According to the Norton Anthology of Children's Literature,[REF] "because his characteristic themes, preoccupations, and freshness of language vary little, it is often difficult to distinguish between his writings for children and those for adults.
W. H. Auden comments on Causley stating that "Causley stayed true to what he called his 'guiding principle' .. while there are some good poems which are only for adults, because they pre-suppose adult experience in their readers, there are no good poems which are only for children." .