Teaching the Parrot

Edwards is a prolific writer of light verse who knows how to pitch a poem for children. His subjects and treatments may sometimes be borrowed; but he is versatile, rythmic and provocative. In this collection, he cheerfully makes use of sources as varied as playground rhymes, fairy tales, football commentary and Kate Adie style front-line reportage (about invading snow!). He writes simply and clearly for junior school children, achieving melody and resonance by precision of words and form: a short witty poem like 'Copped', about a policeman who cuts himself while shaving - '"You're nicked," the policeman said' - comes in short, bouncing lines, While the menacing couplets of The Wildfowler's Nightmare' are relentless: 'I'll hunt you through the endless deep/Marshlands of your lonely sleep.' Edwards has a taste for the absurd and an underlying seriousness, sometimes brought home with a jerk at the end of a poem, that is compelling. Lawrence's line drawings exploit the mischief and help to lift a lack-lustre presentation from Faber.