11 joyous poetry books to read if you don't like poetry
For some readers, poetry has a reputation for being difficult or pretentious – but Brian Bilston, one of the UK's most hilarious and best-loved poets, is here to challenge that this National Year of Reading. He joins us to recommend 11 joyful, accessible collections that show just how entertaining, funny, moving, and readable poetry can be – whatever your interests, from identity and politics to love and relationships.
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"A lot of people are suspicious of poetry; some are downright hostile towards it. It's seen as difficult or irrelevant, dull or pretentious. But for many of us, it wasn’t always so. As young children, we approached a poem with the expectation of being amused or delighted or moved. Then exams came along and we were forced to study poems more serious in nature, sometimes written in archaic language, their meaning harder to grasp: it's a trauma from which some never recover.
As a result we forget that initial encounter with poetry: how it can express what we care about in a way that opens our eyes or our hearts; help us through a difficult time; or simply make us smile, think or feel. Fortunately, there are plenty of poetry books out there which can still conjure such magic for us as adults. Here are a few favourites of mine." Brian Bilston
Dis Poetry: Selected Poems & Lyrics by Benjamin Zephaniah
What an inspiration! Not only funny but clever, too, infused with a fierce sense of justice and compassion, tackling issues of racism and prejudice head on. It's hard to read a Benjamin Zephaniah poem quietly in your head – there's something about his use of language and rhythm that makes me want to speak his words out loud. Or sing them. Or shout them out of my window at passers-by: "Be nice to yu turkeys dis christmas / Don't eat it, keep it alive / It could be yu mate, an not on your plate / Say, Yo! Turkey I'm on your side."
New & Selected Potatoes by John Hegley
When I was a teenager, I didn't care much for poetry… but then I saw John Hegley. He completely changed my views about what poetry could be. A poem could be funny. It could be about dogs or glasses or Luton Town. It could include lines such as "Eddie quite likes cutlery / but he don't like furniture / if you give him some for Christmas / he'll returniture". I also learnt that poetry could also be accompanied by a mandolin, if you had one (and knew how to play it).
The World's Wife by Carol Ann Duffy
I love the way Carol Ann Duffy writes: the technical craft of her poetry, her mastery of form and language, the accessibility of it all. Her poems can be understood on the first reading – but read them again and you'll spot new layers, cunning tricks, hidden meanings. She can be very funny, too; no more so than in The World's Wife, which takes as its brilliant theme the forgotten or untold stories of the women who have to put up with (and typically outsmart) more famous – and frequently unbearable – men.
Pessimism is for Lightweights: 30 Pieces of Hope and Resistance by Salena Godden
Whether it's tackling racism or inequality, mental health, or misogyny, there's a real vitality and urgency to Salena Godden's poetry. It's full of raw energy, fury, and fire. Her poems work well on the page, but if you ever have the privilege of seeing Salena perform, they become even more alive, confirmation of the power that poetry can have. Her poem 'Pessimism is for Lightweights' is a good place to start: "This road is never easy and straight / And living is all about living alive and lively / And love will conquer hate".
Hera Lindsay Bird by Hera Lindsay Bird
I first encountered Hera Lindsay Bird through her poem about Monica Geller from popular sitcom Friends. I bought her debut collection off the back of that, and it didn't disappoint. It was rude, irreverent, and full of lines which made me laugh out loud. In particular, her metaphors and similes are brilliantly weird and comic: "When I'm not with you I am like / a lonely wrestler with no one to break chairs on". I wish I'd written that.
Horoscopes for the Dead by Billy Collins
For me, spending time with a Billy Collins collection is like hanging out with an old and dear friend. The fact I've never met him doesn't stop me from thinking that the two of us go way back. So much so that his sardonic reflections on life, death, dogs, and hangovers feel like they are relayed to me – not through the medium of a printed book – but from one of those semi-regular conversations we've never had, while on a blue bench upon which I've never sat, looking out at a lake I've never seen, but which sparkles all the same in the fading sun of a late summer afternoon.
The Collected Poems: 1959-2024 by Roger McGough
Funny, serious, inventive, irreverent, accessible… not only are these all adjectives, but they are also words which can be applied to Roger McGough's poetry. It's hard to single out one of his collections in particular; you're best off just reading everything he's ever written. I'd recommend you take two poems four times a day, and you might get it finished by 2030. And, sorry to say this, but if you don't like this book, we can't be friends.
The First Spark Has Led to this Blaze written by Henry Normal and illustrated by Pete Ramskill
Full disclosure: I've been fortunate to go on a couple of tours with Henry, during which I was able to observe at close hand how much his poetry connects with people, from delightfully daft odes to librarians and balaclavas to more poignant reflections on love and death, family, and relationships. This collection really captures the spirit of those performances, how he can switch from the funny to the serious, from the ephemeral to the eternal.
Serious Concerns by Wendy Cope
There's something delightfully subversive about Wendy Cope. Her poems break many of the rules of Modern Poetry: some have perfect rhyme, or are based on old-fashioned forms, such as villanelles and triolets; some are parodies or contain punchlines; all are written so they might be understood. Outrageous! Shouldn't be allowed. This is my favourite collection of hers: it's clever, witty, and a lot of fun. It also has that poem about the orange in it.
The Air Year by Caroline Bird
One of my favourite collections from the last ten years. It covers so much in its 64 pages: each poem is a hand grenade waiting to go off and scatter your heart in a dozen different directions. More than anything, it shows poetry's superpower of being able to carry so much in so little space, particularly when constructed by someone with such a mastery of language and form as Caroline Bird.
Short and Sweet: 101 Very Short Poems edited by Simon Armitage
One of the best things about poetry is that most poems tend to be quite short, so if you don't like one, you haven't wasted too much time in finding out. For me, the shorter the better: I've got other things to do, I can't spend my days wading through some epic saga or interminable ballad. Thank goodness, then, for this anthology, which is stacked with the kind of mini-poem (thirteen lines max) you can eat between meals, or read between the ad breaks for Gogglebox.
About How to Lay an Egg with a Horse Inside: An Alternative Guide to Writing and Enjoying Poetry by Brian Bilston
Why do we write poetry?
Who should write it?
And where do you even start?
Well, Brian Bilston, one of the UK's most hilarious and best-loved poets, is here to take us through the hows, whys and whats of reading, writing and enjoying poetry every day.
With his characteristic wit and charm, Bilston accompanies us through the jungle of imagination to the source of inspiration, takes us under the bonnet of a sonnet and over the fear of literary devices. He gives us a whirlwind tour through the history of verse, and shows us why human poetry will always triumph over any attempts by AI.
Showcasing over a hundred brand new poems, and including practical critiques of some of his greatest hits, every page is an immensely pleasurable deep-dive into the life-affirming craft of poetry and a passionate argument for why we should all pick up a pen.
How to Lay an Egg with a Horse Inside is for anyone who loves words and all the things they can do.
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