Read Me Out Loud!
A poem to rap, chant, whisper or shout for every day of the year
by Nick Toczek and Paul Cookson
Contains a poem for every day of the year from the very best modern and classic poets. There are raps, performance poems, chants, playground rhymes, action verses, poems to join in with, choral poems, poems from different cultures, monologues, dialogues, poems for a series of voices, songs, playlets, loud poems and quiet poems, poems with sound effects and poems with actions you can read them any way you want as long as it is Out Loud! It includes poems from James Carter, Roger McGough, Gareth Owen, Roger Stevens, Lewis Carroll, Charles Causely, Paul Cookson, David Harmer, Nick Toczek, Alfred, Lord Tennyson and many more.
Publisher: Macmillan Childrens Books
Extract
'I like electric guitars
I like electric guitars:
played mellow or moody
frantic or fast – on CDs
or tapes, at home or in
cars – live in the streets
at gigs or in bars.
I like
electric
guitars:
played
choppy
like
reggae
or angry
like
rock or
chirpy
like
jazz or
strummy
like
pop or
heavy
like
metal – it
bothers
me not.
I like electric guitars:
their strings and their straps
and their wild wammy bars – their
jangling and twanging and funky
wah-wahs – their fuzz boxes,
frets and multi-effects –
pick-ups, machine
heads, mahogany necks
– their plectrums, their wires
and big amplifiers. I like electric
guitars: played loudly, politely – dully
or brightly – daily or nightly – badly
or nicely. I like electric guitars:
bass, lead and rhythm –
I basically dig ’em–'
by James Carter
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Nick Toczek and Paul Cookson
Nick Toczek works as a poet, storyteller, magician, journalist, lecturer, political researcher, novelist and stand-up comedian. His work has appeared in numerous anthologies, pamphlets, magazines, newspapers, and even school text books. He works extensively in schools and is a tireless self-publicist. He is the author of Never Stare at a Grizzly Bear and Kick It! and has compiled Join In or Else and Toothpaste Trouble – all published by Macmillan.
Paul Cookson spends most of his time visiting schools, performing his poetry and helping children to write their own poems. He is also a freelance illustrator specializing in cartoons. He lives in Retford, Nottinghamshire. Paul has compiled several books for Macmillan, including: The Works, The Works 3 and The Works 5. He also has his own collection, Give Us a Goal! He supports Everton.
Nick Toczek (top) and Paul Cookson Photos: Macmillan
