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Valerie Bloom
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Book
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Publisher | Bloomsbury | ||
ISBN | 9780747599739 | ||
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Reviewer
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Jayne
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Synopsis
When de July sun hot like fire, Den I have jus' one desire, To run down to de shop an' buy a Kisko pop. The World Is Sweet and Hot Like Fire published in one volume for the first time. Valerie Bloom's poetry is beautifully crafted yet full of energy and fun. Her mixed use of standard English and dialect is a delight to read and hear. Children love reading and listening to her work! Valerie's subjects range from global pollution, problems with maths homework and the sad demise of pet frogs (he croaked of course) to taking sandwiches to school and being afraid of ghosts.
Review
A Children's book of poetry though I'm sure the adults will like it as well. This anthology of poetry has two sections the first section is a collection of Jamaican speak type poems and the second half revolves round her poem 'Hot Like Fire' which is also the title of the book.
The author spent her childhood in Jamaica, that must be where she got the love of the pulsing rhythmic patois which she uses very efficiently in the first part of the book. Some of the poems in the first half had me laughing out loud especially the ones about the cat! If there was a pond nearby, I can imagine my cats attempting to do similar things!!! But they would get a good telling off if they ever tried it again!
In the second part of the book we see the poem of the title page Hot Like Fire. Then we find out what Valerie loved as a child, was lollypops or Kisko pops as the Jamaican's call them the only thing she wanted when it was Hot Like Fire.
This is a small antholgy of poems but they are all very quick witted and really make you smile.
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