Having loved A Poet for Every Day of the Year edited by Alllie Esiri (reviewed here) I was delighted to accept a copy of Allie’s latest selection, A Poem for Every Day of Christmas and would like to thank Tory Lyne-Perkis for sending me a copy in return for an honest review. It’s my pleasure to share that review today.
A Poem for Every Day of Christmas is published by Macmillan Children’s Books on 7th November 2024 and is available for purchase through the publisher links here.
A Poem for Every Day of Christmas
A Poem for Every Day of Christmas is a splendid collection of thirty-one poems, compiled by award-winning anthologist Allie Esiri, to take you through the month of December.
Perfect for reading aloud and sharing with friends and family, this book is the ideal companion for the holiday season. It features festive poems and carols by Brian Bilston, Robert Burns, Wendy Cope, T. S. Eliot, Christina Rossetti. E. E. Cummings, Dylan Thomas, Clement Clarke Moore and many more.
The day-to-day format of this fabulous and fun anthology invites readers to make poetry a part of their holiday season.
My Review of A Poem for Every Day of Christmas
A festive anthology of 31 poems.
As I’m reviewing the hard back version of A Poem for Every Day of Christmas, I must mention the wonderful physical properties that make this little book an ideal gift or stocking filler. The red, gold and green slip cover shouts Christmas and the green, robust covers underneath feel traditional and special. Add in gold end papers and ivy line drawings on every page and this is a very special volume that readers will want to keep and return to year after year.
Inside the covers, the contents are equally good. I loved the index of poets and the index of first lines as they enable the reader to delve further into poetry, being a catalyst for further reading. I could easily see those first lines being used for the start of a game of consequences, or to stimulate creative writing too. Poems like Edwin Morgan’s The Computer’s First Christmas Card would be great for choral speaking and might stimulate debate about modern issues like AI so that, whilst I think A Poem for Every Day of Christmas is probably best enjoyed just for the sheer exuberance and joy of poetry in the home, I think it has great potential for classrooms too. Different rhyme schemes, poetic forms and styles all add to the possible uses of A Poem for Every Day of Christmas.
The poets range from traditional ones like Thomas Hardy and Christina Rossetti to more modern writers like Brian Bilston and Lemn Sissay so that not only is the volume a microcosm of literary history, but there really is a poem for every reader regardless of taste or preference. Whilst I read the 31 dated entries in order, albeit earlier than the December dates might suggest, I think it would be equally rewarding to dip in at random like opening a surprise Christmas gift too. This is an advent calendar of poetry that is accessible and engaging. It would make an ideal introduction to poems for reluctant readers too.
This gorgeous little volume of poetry is simply lovely. It is the perfect little gift book for any poetry lover or for anyone for whom you have no idea what to buy. However, I think it would be quite hard to give A Poem for Every Day of Christmas as a gift as you’re going to want to keep it for yourself. The only solution, I feel, is to buy several copies! I really recommend it.
About Allie Esiri
Allie Esiri read Modern and Medieval Languages at Cambridge and is an award-winning curator, described by The Sunday Times as a ‘poetry powerhouse’. Her anthology A Poem for Every Day of the Year was in the best books of the year list in The Times and the Observer. Her previous anthology, A Poem for Every Night of the Year was a best book of the year in The Times and the New Statesman and won the IBW book award. She hosts an annual poetry show at the National Theatre and regular events at major festivals including Hay, Cheltenham and Edinburgh.
For more information, follow Allie on Twitter @AllieEsiri and find her on Instagram. There’s more information on Allie’s website too.
English (US) · 