pick- bookwomble makes a debatable decision about a book review
boss
i read that book you did
about archy and mehitabel
with transmigrations and observations
on insects and alley cats
actors and aristocrats
politicians
prohibitions
and dried-up pharaohs
it was pretty good
for vers libre
humourous
satirical
not too lyrical
but wotthehell boss wotthehell
it was made into a musical
it made me chuckle
more than once
which is no mean feat
i try to be ⬇️
"when the ribald moon leers over the roof
and the mist reeks up from the chuckling stream
i pad the quais on a silent hoof
dreaming the vagabond s ancient dream
where the piebald toms of the quartier teem
and fight for a fish or a mouldy clam
my rival i rip and his guts unseam
for i am a cat of the devil i am" ?
- mehitabel meets an affinity
"coarse
jocosity
catches the crowd
shakespeare
and i
are often
low browed
the fish wife
curse
and the laugh of the horse
shakespeare
and i
are frequently
coarse
aesthetic
excuses
in bill s behalf
are adduced
to refine
big bill s
coarse laugh
but bill
he would chuckle
to hear such guff
he pulled
rough stuff
and he liked
rough stuff
hoping you
are the same
archy"
- archy confesses
“i have had my ups and downs
but wotthehell wotthehell
yesterday sceptres and crowns
fried oysters and velvet gowns
and today i herd with bums
but wotthehell wotthehell
...
there s a dance in the old dame yet
toujours gai toujours gai"
- the song of mehitabel
[Pic: Carolyn Hennesy as Mehitabel in a Broadway production]
I read one of the poems in this collection in an anthology recently & enjoyed it, so seeing a "Best of" a few days ago seemed serendipitous (or perhaps synchronistic, in the Jungian sense), so I bought it.
The bookseller let out a little squeak as I put it on the counter, apologising for her enthusiasm & telling me she always has a copy in as it was a favourite of her mother's, who used to read it to her as a child, so that seems high praise.
The Best of Archy and Mehitabel: Introduction by E. B. White | 
but mehitabel i ain t
the illustrations were krazy
i could ve done
with more
pen scratch
line hatch
there was so much
more to draw
well
my time in
shinbone alley s
over
though i m sure to
visit agen
there s a read in
the old book yet
meanwhile i ll try
to keep
toujours gai boss toujours gai
so cheerio my deario 🪳😺 (edited) 1mo