September 2020
Vol V No V
Not your ordinary poetry magazine!
If good coffee (or just the concept of coffee), great books, sharp wit, and great authors excite you, we are for you!
Tip: if it is underlined it is a clickable link.
Note: drop downs from the menu below sometimes take a few seconds to load.
Published quarterly beginning February 2021
Poetry for Children
Island Voyage
The waves that roll across the ocean
crash upon my sands.
The gulls that fly across the sky
arrive from distant lands.
The ships that trek around the world
glide past me, one by one.
The light that warms me took a trip
that started at the sun.
I’m an island, standing still,
but I don’t feel confined.
I watch the waves, the gulls, the ships
and travel in my mind.
Lone Wolf
Solitude suits me.
I roam through the night,
my pack far behind
in the pale forest light.
My howl is a wish:
may the night never end!
Alone, but not lonely;
the moon is my friend.
Suzy Levinson has written children’s poetry for numerous magazines, including Ladybug, Highlights, Highlights High Five, Hello, The School Magazine, The Caterpillar, and the SCBWI Bulletin, and collections, including I Am a Jigsaw and the Poetry Friday anthologies. Visit her website at suzylevinson.com.
Nearly There
Summer’s a picnic rug, six weeks spread wide,
Summer’s the bell, you’ll be running outside.
Summer’s the summit, you’ll freewheel downhill,
Summer’s the soft drink they let you refill.
Summer’s a butterfly, spreading its wings,
Summer’s a kite, with lengthening strings.
Summer’s a sweet you dissolve on your tongue
Summer’s the season you’ll always be young.
Summer’s a swing to go high as you dare,
Summer’s escape and the wind in your hair.
Summer’s your city, your village, your town,
Summer’s your poem; so go ― write it down.
Sarah Ziman is a children’s poet, originally from Wales, and is fond of cats, crisps, reading, and rhyme. She’s not quite won a few prizes, and often shares poems on Twitter.
A Legend
At the top of the highest mountain
​
That no one’s ever clomb,
​
There lives in a little castle
​
A little garden gnome.
​
If you bring a purple ribbon
And you tie it round his hat . . .
He’ll laugh and ask you why you did a silly thing like that!
Daniel Galef has been writing funny little poems since he was in the second grade. He lives in Tallahassee, Florida, where he writes and teaches mathematics.
One Eye in the Middle
I have trouble with glasses,
the one-eyed cyclops sighed.
They’re making me blind,
the way they’re designed ―
too wide, too double, two-eyed.
First published in The Caterpillar Magazine, Ireland 2016.
Kate Williams is a British children’s poet, with contributions to many anthologies. She enjoys squeezing mind-stretching concepts of all sorts into small, simple verses. Visit her website at https://poemsforfun.wordpress.com.
with Robert Schechter
Dr. Quackenbaum
Good morning, sir, please have a seat.
I’m Dr. Quackenbaum.
So, share with me, what’s ailing you?
You’ve got a twitchy thumb?
Well, you’re in luck! I’ve just the pill
to put your thumb at ease.
Here, gulp it down . . . Ah, very good.
That’s eighty dollars please.
The twitch is gone, but now you’ve what?
A buzzing in your ear?
No worries, sir ― a side effect.
Be thankful you can hear!
​
For mitigating buzzy-ears
this fuzzy pill’s the cure.
Oh good, it worked ― but now you’re blind?
A minor snag for sure.
Just take this yellow checkered pill,
your eyesight will return.
Ah, nicely done, those chills will pass,
no reason for concern.
You now can’t blink? Your legs won't move?
Your neck has stiffened, too?
Yes, quite debilitating, sir.
This white pill ought to do.
You’ll soon be feeling full of oomph
and frisky as a cat!
Ka-THUD!
Now that’s a bummer! He’s dead!
I’ve got no pill for that.
William Peery is a father of two and former math and science teacher from Southern California. His poems have appeared in Highlights for Children, Highlights High Five, and various children’s poetry anthologies.
Everything’s Been Cancelled
Everything’s been cancelled.
Did someone tell the birds?
I see them flying overhead.
They surely must have heard.
And all the blooms are puckering
And begging to be kissed.
Has anybody told the bees
That kissing must desist?
Did anybody tell the fish?
They’re breaking all the rules.
Everything’s been cancelled,
Including all the schools.
And have we told the ocean?
If only someone would.
It just keeps creeping closer,
It hasn’t understood.
And have we let the insects know
That swarming’s not allowed?
In fact, they shouldn’t gather now
In any sort of crowd.
And who’s in charge of keeping
All the raindrops in their place?
I feel they’re taking liberties
Splashing on my face.
​
And goodness gracious, now the sun
Is coming out to play.
I hope the rainbow understands
It has to stay away.
First published in The Caterpillar.
​
Jackie Hosking, born in Nigeria to Cornish parents, now lives in Australia. Her picture book, The Croc and the Platypus, is published by Walker Books, and she’s very happy to have four new books in the wings. Visit jackiehoskingblog.wordpress.com.
