How to guide children to fall in love with books? Watch the author of this book cast magic! The similarities between books and pets at home are cleverly integrated, so that children can fall in love with books like pets.
Poet John. On the occasion of World Book Day, John Agard wrote this poem full of love for books, cleverly using metaphors to combine books with animal properties: long pages like dog ears , spread out like birds with wings, and they can live longer than cats with nine lives. With beautiful and light verses, I tell readers and every book lover that as long as you turn the page and let your imagination run free, the book can take you far away and make you anyone, whether it is an explorer, a pilot, or a mermaid.
About the author
John Agard is a playwright, poet, writer of short stories and children's literature. John has loved cricket since he was a child, and writing a ball comment not only became a major motivation for his initial attempt to write, but also made him realize his passion for language and words! During his studies, John began to write poetry. The Republic of Guyana is where John was born and grew up. He moved to the UK in the 1970s and has since written many works on exile and Caribbean history. In addition, he also incorporates childhood, Guyana myths and legends into his own stories.
如何引導孩子愛上書？看看本書作者施魔法！
巧妙把書本與家中寵物的相似之處融合在一起，讓孩子愛上書如同愛寵物。
九命貓咪、長耳朵小狗、五顏六色的金魚……誰才是最棒的寵物？
有一種寵物，不用綁牽繩、戴項圈，不用看獸醫、清理糞便，還能陪你好久好久！
這寵物原來說的是「書」！
書就像小老鼠，為你啃掉舊觀念、像小鸚鵡，在家裡四處築巢、像魚兒，在想像力中優游。
詩人約翰．阿加德（John Agard）在世界讀書日發起時，寫下這篇飽含著對書本的愛的詩，巧妙地運用隱喻，將書本與動物的特性結合：長長的書頁像狗耳朵、攤開的樣子像展翅的鳥兒，而比起有九條命的貓咪，它們能活得更久。以優美輕盈的詩句，告訴讀者及每個愛書人，只要翻開書頁、任想像力自由，書就能帶你去遠方、讓你成為任何人，無論是探險家、飛行員、美人魚。
本書詩意詮釋書本的陪伴，與常見的寵物對比，強調閱讀、「飼養」書本的優點。阿部桃子（Momoko Abe）色彩鮮活的插畫，更以幽默手法讓書本活了起來，和各種動物互動。千變萬化的場景，讓讀者一會兒化身海盜在海上尋寶、一會兒又和沈睡的巨龍一起守護城堡，在詩歌之外創造了不同的想像。
★英國女王詩歌金獎得主執筆、世界插圖獎入圍繪者生動呈現，一首獻給書本的詩！
★靈活運用隱喻，充滿節奏感的抒情風格令人回味！
作者簡介
約翰．阿加德（John Agard）
約翰．阿加德是一位劇作家、詩人、短篇小說及兒童文學作家。約翰從小喜愛板球，撰寫球評不僅成為他最初嘗試寫作的一大動機，也讓他意識到自己對語言、文字的熱情！求學期間，約翰就開始創作詩歌了。
蓋亞那共和國是約翰出生、成長的故鄉，他在1970年代移居英國，而後撰寫了許多以離鄉背井、加勒比海歷史為主題的作品。此外，他也將童年時光、蓋亞那神話傳說融入自己創作的故事中。
約翰是十分多產的童書作家，著作包含入圍雀巢聰明豆書獎（Nestlé Smarties Book Prize）的《借我你的翅膀》（Lend Me Your Wings，譯者暫譯），以及得到銅獎的《我們動物有話要說》（We Animals Would Like a Word With You，譯者暫譯）。此外，他還在2012年獲頒英國女王詩歌金獎（Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry）。
約翰的伴侶是蓋亞那詩人葛瑞絲．尼可斯（Grace Nichols），兩人目前定居英國薩塞克斯郡。