A daughter will always be a daughter, and this beautiful and tender selection celebrates that joyful fact. We begin with a birth and progress through the years via familiar landmarks; the beloved toys of early childhood and tricky teenage arguments lead to the inevitable moment when a daughter must leave home. A poem about teaching a daughter to swim becomes a moving expression of a rite of passage into independence: ?You will watch her leaving the shore behind and the current will flow the right way. That day, the water will hold her?? - from 'Teaching Your Daughter to Swim' by Clare Shaw Running through every poem there is an abiding sense of the power of the bond between a parent and daughter ? and of course there is always love. Poems by Michael Brown, SL Grange, Harry Guest, Joanna Ingham, James P Lenfestey, Kim Moore, Marilyn Nelson, Clare Shaw, Anne Stevenson and Claire Walker. Cover illustration by Caroline Barker. Includes one poetry pamphlet, eco-envelope and co-ordinating bookmark with space for your own personal message.