With Trumpet and Drum

These poems bubble with the irrepressible joy of childhood. Field wrote verses meant to be sung, marched to, and laughed at - the kind of poetry that lives in the mouth and the memory. With Trumpet and Drum captures the whole carnival of a child's day: the make-believe, the bedtime bidding of little stars, the tenderness of a mother's love, the silly wordplay that makes a child giggle. This is play captured in language, the sound of children being children. First published in 1901, the collection includes some of Field's most beloved work, including the immortal Wynken, Blynken, and Nod. The rhythms march and dance; the images are vivid and strange. Field has an uncanny quality - he writes like a child might write if a child could write poetry. They are simultaneously innocent and sophisticated, simple and strange. The book endures because every generation recognizes the feelings it captures: the magic of bedtime, the excitement of make-believe, the deep security of being loved. Perfect for reading aloud at bedtime or any time.