Leaping Limericks
written and illustrated by Virginia Sanders
Leaping Limericks
written and illustrated by Virginia Sanders Eifrig Publishing Berlin Lemont
Dedicated to Ryan, Marjorie, Casey, Katie, and Jessica, my Grandchildren, who are my treasures. I hope they, in turn, will treasure this book. V. S.
Š 2009 by Virginia Sanders Printed in the United States of America All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright, and permission should be obtained from the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or likewise. Published by Eifrig Publishing, PO Box 66, 701 Berry Street, Lemont, PA 16851, USA Knobelsdorffstr. 44, 14059 Berlin, Germany. For information regarding permission, write to: Rights and Permissions Department, Eifrig Publishing, PO Box 66, 701 Berry Street, Lemont, PA 16851, USA. submissions@eifrigpublishing.com, +1-888-340-8543. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Sanders, Virginia. Leaping Limericks /written and illustrated by Virginia Sanders p. cm. ISBN 978-0-9795518-5-7 I. Sanders, Virginia, Illustrator. II. Title: Leaping Limericks III. Animal poetry 13 12 11 10 2009 5 4 3 2 1 Printed on acid-free paper. ∞
T h e r e o n c e w a s a n A A R D V A R K n a m e d Alice W h o s p e n t a l l o f h e r d a y s i n t h e p a l a c e. She roved all about And with her long snout She ate all the ants - from a chalice.
T h e r e ’ s a B U F F A L O o u t w e s t o n t h e r a n g e s, A n d w e ' l l t e l l y o u a f a c t t h a t q u i t e s t r a n ge is. When you are warm, you will note, You can take off your coat, B u t t h e B u f f a l o o u t w e s t c a n n o t c h a n g e his.
An African CAMEL named Clyde, Carries his riders with pride. He makes a wide track With his pack on his back And doesn’t slow down in his stride.
A GREAT DANE whose name was Dolores Liked to sing with the canine chorus. By night and by day She scared burglars away And carried the newspaper for us.
This EGRET here is called Egbert H e s t r i d e s w i t h a n a i r t h a t i s q u i t e p e rt. His feathers are white And his eye is quite bright And at catching fish - he's an expert.
Captain Freddie was the name of a FOX W h o s a i l e d h i s s m a l l b o a t n e a r t h e r o c ks. He's supposed to be sly, But I think it's a lie. H e s h o u l d h a v e s t a y e d c l o s e t o t h e d o c ks.
Griselda was a charming young GIBBON With just one small island to live on. She ate berries and fruits, Some nuts and some roots, A n d p l a y e d a l l d a y l o n g w i t h h e r r i b b o n.
H u m p h re y, yo u’ l l re c o g n i z e, o f c o u rs e, As a large and beautiful horse. He will run, he will walk, He'll be gentle or balk, B u t h e ca n n o t s p e a k R u s s i a n o r N o r s e .
Ingrid's a large, green IGUANA Who lives down in humid Guyana. She moves just by creeping And spends hours just sleeping But won’t ever play the pianna.
Jerry’s a little JACKRABBIT And hopping’s his favorite habit. He likes lettuce and celery To fill up his "bellery." I f y o u g iv e h i m a c a r r o t - h e ' l l g r a b i t .
Ken’s a KOALA who lives in a tree Blinking his eyes so sleepily. He’s soft and he’s cuddley And completely befuddle-y Let’s invite him and his mother to tea.
Linda’s a LEMUR from Madagascar. H e r m o t h e r ’ s f a s t , b u t h e r f a t h e r ’ s f a ster. Do you wonder if she Likes to swing from a tree? S h e m a y t e l l y o u , i f y o u c a r e t o a s k h e r.
I n M a i ne , t h e M O O S E l e a v e s a w i d e t r ack. M o v i n g f a s t , n o m o s s g r o w s o n h i s b a ck. You might catch a glimmer Of this very fine swimmer W h o s e a n t l e r s l o o k l i k e a h a t r a c k.
A nice NEMATODE named Nellie C r a w l s a r o u n d a l l t h e t i m e o n h e r b e l l y. There’s no way of knowing If she’s coming or going, So keep her away from your jelly.
O l l i e ’ s a n O C T O P U S w i t h e i g h t h a n d s ( o r feet) Doing numerous maneuvers at once (very neat!) With comb and with clippers Ties his tie while he snippers A l l w h i l e s u r f i n g - n o w a i n ’ t t h a t a f e at?!
Percy, the great billed PELICAN, Catches fish, just as well as he can. He soars thru the air With nary a care ‘ C a u s e h i s b i l l h o l d s m o r e t h a n h i s b e l l y c an.
The QUETZAL’s a beautiful bird, T h o u g h h i s n a m e i s q u i t e a s t r a n g e w o rd He’ll show off his plumes As he giddily zooms Like a pretzel that’s being unfurled.
Reggie, the RHINO, from tail to toes Is very large. Do you suppose That’s why his temper’s so short? Best run when he snorts. A n d l o o k o u t f o r t h o s e h o r n s o n h i s n o s e!
Sally, the SEAL, is so cute and sweet. As an entertainer she’s truly complete. She catches a ball, Never letting it fall, And climbs a ladder without any feet.
Tessie the TURTLE is terribly slow Taking a hundred years to grow. A traveling dome Her shell is her home S o s h e ’ s p a c k e d w h e n t h e t i m e c o m e s t o go.
It is certainly odd, of course, To shake hands with a mythical horse. They say the UNICORN’s born With only one horn, A n d t h a t m a k e s i t d i f f e r e n t , n o t w o r se.
Vera, the VIPER’s a snake. Please, don’t make a mistake. She’s not a rope - not a hose, She’s neither of those, So be careful, dear, for Pete’s sake!
W i l l y , th e W A L R U S , w i t h a l o n g i v o r y tusk. W a l l o w i n g a b o u t f r o m d a w n u n t i l d u s k. His favorite dish Is, of course, fish But he’ll eat other things if he must.
The horseshoe crab named XIPHOSURA For millions of years did endure-a. His cousin’s a spider Yet he’s really not like her A s t r a ng e a n c i e n t c r e a t u r e , f o r s u r e - a.
Yolanda’s a loveable YAK, Who eats grass and hay by the stack. In the hills of Tibet She yaks with Yvette, And Yvette, the nice Yak, yaks back.
ZEBRAS are related to Llamas, And look like ponies in striped pajamas One thing is clear, I f th e y h a v e a n y f e a r , T h e y s t a y c l o s e t o t h e i r p a p a s a n d m a mas.
What is your favorite animal? C r e a t e y o u r o w n l e t t e r , l i m e r i c k , a n d d r a wing on the following page! Be creative and have fun. And remember to always do your best to protect the environment to help preserve our amazing alphabet of animals!!
Why the limerick? While limericks are a fun form of poetry, they are not often written with children in mind. This creative book of limericks from A to Z, with the creative illustrations by author and illustrator Virginia Sanders, brings to life 26 wonderful rhyming rhythms for kids of all ages.
From aardvarks to egrets, iguanas to koalas, and vipers to zebras, whimsical illustrations accompany the prose for a rhythmic journey through the animal kingdom. Though trained as a high school mathematics teacher, Virginia Sanders has always had a passion for drawing, painting, and cartooning. This, together with her abiding love for children and animals, gave the impulse for the creation of this book. Her other passion is the protection of wildlife and the environment, and to that end she writes a regular column for her local newspaper addressing sea turtle conservation issues and edits and illustrates a piece called “The Marine Scene,� emanating from Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium in Sarasota, Florida, where she is a long-time volunteer. Twenty years ago, due to the prodding of her late husband, Dr. Jack Sanders, she added photography to her artistic talents and has many honors, awards, and published pictures to her credit.
{Eifrig Publishing}
eifrigenterprises.com US $9.99