Author: Tom and Tess Hannah
Outskirts Press
ISBN: 978-1-4327-1610-3

Click Here To Purchase The Endless String: Poems for Children (and the people who read to them)

This delightful book of poems presents a child's eye view of the world, mixing humour with some inventive wordplay. As parents of four, the authors, Tom and Tess Hannah, probably did not need to look too far for inspiration - they have woven verse out of the smallest of everyday details - food, chores,baths, cleaning up , and the eponymous endless string that dangles innocently from a shirt sleeve.

The Hannahs certainly have a way with words- 'Math Problems' takes a wry look at cardinal numbers ("I look for "oneth", "threeth" and "fiveth".... Can't they surviveth?), while 'The Whole Truth' ponders the possibility of Napoleon's shirt having a 'hol-e-on'. These are imaginative and funny poems, helping kids explore the magic of language through stuations they can easly identify with. Meet, for instance, the fella from 'Under Where?" who ponders a secret hiding place right in his living room or a boy with a cold who becomes the source of some unexpected music.

Several of these poems have delightful narratives with a little zing in the end. My favourites - the brave little warrior of "The Last Crusader" who wonders when he will ever get to cross the road alone, and the narrator of "Baby on Board" who is sure that a dog might be a lot less trouble than the baby his parents want to bring home. Tess Hannah's quirky illustrations are an additional treat- simple yet effective.

An enjoyable collection for anyone with a yen for humorous verse.