and reimagining of their chosen Doctor to create a unique Doctor Who adventure in their own inimitable style.

Following on from short stories by Eoin Colfer, Michael Scott, Marcus Sedgwick and Philip Reeve, Puffin is thrilled that Patrick Ness has written the fifth adventures in the series, based on the Fifth Doctor played by Peter Davison. Patrick Ness commented: ‘The Fifth Doctor is always the Doctor I thought most likely to be a novelist. People sometimes call him slightly passive, but I think it's more that he's observing, watching, waiting on the fringe to make his move. Just like any good writer. Which is why I've made this story one of those – which I've always liked – where the Doctor stays a bit out of the action and we see what happens through a non-canon character and get a whole different point of view of all the strange things happening. It's a bit how it feels when you watch the show as a young viewer.’

Synposis: In 1945, a strange new craze for Truth Tellers is sweeping the kids of small-town America. The Fifth Doctor and Nyssa soon arrive to investigate the phenomenon, only to discover that the actual truth behind the Truth Tellers is far more sinister than anyone could have imagined …

About Patrick Ness

Born in Virginia, USA Patrick Ness spent his upbringing in the states of Hawaii, Washington and California before moving permanently to the UK. He is the author of the Chaos Walking trilogy which established him as one of the most original and exciting writers of today. The trilogy has won many awards including the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize, the Costa Children’s Book Award, the Booktrust Teenage Prize and the CILIP Carnegie Medal. Patrick’s sixth book A Monster Calls received high critical acclaim and is the winner of the Children’s Book of the Year Award at the Galaxy National Book Awards, the Red House Children’s Book Award and the UKLA Children’s Book Prize. In June 2012, A Monster Calls became the first book ever to win both prestigious CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals. His highly anticipated new novel for adults, The Crane Wife, was inspired by a Japanese folk tale and just published by Canongate in April 2013. A daring new YA novel More Than This is forthcoming later this year from Walker (Candlewick in the US).  Photo credit Debbie Smyth.

PoetryQuest Community Project

The Prince’s Foundation for Children & the Arts’ PoetryQuest project is supported by the MariaMarina Foundation and introduces 720 7-11 year old children from across the UK to performance poetry. The charity builds sustainble relationships between art venues across the country and their local schools to help to give schools the means and motivation to take their class into a new and inspiring environment. ach arts venue works to engage 4 local schools and 2 classes of year 5/6 students from each school.

This year PoetryQuest selected Francesca Beard and BREIS (plus Josh Solnick shadowing) at Kings Place, London; Levi Tafari and Mandy Coe at Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester and our very own Dead Poets (Mark Grist and MC Mixy) at Stamford Arts Centre, Lincolnshire.

PoetryQuest aims to give 720 children, who wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity, the chance to work with a local performance space and professional poets to develop their poetry writing and performance skills. A pupil from The Royal Exchange Manchester said: “I feel now that I can do anything, be anything and could be whoever I want to be”!

The poets worked with the pupils over several weeks with the goals of encouraging them to get to know and enjoy poetry writing and performance, to help them  feel comfortable in a performance space by using writing and performance techniques to inspire and engage them both in the venue and back at school and to encourage children to write and perform their own poems. The wider aims of PoetryQuest are to impact positively on children’s academic interest, attainment and creativity, teaching the children skills which will build their confidence and self-esteem and inspire them to visit the venue with their families after the project has finished.

In addition to working with the children, the poets also provided 24 Key Stage 2 teachers with training in using poetry within the classroom to inspire their class’s creativitywhile still meeting curriculum targets.Teacher Will Power said: “Working with poets as part of The Prince’s Foundation for Children & the Arts’ project ‘PoetryQuest’ I saw how my pupils were energised and inspired to look at their lives in a different way and to articulate this through rap and poetry”. 

PoetryQuest is a fantastic project - building community links between poets, venues and schools, as well as giving children and teachers the opportunity to be part of something very special indeed! We caught up with Mixy (Dead Poets) after the event and he told us, "It was inspiring to work so closely with the schools around our own area, and a great feeling to see the high level of ability the students were able to achieve. A great project, run by great people".

 

For further information on PoetryQuest please visit their website.

For further info on the Dead Poets please visit us at Book a Poet.