Author: Kenn Nesbitt

Kenn Nesbitt, former U.S. Children's Poet Laureate, is celebrated for blending humor and heart in his poetry for children. Known for books such as "My Cat Knows Karate" and "Revenge of the Lunch Ladies," he captivates young readers globally.

The Bagel Bird

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The Bagel Bird, by all accounts,
is said to lunch on large amounts
of sticks and twigs and sand and stones
and plastic parts from broken phones.
He’ll nibble bits of copper wires
and rubber from discarded tires.
He’ll chomp on tops of cuckoo clocks
and swallow shorts and stinky socks.

He’ll chew your shoes and eat your hat.
He’ll bite your books and baseball bat.
He’ll stuff his lips with poker chips
and snack on sails from sailing ships
and gobble poles and bowling balls
and pick at bricks from fallen walls
and graze on grass and feed on weeds
and dine on twine and strings of beads.

But bagels… whether white or wheat,
or salted, savory, or sweet,
or topped with lox or luncheon meat,
are something he will never eat.
At least that’s what I’ve always heard
about the crazy Bagel Bird.
But I don’t mind because, you see,
that leaves more bagels just for me.

–Kenn Nesbitt

My Mother Makes Prickly Pear Pastries

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My mother makes prickly pear pastries.
My mother makes prickly pear pies.
She’s known for her prickly pear donuts
and flavorful prickly pear fries.

She sometimes makes prickly pear muffins
or prickly pear cookies and cakes.
She likes making prickly pear pizzas
and prickly pear smoothies and shakes.

I’ll bet she could write a whole cookbook
with all kinds of prickly pear food.
I’m sure you’d have no trouble guessing
what every last page would include.

I might even like her concoctions,
and wouldn’t just snicker and scoff,
if once in a while she’d remember
to take all the prickly parts off.

–Kenn Nesbitt

Winning Rhymes

Check out the winning poems from the 2012 TFK Poetry Contest

Santino Panzica, winner of the 2012 TIME for Kids Poetry Contest

From www.timeforkids.com: More than 1,000 kids entered this year’s TIME For Kids Poetry Contest. Poet Kenn Nesbitt chose the winners. “I had an amazing time reading the poems,” he says. All the winners will receive a copy of Nesbitt’s book of poetry The Tighty Whitey Spider. Click here to watch a video of the funny poet read one of his own rhymes for TFK.

Ready for a chuckle? Click here to read these silly rhymes from this year’s winners.

Video Interview and Poem

Renee LaTulippeNow that National Poetry Month 2012 is officially underway, there are a lot of great new resource being published on the web. At No Water River, Renee LaTulippe’s will be interviewing a number of poets this month, and posting videos of them reciting their poems. The first interview is with yours truly, and you can also see a video of me reciting my poem “My Hamster Has a Skateboard.”

Be sure to check back regularly at No Water River to see all of the videos  and interviews that Renee has planned for this month.

Kids Hummingbird Poetry Contest

HummingbirdDo you like hummingbirds? Do you like writing poems? Would you like to win a prize? Hummingbird-guide.com is hosting their second annual Kids Hummingbird Poetry Contest here.

The contest is open to kids ages 6-12. Winners will receive a free hummingbird feeder. The deadline for submissions is September 30, 2012 and winners will be announced October 31, 2012.

But there’s no need to wait. You can submit your own original hummingbird poem now. Good luck to you!

I Raised My Hand in Class

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I raised my hand in class this morning,
sitting in the back.
The teacher didn’t see, I think.
Instead she called on Jack.

I stretched my hand up higher,
but she called on Zach and Zoe.
I started bouncing up and down,
but, still, she called on Chloe.

I waved my arms but, even so,
she didn’t call on me.
She called on Bryan, Brooklyn, Billy,
Bailey, Ben, and Bree.

She called on Taylor, Tristan, Thomas,
Trinity, and Ty.
Then, finally, she called my name.
I breathed a heavy sigh.

She asked me for the answer.
I just frowned and clenched my knees,
and said, “I’ve no idea,
but could I use the bathroom, please?”

–Kenn Nesbitt

The Man from Timbuktu

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I’ll tell you of a man I knew
who claimed he came from Timbuktu.
He said, “I have the world to see!”
So off he went to Timbukthree.
Then Timbukfour and Timbukfive
were where he seemed to come alive.

He went to Timbuksix and -seven,
and Timbukeight, -nine, -ten, -eleven.
Then Timbuktwelve and -thirteen too,
he liked them more than Timbuktu.
The last I heard, he’s doing fine.
He lives in Timbukninetynine.

So, kids, if all you ever do
is take a trip to Timbuktu,
at least you’ll have a lot more fun
than staying home in Timbukone.
But if you have the world to see…
continue on to Timbukthree.

–Kenn Nesbitt

I Ran for the Chapstick

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I ran for the Chapstick mom keeps in her purse.
My lips were so chapped that they couldn’t feel worse!
I dug through her handbag and pulled it out quickly,
then sighed in relief as I smeared it on thickly.
I felt so much better I almost rejoiced.
My painful, dry lips were now mended and moist.
My dad burst out laughing. My mom looked amused.
Her Chapstick was lost. That was lipstick I’d used.

–Kenn Nesbitt