The Usborne Book of Poetry is a collection of new and old poems for children with beautiful illustrations. It’s not an overly big book but there are a lot of poems inside. The poems cross a very wide range of ages, with witty, little poems to read to pre-schoolers to poems like ‘The Lady of Shalott’ for older readers. I didn’t really know what to expect with a book of poetry since I’m not much of a poetry reader, but I was pleasantly surprised to find names that even I knew like Dylan Thomas, Charlotte Bronte and Lewis Carroll. The illustrations are very basic but painted beautifully and really give a sense of mood and tone for the poems. I love the fact that along with the table of contents in the front, there is an index in the back both by author and the first line of the poem. The only thing that would have made it better would be an index for children age categories but I guess the book never says it is specifically for children.

A great book for a young child to get them interested in poetry or for a school if you are doing a poetry units. The mix of classic poems and new ones is unbeatable and really makes for a good introduction to the world of poetry. ( )