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Roger Stevens
Roger Stevens has had nearly 40 books published: novels, numerous solo poetry collections and edited poetry collections. His most recent books are The Same Inside: Poems about Empathy and Friendship (Macmillan); The Waggiest Tails: Poems Written by Dogs illustrated by Ed Boxall, (Otter-Barry) and Apes to Zebras: an A – Z of Shape Poems illustrated by Lorna Scobie (Bloomsbury). When not writing, he visits schools, libraries and festivals performing his work and running workshops for young people and teachers. He is a National Poetry Day Ambassador for the Forward Arts Foundation, a founding member of the Able Writers scheme with Brian Moses; and runs the award-winning and most excellent poetry website PoetryZone, here, for children and teachers.
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Roger is a dear friend and a tireless supporter of children’s poets and poetry. Here is one of his fab poems!
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The Brown Bear
In the dark wood
In a clearing
Sleeps a brown bear
Dreaming, dreaming
His skin is furless
His paws are clawless
He walks into the city
Lawless, lawless
The moon is hidden
The clouds are weeping
A princess slumbers
Sleeping, sleeping
The thief creeps through
The royal bedroom
And steals her ruby
A priceless heirloom
The ruby glows
With fire and lightning
A spell is cast
So frightening, frightening
The thief grows fur
His body thickens
His hands grow claws
He sickens, sickens
Beneath the black sky
Thunder rumbles
Into the dark wood
He stumbles, stumbles
For in the ruby,
Gleaming, gleaming
A wizard’s mind
Is scheming, scheming
Now, in the dark wood
In a clearing
Sleeps a brown bear
Dreaming, dreaming
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© Roger Stevens (First published in Moondust and Mystery. Chosen by John Foster. OUP, 2002)
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Poetry Roundabout 
Guess he’s a were-bear…?
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Possibly!
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