May’s Monthly Stories and Poems

Though The Reader Bookshelf and its theme is designed to be a ‘golden thread’ holding the different areas of The Reader’s work together, it is a not a compulsory curriculum. Our Reader Leaders are constantly discovering great literature from diverse sources to share with their groups, always taking into consideration the group members, the type of group and its setting, and most importantly, that gut instinct that tells us when a piece of literature will provide a rich Shared Reading experience. To reflect that, we have no theme for this month’s Poems and Stories pack, and consequently have a selection of literature – science fiction, works in translation, poetry old and new – which reflects the broad range you might encounter in a Shared Reading group.

Filiz Emre, who leads a group in a criminal justice setting, tells about one of the stories she’s recommended for our May pack – ‘The Size of Things’ by Samantha Schweblin:

The story follows a wealthy young man with an ambiguous relationship with his mother as he takes refuge in a toy shop and seemingly regresses into childhood. When we read it in my group, it was a bit confusing at first, but also led everyone to question and explore the text beyond the surface level. The story allows a rich array of interpretations, from potential childhood abuse to escapism from the constraints and responsibilities of adulthood. I love how the story explores the idea of play and challenges the rigid ideas about adulthood, which can exclude many joys of life and many ways of being.

Many Reader Leaders take poems along to their groups precisely because they feel ‘difficult’ on the first read, and the collective experiences and ideas of a group are required to help unpack the different meanings the poem might hold. ‘Sonnet 62’ by William Shakespeare is included in this pack for that reason, alongside the volunteer Reader Leader’s reflections on how her group tackled it together. Stephen Porter, Reading Heroes Co-ordinator in The Reader’s children & young people’s team, runs a weekly sci-fi Shared Reading group at our Calderstones headquarters. He’s recommended a poem that felt to him particularly ripe for discussion in his group.

I love 'The End of Science Fiction' by Lisa Mueller because it’s such an ambiguous poem - is it celebrating or denigrating the genre? Is it saying that there's a limit to the gratifications provided by reading, and that we, ourselves, should become the creators/creative forces? Or is it a demand that we should all try our hardest to ensure that we have 'a life well lived'? It's one for the Shared Reading group, I think!

April’s selections are:

Stories & extracts

‘Flotsam, Jetsam, Lagan, Derelict’, a story by Lucy Wood

‘A Mother’s Work’ by Robin Wall Kimmerer

‘The Invisible Child’ by Tove Jansson

‘Wayfarer’s All’: Chapter 9, from The Wind in the Willows

‘The White Heron’, a story by Sarah Orne Jewett

Poetry

‘Nameless Islets’ by Kathleen Raine

‘Gorse’ by Robert Macfarlane

‘Where is My Friend?’ by Dorianne Laux

‘Wind in the Willows’ by Jane Routh

‘The Exposed Next’ by Robert Frost

By Frances Macmillan (Literature Engagement Lead at The Reader)