What do you think?
Rate this book
The Nation's Favourite Poems
The Nation's Favourite Animal Poems
More than any other topic, animals have provided the inspiration for poets throughout the ages. Whether it's marvelling at the beauty of birdsong on a winters day in The Song Thrush by Thomas Hardy or DH Lawrence ranting at a troublesome insect in Mosquito there are many great works dealing with the beauty of animals, the way man and animal work together or simply wcndering at the beauty and dedication of a loved pet. The Nation's Favourite Animal Poems will provide valuable, humorous and emotional insights into the relationship between humans and animals.
- GenresPoetry
182 pages, Paperback
First published March 29, 2001
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 31, 2023
The poets in this volume reflect the wide range of attitudes that the human race has towards animal species on the planet. Here we sometimes see a sense of awe, and sometimes amusement at the antics of other creatures. Animals inspire fear and revulsion, or love and admiration, sometimes at the same time.
That is because animals inspire the same wide range of reactions as our fellow humans. No two people are alike, and no two species are alike – perhaps no two members of the same species, but this is not as easy to say with certainty.
Poets cannot resist anthropomorphising animals. Shelley’s skylark achieves godlike importance, while Edmund Lear finds the idea of a talking owl and pussycat amusing. Not all poets agree, and some stress their otherness, as Lawrence did with a snake that he saw, or Edmund Blunden, who describes a pike.
A few of the animals here are the pets of the poets. Others represent wild animals who might threaten them. At other times the poets talk about hunting and fishing, reminding us that it goes both ways.
A few mythical creatures such as Carroll’s Jabberwocky and Tennyson’s Kraken find their way into the book. Do they really belong? Should we stick to real animals or are fictional creatures also worth including in this anthology?
Often the animals seem to stand in for something else. Keats’ nightingale and Hardy’s thrush represent a hope that the two men cannot find; Poe’s raven is conversely a symbol of despair. Donne uses a flea as a device to seek to seduce a lady.
This is an impressive range of poems. Animals vary in size and kind from the snail to the elephant. It is not only creatures of the land, but also birds and fish who feature here.
From the anonymous writer of Beowulf to various modern poets who were still alive when the anthology was published, it seems that our love of animals has never diminished. All that distinguishes us from the animals is our ability to study and write about other species for no purpose other than the pleasure of it.
No lyrical hippopotamus has ever moralised about a human being in order to make a point about the church, but a human poet has used a hippo for that purpose. No vulture has mocked the eating habits of a versifier, but a rhymester has laughed at a vulture’s feeding rituals.
For as long as we still have humans who admire or adore animals, then there is still some hope for us.
That is because animals inspire the same wide range of reactions as our fellow humans. No two people are alike, and no two species are alike – perhaps no two members of the same species, but this is not as easy to say with certainty.
Poets cannot resist anthropomorphising animals. Shelley’s skylark achieves godlike importance, while Edmund Lear finds the idea of a talking owl and pussycat amusing. Not all poets agree, and some stress their otherness, as Lawrence did with a snake that he saw, or Edmund Blunden, who describes a pike.
A few of the animals here are the pets of the poets. Others represent wild animals who might threaten them. At other times the poets talk about hunting and fishing, reminding us that it goes both ways.
A few mythical creatures such as Carroll’s Jabberwocky and Tennyson’s Kraken find their way into the book. Do they really belong? Should we stick to real animals or are fictional creatures also worth including in this anthology?
Often the animals seem to stand in for something else. Keats’ nightingale and Hardy’s thrush represent a hope that the two men cannot find; Poe’s raven is conversely a symbol of despair. Donne uses a flea as a device to seek to seduce a lady.
This is an impressive range of poems. Animals vary in size and kind from the snail to the elephant. It is not only creatures of the land, but also birds and fish who feature here.
From the anonymous writer of Beowulf to various modern poets who were still alive when the anthology was published, it seems that our love of animals has never diminished. All that distinguishes us from the animals is our ability to study and write about other species for no purpose other than the pleasure of it.
No lyrical hippopotamus has ever moralised about a human being in order to make a point about the church, but a human poet has used a hippo for that purpose. No vulture has mocked the eating habits of a versifier, but a rhymester has laughed at a vulture’s feeding rituals.
For as long as we still have humans who admire or adore animals, then there is still some hope for us.
March 28, 2018
*2.5
I really did enjoy some of the poems, they are all written by British poets which was really cool. However a lot of the poems were written in very old English which made it very difficult to read an understand.
I really did enjoy some of the poems, they are all written by British poets which was really cool. However a lot of the poems were written in very old English which made it very difficult to read an understand.
February 26, 2023
This was my way of trying out poetry post school over analysis. What better way than with animal topics which I can't help but love? Meh, I'm not sure poetry is for me but I appreciate the effort of having put them together.
Some are great, some are dull.
Some are great, some are dull.
August 14, 2025
2.5
Too many of the poems in this collection have nothing to say, or nothing to add, or deviate too much from the animal to truly be considered an animal poem.
It could also be that too many were upbeat and whimsical, anathema to my cynical and gloomy heart.
Too many of the poems in this collection have nothing to say, or nothing to add, or deviate too much from the animal to truly be considered an animal poem.
It could also be that too many were upbeat and whimsical, anathema to my cynical and gloomy heart.
December 3, 2012
Now I didn't read every poem in this book. Some of them bored me and I skipped them. I discovered, in reading this collection of poetry, that I really only like anything written before the 20th Century. Annoyingly, I didn't write down or mark any of the poems which I particularly liked.
This was a pleasant selection of animal poetry from all of time and ranging from cats and dogs and rabbits, to birds of prey, fleas, and fish. Nice to dip in and out of.
This was a pleasant selection of animal poetry from all of time and ranging from cats and dogs and rabbits, to birds of prey, fleas, and fish. Nice to dip in and out of.
April 4, 2013
This is a great anthology of poems, all about animals. From annoying insects to beloved pets, from patient farm animals to fantastical creatures of legend, they are all here. I loved reading this. It includes some of favourite poems, like Edgar Allan Poe's 'The Raven' and 'The Horses' by Edwin Muir. I also discovered some new ones that I like just as much. 'The Flea' by John Donne and 'The Hyaenas' by Rudyard Kipling were both new to me, but struck a cord.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews