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Lewis Carroll (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898 / Cheshire)
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Little Birds
Little Birds are dining
Warily and well,
Hid in mossy cell:
Hid, I say, by waiters
Gorgeous in their gaiters -
I've a Tale to tell.
Little Birds are feeding
Justices with jam,
Rich in frizzled ham:
Rich, I say, in oysters
Haunting shady cloisters -
That is what I am.
Little Birds are teaching
Tigresses to smile,
Innocent of guile:
Smile, I say, not smirkle -
Mouth a semicircle,
That's the proper style!
Little Birds are sleeping
All among the pins,
Where the loser wins:
Where, I say, he sneezes
When and how he pleases -
So the Tale begins.
Little Birds are writing
Interesting books,
To be read by cooks:
Read, I say, not roasted -
Letterpress, when toasted,
Loses its good looks.
Little Birds are playing
Bagpipes on the shore,
Where the tourists snore:
"Thanks!" they cry. "'Tis thrilling!
Take, oh take this shilling!
Let us have no more!"
Little Birds are bathing
Crocodiles in cream,
Like a happy dream:
Like, but not so lasting -
Crocodiles, when fasting,
Are not all they seem!
Little Birds are choking
Baronets with bun,
Taught to fire a gun:
Taught, I say, to splinter
Salmon in the winter -
Merely for the fun.
Little Birds are hiding
Crimes in carpet-bags,
Blessed by happy stags:
Blessed, I say, though beaten -
Since our friends are eaten
When the memory flags.
Little Birds are tasting
Gratitude and gold,
Pale with sudden cold:
Pale, I say, and wrinkled -
When the bells have tinkled,
And the Tale is told.
Read poems about / on: thanks, happy, smile, fun, memory, winter, dream, fire, friend, lost, sleep
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Shall we giggle, laugh, and guffaw! Someone actually wants to tell Louie Carroll that his poetry is nonsense. Is this not merely a bedtime ditty in disguise? And who could teach Louie Carroll to write it better?
Adeline Foster
Not a very good poem. It's slightly confusing and is complete nonsense.
Love you Lewis....I love Alice and I love wonderland.....: D
I can't forget the lovely time I spent reading your book when I was a child......those happy, wonderful moments......wonderland....love that crazy world like hell
Are there really only 365 poems in the English language? I commented on this poem just a year ago. There are tens of thousands of poems which could be poem of the day.
The meaningful joking poetry of the poet is a fun to read!
i like every fourth line of the stanzas...pretty well made....
but i think it's not just about a little bird..or himself.......
i think it has something to do with political and social things....
is Caroll a social poet? ? ? ..
hmmmmnn, if he is, it's not written in his biography....
The poem described the little birds as enormous, significant, vital and a treasure not a trash.Therefore be proud of who you are.
The fact is, I like eating meat, but I don't like killing it. I pay slaughtermen (whether noble or plebian) to do that for me. Carroll cleverly makes me feel remorse without hating him for it. But I doubt if I shall change.
Nailed them real good. Them little birds getting fatter and fatter, eating bugs and seeds. Then flying away to another feast.
It's a clever little poem and quite intertaining I thought.
Marilyn