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Light verse poetry is characterized by its playful, witty, and humorous nature. Though it may appear simple or frivolous, it demands a high level of technical skill and creativity to effectively balance humor, irony, satire, and clever wordplay.
The genre covers a wide range of subjects—often mundane or whimsical—and adopts an entertaining perspective, making it accessible and enjoyable to a broad audience. Despite its light-hearted nature, light verse can offer subtle critique or commentary on society, politics, or human behavior, providing insight and reflection beneath its humorous exterior.
‘Macavity: The Mystery Cat’ is a light verse presenting the amusing crimes of the superhuman cat – Macavity.
Macavity’s a Mystery Cat: he’s called the Hidden Paw—
For he’s the master criminal who can defy the Law.
He’s the bafflement of Scotland Yard, the Flying Squad’s despair:
For when they reach the scene of crime—Macavity’s not there!
‘The Song of the Jellicles’ introduces merry and bright felines – Jellicle cats awaiting to dance by the light of the Jellicle Moon.
Jellicle Cats come out to-night
Jellicle Cats come one come all:
The Jellicle Moon is shining bright—
Jellicles come to the Jellicle Ball.
‘The Naming of Cats’ is a light verse explaining how cats have three different names: a family name, a peculiar name, and a secretive name.
The Naming of Cats is a difficult matter,
It isn’t just one of your holiday games;
You may think at first I’m as mad as a hatter
When I tell you, a cat must have THREE DIFFERENT NAMES.
‘Where the Sidewalk Ends’ by Shel Silverstein speaks on the important theme of growing up. The poet discusses the differences between the adult world and the mind of a child.
here is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
‘Shakespearean Sonnet’ by R. S. Gwynn is a celebration of Shakespeare’s plays. Each line of the poem refers to a different tragedy, comedy, or history play.
A man is haunted by his father’s ghost.
Boy meets girl while feuding families fight.
A Scottish king is murdered by his host.
Two couples get lost on a summer night.
John Walsh’s ‘I’ve Got an Apple Ready’ appears in The New Oxford Book of Children’s Verse. This poem features a child who is in a hurry and keeps an apple in case she needs it on the way.
My hair’s tightly plaited;
I’ve a bright blue bow;
I don’t want my breakfast,
And now I must go.
A gentle and nostalgic poem, ‘The Lamplighter’ by Robert Louis Stevenson captures a child’s quiet admiration for a lamplighter, blending warmth, innocence, and the simple dreams of youth.
My tea is nearly ready and the sun has left the sky.
It's time to take the window to see Leerie going by;
For every night at teatime and before you take your seat,
With lantern and with ladder he comes posting up the street.
‘Portrait of Girl with Comic Book’ by Phyllis McGinley is a thoughtful piece about growing up. The speaker addresses what its like for girls to be thirteen.
Thirteen’s no age at all. Thirteen is nothing.
It is not wit, or powder on the face,
Or Wednesday matinees, or misses’ clothing,
Or intellect, or grace,
‘A Was an Apple Pie’ is a simple and fun-to-read poem. In it, the speaker lists the alphabet, using personification to depict each letter of the alphabet.
A was an apple pie
B bit it,
C cut it,
D dealt it,
Rudyard Kipling’s ‘The Camel’s Hump’ is a fun poem on the repercussions of lethargy and inactivity. Humorously, we may grow a “Cameelious hump” if we feel like “we haven’t enough to do.”
The Camel's hump is an ugly lump
Which well you may see at the Zoo;
But uglier yet is the hump we get
From having too little to do.
William Cole’s ‘On My Boat on Lake Cayuga’ is a light verse poem that presents a contrast between the sounds of a traditional boat and modern four-wheelers.
On my boat on Lake Cayuga
I have a horn that goes “Ay-oogah!”
I’m not the sort of modern creep
Who has a horn that goes “beep-beep.”
‘Something Told the Wild Geese’ by Rachel Field discusses geese, and other animals, reactions to signs of winter. The poem takes place in summer and warns against being unprepared and dwelling on unhappiness.
Something told the wild geese
It was time to go.
Though the fields lay golden
Something whispered,—‘Snow.’
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