Michael Rosen’s books make room for the sound of language: a poem spoken aloud, the repeated rhythm of a picture book or words shared between generations. His festival year ranged from children’s stories and rhymes to a conversation about hope, offering several ways for readers to spend time with his writing.
Quick facts
Best known for
We’re Going on a Bear Hunt and poetry for children
Genre or subject
Poetry, picture books and writing about language
Latest book
Peas on Your Knees: A Life in the Poems of Michael Rosen (2026), Walker Books
Rosen writes poetry, picture books and books about language and literature. His official website brings together books, performances and work with readers, while his publishers introduce a long history of picture-book collaboration. Illustrators’ images sit beside his words, making a book something to look at together as well as read aloud.
The familiar voice of We’re Going on a Bear Hunt is one route into his work. A family can enjoy the repeated sounds of a story, while an older reader may follow him into poems or writing about literature. Across these forms, the relationship between a voice, a listener and a page remains part of the pleasure.
Walker Books published Peas on Your Knees: A Life in the Poems of Michael Rosen on 10 September 2026. It gathers poems from across his writing life, with illustrations by a range of artists. Another book from the year, The Big Journey, is a picture-book collaboration with Daniel Egnéus. The collection and the picture book give readers two different ways to bring words and images together.
Where to start with their books
We’re Going on a Bear Hunt
A family makes its way through grass, water and mud in a chant-aloud adventure, with Helen Oxenbury’s pictures. This is a starting point for sharing the sounds of a story with a child: take turns joining the repeated words and enjoy the movement through each landscape.
Michael Rosen’s Sad Book
Quentin Blake’s pictures work with Rosen’s words in a book about grief and sadness. Choose it when you want to share a quieter emotional register in his writing; it makes room for a difficult feeling without asking the reader to turn it into a cheerful lesson.
What is Poetry?
This is a guide to reading and writing poems, listed in Rosen’s official bibliography. It offers a different starting point from choosing a collection: a reader curious about making a poem can begin with the practice of reading one and thinking about how its words work.
Festival appearances
For tickets, use the host festival’s official box office. Confirm the date, venue and access details before paying.
Michael Rosen’s 2026 programme included Ridiculous Raps and Rhymes with MC Grammar and Michael Rosen at Cheltenham Literature Festival.
Where to see them next
No 2027 appearances announced yet. Check the festival guides for programme dates.
Plan your trip
For a family trip, let the child pick the poem or story they want to share before you go. Reading it aloud together is enough preparation; you can enjoy noticing the sounds without practising an answer for the author.
Build the day around a comfortable stretch of attention and an easy meal break. A children’s book session and a school visit have different booking routes, so check that you are buying the public event you want. If grandparents or friends are coming too, share the book beforehand and give everyone space to talk about it afterwards.
The 2026 programmes featured Michael Rosen at Cheltenham Literature Festival, Hay Festival, Oxford Literary Festival; follow those guides for event information and practical visit details.
Are all of his festival events for families?
Use the festival links on Michael Rosen’s profile for the event’s own ticket and audience guidance.
Should we read poetry aloud before attending?
You can, if that is something your family enjoys. Let a child choose a favourite passage, play with the sound of it and stop while it is still fun. There is no need to memorise it.
How do I buy tickets to hear Rosen?
Use the festival links on Michael Rosen’s profile for the event’s own ticket and audience guidance.
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