Selected Poems of Kenneth Grahame
Biography
Kenneth Grahame (March 8, 1859 - July 6, 1932) was a British writer, most famous for The Wind in the Willows (1908), one of the classics of children's literature. (Source: Wikipedia)
List of Poems
A Song of Toad
The world had held great Heroes,
As history-books have showed;
But never a name to go down to fame
Compared to that of Toad !
The clever men at Oxford
Know all that there is to be knowed.
But they none of them know one half as much
As intelligent Mr Toad !
The animals sat in the ark and cried,
Their tears in torrents flowed.
Who was it said, " There's land ahead ? "
Encouraging Mr Toad !
The Army all saluted
As they marched along the road.
Was it the King? Or Kitchener?
No. It was Mr Toad.
The Queen and her ladies-in-waiting
Sat at the window and sewed.
She cried, " Look ! Who's that handsome man ? "
They answered, " Mr Toad. "
The motor-car went Poop-poop-poop
As it raced alond the road
Who was it steered it into a pond ?
Ingenious Mr Toad !
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Ducks' Ditty
All along the backwater,
Through the rushes tall,
Ducks are a-dabbling,
Up tails all!
Ducks’ tails, drakes' tails,
Yellow feet a-quiver,
Yellow bills all out of sight
Busy in the river!
Slushy green undergrowth
Where the roach swim -
Here we keep our larder,
Cool and full and dim!
Every one for what he likes!
We like to be
Heads down, tails up,
Dabbling free!
High in the blue above
Swifts whirl and call -
We are down a-dabbling,
Up tails all!
