1999
First Published
4.43
Average Rating
208
Number of Pages
This unique anthology of Spike's poems and stories for children presents his classic children's books in a way they have never been seen before. The large format gives ample scope to make the most of Spike's own illustrations, lovingly coloured specially for this book. The anthology comprises Silly Verse For Kids (1959), The Bald Twit Lion (1968), A Book of Milliganimals (1968). Unspun Socks From A Chicken's Laundry (1981), Sir Nobonk and the Terrible, Awful, Dreadful, naughty, Nasty Dragon (1982) and Startling Verse For All The Family (1987). Spike does not regard children as small grown-ups, but as an entirely different species who live in a secret, magical world which very few adults understand. His poems were inspired by listening to his own children, and subsequently his grandchildren, and marvelling at the way they could invent new words or incorporate sound effects into their everyday language. In 'borrowing' their language, Spike has created a range of poems and stories which are a delight to read to younger children, for older children to read themselves, or for grown-ups recapture some of the magic.
Avg Rating
4.43
Number of Ratings
329
5 STARS
58%
4 STARS
31%
3 STARS
8%
2 STARS
2%
1 STARS
2%
goodreads
Author
Spike Milligan
Author · 53 books
Terence Alan Patrick Seán Milligan, known as Spike, was a comedian, writer and musician. He was of Irish descent, but spent most of his childhood in India and lived most of his later life in England, moving to Australia after retirement. He is famous for his work in The Goon Show, children's poetry and a series of comical autobiographical novels about his experiences serving in the British Army in WWII. Spike Milligan suffered from bipolar disorder, which led to depression and frequent breakdowns, but he will be remembered as a comic genius. His tombstone reads 'I told you I was ill' in Gaelic.
