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jasarahines's review
emotional
reflective
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
4.0
I can't believe kids wrote these poems
audreysova's review
5.0
Sometimes you stumble upon books whose backstory is as captivating as the prose within. This anthology was one of those. Oxford Spires Academy is a small comprehensive school in England that has a student body who covers thirty languages and a focus on poetry. Their words are easy to read, difficult to forget, and written with beauty and heartbroken for their immigrant experience and lives they once knew. It's a school and program I find myself drawn to know more about and poetry I plan to revisit for years to come.
tonyfrobisher's review
5.0
Extraordinary. The poems create such rich visions of place, identity, longing. You read and absorb their words. You linger on their meaning. You read them again.
And then you note the age of these brilliant young poets. 12, 15, 17, 18. Many of whom came to England through displacement, refugees and immigration. Many of whom had to learn English. And what a gift they have shared.
A superb collection, wonderfully collated and edited by their teacher, Kate Clanchy. Read this book. Amazing.
And then you note the age of these brilliant young poets. 12, 15, 17, 18. Many of whom came to England through displacement, refugees and immigration. Many of whom had to learn English. And what a gift they have shared.
A superb collection, wonderfully collated and edited by their teacher, Kate Clanchy. Read this book. Amazing.
careinthelibrary's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this collection. The school in question is in Oxford and has an 80% non-white population. Many of these students have a migrant and/or refugee background in their childhood and their ability to talk about these parts of their lives and identities is powerful. These are voices we don't hear often enough.
The poems, written by school children aged twelve to eighteen, are affecting and so admirable. Each student has a distinct voice and I found myself having 'favourites', flipping ahead to see how many by them I would find. Their writing on war, trauma, separation, feelings of being misplaced, language and culture loss, it's sad of course and I was touched and moved by many poems, but the skill was inspiring and gave me hope. So young and full of talent and drive. Yet the poems are still accessible to other children and to new readers of poetry, while still remaining engaging for aesthetes.
I fully expect some of these poets to have fruitful writing careers in their futures and I hope this readable, moving collection aids them in that.
The poems, written by school children aged twelve to eighteen, are affecting and so admirable. Each student has a distinct voice and I found myself having 'favourites', flipping ahead to see how many by them I would find. Their writing on war, trauma, separation, feelings of being misplaced, language and culture loss, it's sad of course and I was touched and moved by many poems, but the skill was inspiring and gave me hope. So young and full of talent and drive. Yet the poems are still accessible to other children and to new readers of poetry, while still remaining engaging for aesthetes.
I fully expect some of these poets to have fruitful writing careers in their futures and I hope this readable, moving collection aids them in that.