Puffin Publications...

For those of you with an enquiring mind into the history of Puffinalia, there are two new publications available which may be of interest. The first is the biography of Kaye Webb - 'So Much To Tell' by Valerie Grove. The second is the previously mentioned 'Puffin by Design: 70 Years of Imagination 1940 - 2010' by Phil Baines. I have, as yet, not read these books, so I am not in a position to recommend or criticise either of them.

Puffin Poetry

I was very touched to be contacted by Thomas Thurman who had his poem published in Puffin Post all those years ago. Thomas has continued with poetry and he has kindly allowed me to publish an excerpt from a more recent poem. I know that my interest in poetry was sparked by Kaye Webb and her championing poetry for children. For some of us it has become something more:

Thank you so much for your Puffin Club blog. It was a joy to relive some of the best memories of my childhood through its pages. I'm glad that they've started it up again so that the happiness will continue for another generation.I don't usually explain these things, but in my sonnet "Two poems", the sestet is about a poem of mine that Puffin Post published when I was eleven or so:

...I wrote another poem, as a kid
another paper bought it for a prize.
Ten thousand pairs of eyes saw what I did.
I wonder if, from all those pairs of eyes,
still, somewhere on this planet, I might find
some reader with my poem in their mind.

A big thank you to Thomas for allowing me to share his thoughts and his poetry with you.