by Harry Laing
Shape-shifter
rock lifter
clever drifter
octopusssssss
master blender
cave defender
what's your gender?
octopusssssss
big eye winking
always thinking
slowly sinking
octopusssssss
color-mixer
inky fixer
slinky trickster
octopusssssss
but not like us
octopusssssss
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Today's poem appears in one of my favorite anthologies in recent years: ONE MINUTE TILL BEDTIME, poems selected by Kenn Nesbitt, art by Christoph Niemann (Little, Brown & Co., 2016). So many thanks to Harry Laing for giving me permission to print it! Here's more about Harry:
Harry Laing is an Australian poet and comic performer. His first collection of poems for children, Shoctopus-poems to grip you(for 6-12 yr olds) was published in 2015. ‘SuperFly: poems to give you a buzz’ (a picture book also for 6-12 yr olds), is due out from Ford Street next year. Harry does lots of poetry workshops in schools and loves performing his poems. He lives on 115 acres in New South Wales along with the wombats and kangaroos. Check out his giant purple Shoctopus on YouTube.
Also, Harry told me that ‘Octopus’ in OMTB came before he decided on 'Shoctopus’! Pretty brilliant change, don't you think?! Octopuses everywhere are impressed. :)
Love that "inky fixer", really every bit. One Minute Till Bedtime is a favorite, and Ingrid stole it from me! Super Fly: poems to give you a buzz sounds like it's going to be good. We all love insects here (assuming that's what it's about). Thanks, Irene!
ReplyDeleteLove this poem Irene, and "Shoctopus" was fantastic!!! Thanks, xo
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