The Ropes

Reviews of The Ropes

From Mslexia magazine

JULAUGSEP 2008

The Ropes is a wonderfully unique poetry compilation aimed at teenagers. There are two front covers for the book, equally bright and warm, opening to poems by women on one side and poems by men on the other. Both of the introductions made me, as a reader, want to see and read the rest of the book. Within John Hegley’s introduction there is a quirky description of what a poem is. With statements such as ‘a Fire, it can start up, unexpected,’ he makes poetry sound exciting, and his suggestions for writing your own poem sparked up an interest in me – enough to try it out.

The poems here are mainly about adolescence, so the targeted audience can really relate to what is being said. ‘Self-belief,’ ‘Lyrical Lips’ and ‘Boys will cry’ are just a few of my favourites. When reading some of the poems, I found myself thinking, ‘I’ve been there!’ and laughing out loud at what felt like an ‘in-joke’ between teenagers, me and the poet. In Clare Pollard’s ‘Multiple Choices,’ for instance, she shows a real understanding of what it’s like to have many, many choices without knowing what to do: ‘adult voices chant: “Choices! Choices!”’

Written on the covers are the words ‘poems to hold onto,’ and you can certainly do just that, as the book is ring-bound, A5 and very flexible. You could take it anywhere, for whenever you might need the words as a guide or simply to muse over and enjoy. The ‘reflect and respond’ pages opposite each poem add to the reader’s sense of involvement, offering a special space for their own thoughts and feelings. Next to each poem is a photograph of the poet who has also written a little bit about the picture. I found this aspect of the book very friendly: the reader doesn’t just glance at a photo, they are invited to engage with the story behind it.

Naturally, some parts of the book appealed to me more than others. I found I could relate to some of the poems by women more than the ones by men, and, at some points, I found myself eagerly wanting to get onto the next poem. But it’s very difficult to find a flaw with this anthology. After reading Ropes, I have a newfound interest in poetry.

Jasmine Irving, 15 years old

Top of page

From Books for Keeps

SEPTEMBER 2008

The Ropes is an anthology for young people of mainly specially commissioned poems from a variety of poets, refreshingly not all 'the usual suspects'. The poets include Julia Darling, Moniza Alvi, Gwyneth Lewis, Kwame Dawes, Daljit Nagra and Jacob Polley - all good writers with their own voice. There is also a sprinkling of more traditional poets such as Edna St Vincent Millay and Louis MacNeice.

The Book is divided into poems by women, and when you turn around the book, poems by men; with interesting and thought-provoking introductions by Sophie Hannah and John Hegley.

There is a photo of each poet at a younger age at the bottom of the facing page to the poem with some personal observations, for example Paul Batchelor comments 'I appear to have found something to smile about; this should make the photo easier to date.' The page also has a heading: reflect/ respond, where the reader is invited to respond with their own thoughts or to write their own poem on that page. Each poet writes about life when they were a teenager.

I loved this anthology. The poems are very very good, they speak directly to the reader on a variety of topics ranging from being in a children's home and a first vote to boy soldiers and starlings, 'mucky as a dustbin wagon's mascot'.

The book is friendly to handle and imaginatively designed. It's an anthology for everyone, young people and adults, one of the best I've come across for quite some time.

Top of page

From The Classroom

No. 6 AUTUMN 08
(produced by Nat Association of English Teachers)

Here’s a brilliant little poetry anthology. It’s called The Ropes - poems to hang on to. Edited by Sophie Hannah and John Hegley, it contains 20 poems by men at one end; but turn it over and you’ve got 20 poems by women.

There’s a high percentage of new poems, many of which will appeal to teenagers, although it’s not necessarily a book for them. They are welcome to read it...but the point of the collection was for the writers of the individual poems to think about themselves as teenagers - what advice would they give their former selves?

It’s not always advice, pure and simple, that the poems give but there’s always a message there if one looks: not preachy, not always overt but always convincing. These poems have a feeling of being from real people about real things. Take Lemn Sissay’s ‘Children’s Home’ which ends:

‘We might well have all been children
But this was never a children’s home.’
and his comment next to the photo of him as a teenager ends:
‘I have no pictures of myself in my teens in care. And the only evidence I have that
I was continually alive then is locked in a file in Wigan Social Services.’

Each poem is accompanied by a photo of the writer at a younger age together with a sentence or two from them or about them. Jackie kay, UA Fanthorpe and Stevie Smith are among the contributors to the female half; males range from Louis MacNeice through Adrian Mitchell to Qboy and Skinnyman.

John Hegley has written a quirky and amusing introduction; Sophie Hannah has written a thoughtful and helpful one - take your pick. But whatever you do, get a copy - or better still, lots.

Trevor Millum

Top of page