Archive for the ‘Books’ Category
Friday, April 21st, 2023
I was honored to be interviewed by Michael Croland, of Dover Publications, on the topic of Acrostic Limericks. His piece includes eight of my acrostic limericks, in addition to my thoughts about the challenges of adding an acrostic element to a verse form that already has more than its share of rhyme and meter rules.
So, if you have any interest in acrostic limericks, or acrostic poetry in general, you should enjoy Croland’s article, “ACROSTIC LIMERICKS: A HYBRID OF TWO FORMS.”
NOTE: Croland’s most recent book, There Once Was a Limerick Anthology, was published by Dover Publications in August 2022, and his next book, Acrostic Poetry: The First-Ever Anthology, will be published by Dover in August 2023.
Tags: Acrostic Limerick, Acrostic Limericks, Acrostic Poems, Acrostic Poetry, Dover, Dover Publications, Mad Kane Interview, Michael Croland
Posted in Acrostic Limericks, Acrostic Madness, Books, Interviews, Limericks, Personal, Writing & Publishing Humor | Comments Off on I’m Interviewed by Michael Croland of Dover Publications, on the Topic of Acrostic Limericks
Saturday, May 28th, 2022
It’s Limerick-Off time, once again. And that means I write a limerick, and you write your own, using the same rhyme word. Then you post your limerick(s) as a comment to this post and, if you’re a Facebook user, on Facebook too.
I hope you’ll join me in writing limericks using SHOW at the end of ANY ONE LINE. (A homonym or homophone not listed here may be used in lieu of the designated rhyme word.)
The best submission will be crowned Limerick-Off Award Winner. (Here’s last week’s Limerick-Off Award Winner.)
Additionally, you may write themed limericks related to TRICKS, using any rhyme word. And of course I’ll present an extra award — one for the best TRICKS-related limerick.
And for a THIRD SEPARATE CHALLENGE, I’ve used a “Random Word Generator” to generate five random words. Your challenge is to use AT LEAST TWO of the Random Words anywhere in your limericks.
Here are the FIVE RANDOM WORDS for this contest:
FAIL LOUD POP LAWYER SACK
(You’re free to singularize/pluralize the designated random nouns and to change the tense of the designated random verbs. You can even turn adjectives in adverbs and vice versa. And you are NOT required to use any of them as rhyme words, as long as at least two of the words appear somewhere in your limericks.)
How will your poems be judged? By meter, rhyme, cleverness, and humor. (If you’re feeling a bit fuzzy about limerick writing rules, here’s my How To Write A Limerick article.)
I’ll announce the winners on June 26, 2022, right before I post the next Limerick-Off. So that gives you four full weeks to submit your clever, polished verse. Your submission deadline is Saturday, June 25, 2022 at 4:00 p.m. (Eastern Time.)
Here’s my SHOW-rhyme limerick:
Though my recall is poor, I don’t mind,
Cuz forgetting can sometimes be kind:
It might “freshen” a show,
Whose plot I should know
From a book that my mem’ry can’t find.
And here’s my TRICKS-themed limerick:
A magician was stressed out and sick.
He needed a remedy — quick:
“I can’t cancel my show!
It’s sold out — ev’ry row.”
A massage and Bordeaux did the trick.
And here is my RANDOM WORDS GENERATOR Limerick:
A lawyer’s been working non-stop
To defend an old fellow — a cop.
But alas, he has failed,
And the cop is now jailed.
Worst of all, that old cop is his pop.
Please feel free to enter my Limerick-Off by posting your limerick(s) in my comments. And if you’re on Facebook, I hope you’ll join my friends in that same activity on my Facebook Limerick-Off post.
To receive an email alert whenever I post a new Limerick-Off, please email Madkane@MadKane.com Subject: MadKane’s Newsletter. Thanks!
Tags: Anxiety and Stress, Books Humor, Books Limerick, Competition Limerick, Lawyer Humor, Limerick Challenge, Limerick Contest, Magic Humor, Magic Limerick, Magician, Memory Humor, Memory Limerick, Mothers & Fathers Humor, Poetry & Prompts, Shows Humor, Shows Limerick, Stress Humor, Stress Limerick, Tricks Humor, Tricks Limerick, Writing Prompts
Posted in Behavior & Personality, Books, Contests, Entertainment Humor, Family & Relatives Humor, Legal & Lawyer Humor, Limerick & Haiku Prompts, Limerick Competition, Limerick Contest, Limerick Writing Contest, Limerick-Offs, Limericks, Poetry & Prompts, Poetry Contest | 190 Comments »
Wednesday, February 23rd, 2022
I’m celebrating “Printed Book Day” (February 23) with my Limerick Ode To The Printed Book:
An occasional e-book is fine,
And I love reading columns online.
But I cherish the feel
Of a book that is REAL.
My ideal? Printed pages and spine.
Tags: Books Humor, Books Limerick, February Holidays, Odd Holidays, Printed Book Day, Reading Limerick
Posted in Book Publishing Humor, Books, Limericks, Odd Holidays | Comments Off on Limerick Ode To The Printed Book
Tuesday, October 16th, 2018
This has nothing to do with World Spine Day (Oct. 16,) but it DOES include the word “spine.” That should count for something, right?
When I try to read e-books, I pine
For the texture of paper and spine.
I can see their appeal,
But for me there’s no deal,
And I cherish my library/shrine.
Tags: Book Limericks, Books Humor, E-Readers, E-Readers Humor, Library Humor, Library Poetry, October Holidays, Odd Holidays, Reading Humor, Spine Day, Spine Limerick, World Spine Day
Posted in Books, Limericks, Odd Holidays, Technology Humor | Comments Off on Pining For Spines (Limerick)
Saturday, September 22nd, 2018
There once was a newlywed rhino
Who discovered her mate was a wino.
“We’re endangered,” she’d curse.
“Your damn wine makes it worse!”
“White wine’s fine,” he replied. “I’m albino.”
(My first rhino limerick is here. It’s included in the International Poetry Anthology For Rhino in a Shrinking World.)
Happy World Rhino Day! (September 22)
Tags: Animal & Pet Humor, Animal Verse, May Holidays, Odd Holidays, Poetry Anthologies, Rhino In A Shrinking World, Rhinoceros Limerick, Save The Rhino Day, September Holidays, World Rhino Day
Posted in Animal & Pet Humor, Books, Limericks, Odd Holidays, Poetry Books | 2 Comments »
Thursday, December 10th, 2015
When I was a child (way, way, way before computers) I was fascinated by the Dewey Decimal System. How I loved perusing the sliding drawers of those beautiful wooden library cases! They were packed with tiny cards, key to my quest for the number that would lead me to a book’s aisle and shelf location.
So I feel compelled to celebrate Dewey Decimal Day with a limerick. (It’s observed each year on December 10th, in honor of the birthday of Melvil Dewey, inventor of the Dewey Decimal System.)
The U.S. librarian Dewey
Found our library book placement screwy.
“Shelve this system,” he said.
“Number topics instead!”
(So chop suey is near ratatouille.)
Note: Under this topical/numeric system, food books would generally fall into the 641 classification. Cooking and recipes would be 641.5, whereas “cooking specific kinds of composite dishes” would be 641.8.
Tags: Birthday Limerick, Books Humor, DDC, December Holidays, Dewey Decimal Classification System, Dewey Decimal Day, Dewey Decimal System, Food Verse, Library Humor, Library Poetry, Melville Louis Kossuth Dewey, Odd Holidays
Posted in Books, Food & Drink Humor, Limericks, Odd Holidays | Comments Off on Happy Dewey Decimal Day! (Limerick)
Saturday, November 7th, 2015
Just in time for Book Lovers Day, celebrated both on the first Saturday of November and on August 9:
Like most of my friends I love books,
And I don’t want to read them on Nooks
Or other devices;
Real paper entices.
Don’t dare give me pity-filled looks!
Tags: August Holidays, Authors & Playwrights, Book Lovers Day, Computer Humor, E-Books, E-Readers, Electronic Devices, Kindles, Nooks, November Holidays, Odd Holidays, Technology Humor, Writing & Publishing Humor
Posted in Authors & Playwrights, Book Publishing Humor, Books, Computer Humor, Limericks, Odd Holidays, Technology Humor, Writing & Publishing Humor | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, April 21st, 2015
Here’s my double dactyl to celebrate John Mortimer’s birthday today. (Though he died back in 2009, I still have vivid memories of meeting and interviewing him for a profile I wrote for British Heritage Magazine way back in 1996. You can read my John Mortimer profile here.)
But back to my double dactyl:
Higgledy Piggledy
John Clifford Mortimer
Barrister, Author,
Rumpolian wit.
Bailey, his bailiwick
Prima-facetiously
He and his Horace sure
Loved to acquit.
Tags: Authors & Playwrights, Barristers, Brits, Death, Double Dactyls, Interviews, John Mortimer, Lawyers, Obit, Profiles, Writers
Posted in Authors & Playwrights, Books, Celebrity Humor, Double Dactyls, Interviews, Legal & Lawyer Humor, Limericks, Public Figures | Comments Off on Double Dactyl For John Mortimer
Tuesday, April 29th, 2014
(All dialogue guaranteed true)
Mark: “Now that I’ve won, I can go to sleep.” (gazing down, admiringly, at his laptop’s “free cell” screen at 10 pm)
Me: “Remember that Walter Kirn book I mentioned the other day?”
Mark: “Yeah, yeah, yeah.” (still looking down)
Me: “The one about the impostor…”
Mark: “Yeah, yeah, yeah.” (still looking down)
Me: “I just started reading it.”
Mark: “Yeah, yeah, yeah.” (still looking down)
Me: “You’re not listening to me.”
Mark: “Yeah, yeah, yeah.” (still looking down)
Me: “I said you’re not listening to me!”
Mark: “Huh??? Yes, I am.”
Me: “What am I talking about?”
Mark: “Uh…”
Me: “Remember? The Kirn book? I was telling you about it the other day.”
Mark: “Oh yeah.” (surreptitiously typing.)
Me: “You’re looking up “Kirn” in Google aren’t you?”
Mark: “Of course not! I remember you talking about Bruce Kern.”
Me: “I’ve never even heard of Bruce Kern. Stop trying to cheat with Google.”
Mark: “I’m not trying to cheat.”
Me: “Yes you are. I’m talking about WALTER Kirn’s book about the Rockefeller impostor.”
Mark: “Oh, yeah. Jay Rockefeller and the Hamptons.”
Me: “No! “CLARK Rockefeller. Driving a crippled dog from Montana to Manhattan.”
Mark: “Yeah, yeah, yeah.”
Me: “I give up!”
Tags: Books Humor, Bruce Kern, Clark Rockefeller, Communication Humor, Husband Humor, Husband Wife Humor, Impostor Humor, Life With Mark, Marital Relationships, Marriage Humor, Walter Kirn
Posted in Books, Communication Humor, Life With Mark And Madeleine, Marriage Humor, Personal | Comments Off on Life With Mark Kane
Tuesday, April 29th, 2014
Limerick Ode To Roget’s Thesaurus
By Madeleine Begun Kane
Serenade, sing, belt out, croon in chorus:
Happy Birthday to Roget’s Thesaurus,
Sterling word-meister’s brew,
Published Eighteen-Five-Two
In late April. The tome is a Taurus!
(Dr. Peter Mark Roget released his ground-breaking English-language word reference book, Roget’s Thesaurus, to the public on April 29, 1852.)
Tags: April Holidays, Birthday Humor, Birthday Limerick, Books Humor, Odd Holidays, Peter Mark Roget, Reference Books, Roget's Thesaurus, Singing Humor, Word Derivations
Posted in Birthday Verse, Book Publishing Humor, Books, Limericks, Odd Holidays | Comments Off on Limerick Ode To Roget’s Thesaurus
Sunday, January 26th, 2014
It’s Limerick-Off time, once again. And that means I write a limerick, and you write your own, using the same first line. Then you post your limerick here and, if you’re a Facebook user, on Facebook too.
The best submission will be crowned Limerick Of The Week. (Here’s last week’s Limerick Of The Week Winner.)
How will your poems be judged? By meter, rhyme, cleverness, and humor. (If you’re feeling a bit fuzzy about limerick writing rules, here’s my How To Write A Limerick article.)
I’ll announce the Limerick of the Week Winner next Sunday, right before I post next week’s Limerick-Off. So that gives you a full week to submit your clever, polished verse. Your submission deadline is Saturday at 11:00 p.m. (Eastern Time.)
I hope you’ll join me in writing a limerick with this first line:
A gal who was very well-read…*
or
A man was, alas, in the red…*
or
A woman who always wore red…*
*(Please note that minor variations to my first lines are acceptable. However, rhyme words may not be altered, except by using homonyms or homophones.)
Here’s my limerick:
Well-Read Limerick
By Madeleine Begun Kane
A gal who was very well-read
Felt stymied in getting ahead.
When she’d mention a book
To co-workers, their look
Always said, “Ain’t that fella still dead?”
Please feel free to write your own limerick using the same first line and post it in my comments. And if you’re on Facebook, I hope you’ll join my friends in that same activity on my Facebook Limerick-Off post.
To receive an email alert whenever I post a new Limerick-Off, please email Madkane@MadKane.com Subject: MadKane’s Newsletter. Thanks!
Tags: Competition Limerick, Limerick Challenge, Limerick Contest, Poetry & Prompts, Writing Prompts
Posted in Books, Contests, Limerick & Haiku Prompts, Limerick Competition, Limerick Contest, Limerick Writing Contest, Limerick-Offs, Limericks, Money & Finance Humor, Poetry & Prompts, Poetry Contest, Workplace & Career Humor | 49 Comments »
Wednesday, October 24th, 2012
Congratulations to Denise Dresner on the publication of her limerick book, Cat Limericks. Here are some sample limericks from her book:
A fabulous feline called Cleo
Loved Carnival time down in Rio.
She’d join the parade
Dressed in full masquerade
And dance through the streets with great brio!
*****
There once was a cat from Menorca
Whose favorite poet was Lorca;
She’d lie on the beach
Her books within reach
And amaze the occasional gawker!
*****
Tags: Animal & Pet Humor, Cat Humor, Cat Limericks, Denise Dresner, Limerick Books
Posted in Animal & Pet Humor, Books, Limericks | 2 Comments »
Friday, September 21st, 2012
Tomorrow, September 22nd, is World Rhino Day. And I’m very pleased to announce that my Limerick Ode To The Rhinoceros is included in the International Poetry Anthology For Rhino in a Shrinking World. And that it was one of five of the anthology’s poems read at a World Rhino Day celebration in Grahamstown, South Africa.
Limerick Ode To The Rhinoceros
By Madeleine Begun Kane
The rhino appears prehistoric,
With a diet that’s vega-caloric.
It’s endangered, alas.
Laws to save it must pass.
This would make all its lovers euphoric.
UPDATE: May 1 is Save The Rhino Day.
Tags: Animal & Pet Humor, Animal Verse, May Holidays, Odd Holidays, Poetry Anthologies, Rhino In A Shrinking World, Rhinoceros Limerick, Save The Rhino Day, September Holidays, World Rhino Day
Posted in Animal & Pet Humor, Books, Limericks, Odd Holidays, Poetry Books | 14 Comments »
Thursday, September 20th, 2012
Claudia over at DVersePoets asks us to write a poem about our quiet moments:
Escapist Limerick
By Madeleine Begun Kane
When I need to escape and relax,
I read thrillers — fictitious attacks
On a gal or a fellow
I’ll root for while mellow—
Avoiding true life’s ugly facts.
Tags: Books Humor, DVerse, Escapism, Leisure Time Humor, Poetry Prompt, Quiet Limerick, Reading Humor, Relaxation Humor, Thrillers
Posted in Behavior & Personality, Books, Leisure Time Humor, Limericks | 10 Comments »
Wednesday, August 8th, 2012
Tomorrow, August 9, is Book Lover’s Day Needless to say, I’m celebrating with a limerick:
Best Selling Limerick
By Madeleine Begun Kane
A fellow who had what it took
To author a best selling book
“Wrote” novels galore.
(Able ghosts did the chore.)
He made millions by hook and by crook.
Tags: August Holidays, Authors & Playwrights, Best Sellers Humor, Book Lovers Day, Ghost Writing, November Holidays, Odd Holidays, Writing & Publishing Humor
Posted in Authors & Playwrights, Book Publishing Humor, Books, Limericks, Odd Holidays, Writing & Publishing Humor | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, July 10th, 2012
I just found out that today (July 10) is National Clerihew Day. What the heck’s a clerihew? It’s a “whimsical, four-line biographical poem invented by Edmund Clerihew Bentley.”
More specifically, clerihews are four-lines long with an A-A-B-B rhyme scheme and irregular meter. The first line names a person — the subject of the poem.
Here are a couple I’ve written about writers:
Edgar Allen Poe
A writerly bro
Who’s famed for the Raven.
What a scary poem maven!
*****
The author George Orwell
We ought not ignore well;
His writings polemic
Ain’t at all academic.
*****
And here are two about actresses:
Bette Davis
Film joy gave us.
Seduced gals and guys
With Bette Davis Eyes.
*****
Mae West
For life had zest.
Stoked gals and blokes
With “evil” jokes.
*****
(You can find my political clerihews here.)
Happy birthday to George Orwell, born June 25, 1903.
Tags: Bette Davis, Clerihew, Edgar Allen Poe, Edmund Clerihew Bentley, George Orwell, July Holidays, June Birthdays, Mae West, National Clerihew Day, Poetry Forms
Posted in Actors & Actresses, Authors & Playwrights, Books, Celebrations Poetry, Celebrity Humor, Clerihews, Holiday Humor, Limericks, Poetry Forms, Public Figures | 8 Comments »
Wednesday, March 14th, 2012
The Encyclopaedia Britannica is the latest victim of the Digital Age:
Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc. announced Tuesday it will stop publishing print editions of its signature product for the first time in its 244-year history. In an acknowledgment of the shifting media landscape and the increasing reliance on digital references, the company said its current encyclopedia – the 32-volume, 129-pound 2010 edition – will be unavailable once the existing stock runs out. (If you’re interested, it’s yours for $1,395 and there are only 4,000 sets left.) The digital version of the encyclopedia, however, will live on.
This news saddened me. And it also reminded me about the obsolete, hand-me-down encyclopedia I grew up with in the Fifties and Sixties:
Limerick Ode To The Encyclopedia
By Madeleine Begun Kane
Britannicas, World Books and more
Were common in households of yore.
But not in my home—
Just a hand-me-down tome
With entries, I swear, like “World War.”
Tags: Books Humor, Business Poem, Computers Verse, Digital Age, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Encyclopedias Humor, Internet Humor, Library Poetry, Media Limerick, Print Media Humor, Reference Books, Technology Humor, Web Humor
Posted in Books, Business Humor, Computer Humor, Internet Humor, Limericks, Media Humor, Technology Humor | 6 Comments »
Saturday, March 5th, 2011
It makes me fidget,
but I book myself to write
accidental verse.
*****
Accidental glance,
de-liberating romance—
just the dance of chance.
*****
Shocking incident:
things accidentally went
exactly as planned.
*****
Ms. Bristol Palin’s
book contract and dancing gig—
accident of birth.
*****
Booked reservation
at restaurant, but canceled—
had reservations.
*****
If you dare mention
certain odd affinities,
brace for fidgeting.
*****
Tags: Bristol Palin, Drink Verse, Food Haiku, Happy Accidents, One Single Impression, Planning Humor, Poetry & Prompts, Reservations Haiku, Romance Humor, Theme Thursday, Three Word Wednesday, Writing & Publishing Humor, Writing Haiku
Posted in Behavior & Personality, Books, Celebrity Humor, Creativity Verse, Family & Relatives Humor, Family Verse, Food & Drink Humor, Poetry & Prompts, Relationship Haiku, Romance Humor, Writing & Publishing Humor | 21 Comments »
Wednesday, February 16th, 2011
Over the years I’ve written enough humor columns, limericks, and sundry light verse to fill two or three collections. And one of these days I may even get my act together, stop procrastinating and self-publish at least one of them. I mention this because Big Tent Poetry’s latest prompt urges us to come up with a name for a future book and then write a title poem for that non-existent book.
Yes, I know this is Sheer Madness, which is also the title of my non-existent humor collection:
Sheer Madness
By Madeleine Begun Kane
I’m hoping to publish a book
With an excellent concept and hook.
It’s title? Sheer Madness,
Reviewed please sans badness,
Sold on paper and Kindle and Nook.
Tags: Book Reviewers Verse, Book Title Humor, Creativity, E-Books, Humor Book, Madness Humor, Procrastination Verse, Publishing Limerick, Self-Publishing, Writing & Publishing Humor
Posted in Book Publishing Humor, Books, Creativity Verse, Humor Columns & Humorous Essays, Kindle Humor, Limericks, Procrastination Humor, Writing & Publishing Humor | 27 Comments »
