Wonderful Line-up for Forward Book of Poetry 2014

The Forward Book of Poetry 2014 - which we are giving copies of to First Story's Young Writers' Festival next month - promises to be an exciting collection. Jeanette Winterson, chair of the 2013 judging panel, has described the anthology as “a genuine showcase of the scope and depth of poetry now”. She and her fellow judges – Paul Farley, David Mills, Sheenagh Pugh and Samuel West – each read 162 poetry collections and 159 single poems before settling on the ones they loved best.

The poets shortlisted for the £10,000 Forward Prize for Best Collection - Rebecca Goss, Glyn Maxwell, Sinead Morrissey, Jacob Polley and Michael Symmons Roberts - will all be featured in the book.

Other poets shortlisted this year are Steve Ely, Adam White, Emily Berry, Marianne Burton, Dan O'Brien and Hannah Lowe, all for the Felix Dennis Prize for Best First Collection. The shortlist for the Forward Prize for Best Single Poem includes Rosie Shepperd, C. J. Allen, Hugo Williams, Patience Agbabi and Nick MacKinnon.

Winners will be announced on October 1 at the Southbank centre. Other poets who will have work in the collection are Danny Abse, Simon Armitage, Gillian Clarke, Clive James, Luke Kennard, Mark Halliday, Medbh McGuckian, Maurice Riordan, Anne Stevenson, George Szirtes, Clare Trevien, Jean Sprackland and CK Williams.

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Forward Books of Poetry for First Story's Young Writers' Festival

Give a Book is delighted to be giving copies of the Forward Book of Poetry 2014 to First Story for their Young Writers' Festival this September:

The festival will be held on 19 September, when hundreds of school children will gather to attend workshops on creative writing and hear writers talk about their work. The festival forms the launchpad for First Story's programme of workshops and events to encourage young people to write creatively, which take place throughout the school year.

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Bark and read

The Bark & Read Foundation has been set up to support and promote the amazing work of charities that take dogs into schools as reading volunteers to help tackle the UK’s literacy problems.
Funded by the Kennel Club Charitable Trust, the Bark & Read Foundation is working with Pets As Therapy, through their Read 2 Dogs project, and R.E.A.D (Reading Education Assistance Dogs) and Dogs Helping Kids (DHK), operating in schools around the country, helping children to read with their specially trained support dogs.
Reading to dogs has been proved to help children develop literacy skills and build confidence, through both the calming effect the dogs’ presence has on children and the fact that the dog will listen to the children read without being judgemental or critical. This comforting environment helps to nurture children’s enthusiasm for reading and provides them with the confidence needed to read aloud.
This month's Book of the Month has been recommended for us by Zoe Wanamaker CBE, who supports Bark and Read. She said: “Reading is such an important skill that is used in every part of our lives, but it can be a scary and intimidating experience when you are young.  As with anything in life you have to practice, practice and practice to get better. That is why the Kennel Club’s Bark & Read project is such an inspiring idea, as we all know that dogs are great listeners and won’t judge if we stumble over a word. The concept makes reading time fun and helps to develop children’s self esteem and passion for reading while they’re still finding their voice. If children aren’t inspired to read then they will just turn to their play-stations and x-boxes instead.”

Find out why the Bark & Read Foundation was launched and what makes dogs the perfect classroom companion for children learning to read.
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