Most Popular Books by Roger McGough

A wonderful selection of over 100 of Roger''s own best-loved poems from his vast Puffin catalogue of poetry collections. Lots of favourites and some lesser known surprises, too. Packed with fabulous Lydia Monks illustrations throughout.

Roger McGough''s writing career spans four glorious decades. Over forty years youthful exuberance (''McGough has done for British poetry what champagne does for weddings ...'' Time Out) may have given way gradually to wry reflectiveness (''A poet for us all: laconic, ironic, at times Byronic'' Laurie Lee), but McGough''s poems remain as potent as ever they were: witty, engaging, offbeat and utterly memorable. Collect Poems gathers together for the first time in one volume all the poems (or nearly all - some have been put quietly to rest by the poet), and arranges them in such a way as to provide a portrait of a life seen through the prism of poetry. ''You can hear McGough''s voice in these poems; not just his speaking voice, but his poetic voice, poking gentle fun at pretension and shining his poemy torch in dark corners . . . I''m a McGough fan, and I have to say that if it hadn''t been for him and a few others like him, standing up in pubs and schools and universities all those years ago, then we would never had the poetry boom we''ve got now'' Ian McMillan

A verse adaptation of Molière''s final play, The Hypochondriac is a scathingly funny lampoon on both hypochondria and the ''quack'' medical profession. This version by Liverpool poet Roger McGough was first produced in 2009.

If Philosophy is the Why? And Science is the How? Then Poetry is the Wow! In this stunning, brand-new volume, you''ll discover poems about poems, poems about life, poems about kangaroos and chameleons and caterpillars (though not in the same verse) and many more. This touching and thought-provoking collection will make you laugh, cry, or simply say ''Wow!''

There are eighty of Roger McGough''s favourite poems in this hugely enjoyable collection, gathered together into a new volume to celebrate Roger''s 80th birthday! Sometimes funny, sometimes sad, but always inventive, the enormous variety of poems from this hugely popular poet will never cease to amaze and delight children of all ages.

Wouldn''t it be funny if you didn''t have a nose? The brilliant and clever Roger McGough asks this and other important questions in this marvellous collection. He also tells you exactly when to cut your fingernails, how to have a real pillow fight and what happens when a burp escapes!

Take comfort from this. You have a book in your hand not a loaded gun or a parking fine or an invitation card to the wedding of the one you should have married. Roger McGough is a poet at once directly accessible and a master of the art of surprise, in which the everyday wold is refreshingly and, at times, darkly reimagined. Although a distinct sense of menace inhabits many of the poems, he faces the uncertainties and fears of ageing with characteristic wit and courage. One of the most striking poems in this new collection is a reworking of his famous 1960s poem ''let Me Die a Youngman''s Death'' this time entitled ''Not For Me a Youngmans''s Death''. He is a poet of many voices, the Scottish hard man, the smug husband on his deathbed, the odious self-deceiver of the title poem. McGough is equally ''At Home with the Surrealists'' as he is on an underground station waiting for a train that will never arrive. Always inventive and irrepressibly comic, the warmth and honesty of the voice reaffirms his position as a true original.

Waiter, there''s a sky in my pie! Roger McGough has cooked up a delicious feast of poems. This spicy collection contains only the finest ingredients - wit, sparkle and thought-provoking insight from a very superior source. Get ready to have your tastebuds tickled! Warning: some poems will make you choke with laughter, some need to be chewed very carefully.

A brilliant collection of brand-new poems from ''the patron saint of poetry''. Longer, narrative poems sit comfortably with Roger McGough''s sharper observations and insightful words in this collection, perfectly illustrated in black-and-white line by Helen Stephens.

In this evocative and personal collection of poems Roger McGough comes to terms with painful memories as well as confronting fears that are universal. Here he remembers his father in ‘Squaring Up’ and ‘Alphabet Soup’; observes the eccentricities of contemporary life in ‘The City of London Tour’; gives insights into human feeling with the surreal ‘Your Favourite Hat’ and the moving elegy ‘Defying Gravity’; and muses on writing itself with ‘Word Trap’ and ‘The Darling Buds of Maybe’. There are even witty poems dedicated to the chemical elements. Blending the everyday and the magical, his verses sparkle with verbal dexterity, irreverent humour, irony and heartfelt compassion.

''The Mersey Sound is an attempt to introduce contemporary poetry to the general reader by publishing representative work by each of three modern poets in a single volume, in each case the selection has been made to illustrate the poet''s characteristics in style and form''. With this modest brief, The Mersey Sound was conceived and first published in 1967. An anthology which features Roger McGough''s work, alongside that of Brian Patten and Adrian Henri (The Liverpool Poets), it went on to sell over half a million copies and to become the bestselling poetry anthology of all time.

Have you ever wondered how a toaster works? Or a fridge-freezer, or a washing-up machine? In this book, Dudley, the techno-wizard dog, takes you through the processes behind familiar machines.

It Never Rains by Roger McGough - an expanded edition of comic verse and free line drawings, from the nation''s favourite poet While up at Magdalen Spent the time dagdalen. Moved on to Caius Became the baius knaius. ''Oxford Blues'' is one of the many new poems in this expanded and revised edition of The State of Poetry, Roger McGough''s book of short humorous verse which was published in 2005 as part of Penguin''s 70s series celebrating its 70th anniversary. From a poem commissioned to commemorate Dylan Thomas in just 140 characters, which unfortunately comes to an end mid-word, to a pre-emptive erratum notice, these poems show McGough at his inventive, hilarious best - and there are also new line drawings by the author offered at no extra cost. ''The patron saint of poetry'' Carol Ann Duffy Roger McGough was a member of the group Scaffold in the 1960s when he contributed poems to the Penguin title The Mersey Sound, which has since sold over a million copies and is now available as a Penguin Classic. He has published many books of poems for children and adults, and both his Collected Poems (2004) and Selected Poems (2006) are also available in Penguin. He presents Poetry Please on Radio 4 and is President of the Poetry Society. He was honoured with the Freedom of the City of Liverpool in 2001 and with a CBE in 2005 for services to literature.

My Oxford ABC and 123 Picture Rhyme Book is a book for parents and children to enjoy together. It will provide hours of fun, and will also be an excellent preparation for letter and number work at school.* Funny alphabet and number rhymes by leading poet Roger McGough* Beautifully- drawn pictures by well-known artist Debi Gliori* Follows the National Literacy Strategy in teaching alphabet order and the sounds that letters makeRoger McGough is one of the most popular poets writing for children. He received an OBE in 1997 and the Cholmondeley Award for poetry in 1998.Debi Gliori is a widely acclaimed children''s artist. She is the author of the Mr Bear books (Watts) and No Matter What (Bloomsbury). She was shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Prize in 1997 as well as winning the picture book section of the 1997 Children''s Book Award for Mr Bear to theRescue.

‘If poems were gifts, and in many ways they are, children will find plenty to absorb and amuse them in this bulging stocking of an anthology.’ Roger McGough From traditional verses by Christina Rossetti and William Blake to modern classics by Julia Donaldson and Benjamin Zephaniah, this heart-warming Christmas anthology will delight children and adults of all ages. All the wonders of the season are captured in 100 Best Christmas Poems for Children. Perfect for reading aloud with all the family or for children aged 8-12 to read to themselves, there are verses that will encourage you to reflect on the Christmas themes of joy, hope and peace for all the world, while also savouring the festive fun of everything else that Christmas brings – from the opening of the first Advent window to the tidying away of all the decorations on Twelfth Night. Edited and introduced by beloved poet Roger McGough, this enchanting children’s poetry book make a wonderful gift and keepsake and will be cherished by all who read it. Children will gain an appreciation for language and storytelling as the magic of Christmas is brought to life by this anthology that they’ll return to over and over again each year.

"This is [McGough''s] autobiography - and like the best of his poetry it is packed with humour, surreal observations, nostalgic reminiscences of love, life and loss. He tells of growing up in Liverpool during the Blitz, to the skiffle-crazy days of his adolescence, through to his time at university - and his meetings there with Larkin. He explores the ups-and-downs of being thrust into the limelight with The Scaffold, adrift in Soho helping write dialogue for the Beatles film ''Yellow Submarine, '' and adventures in New York writing lyrics for a Broadway musical. Having travelled widely over the years, his meetings with characters such as Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Allen Ginsberg, and Salman Rushdie amongst others are recalled. ..."--Jacket.

There are eighty of Roger McGough''s favourite poems in this hugely enjoyable collection, gathered together into a new volume to celebrate Roger''s 80th birthday! Sometimes funny, sometimes sad, but always inventive, the enormous variety of poems from this hugely popular poet will never cease to amaze and delight children of all ages.