Since I'm all about All Hallow's Read right now, I thought I'd pick a poem that truly scared me as a kid. But I loved it, too, with its dialect which made it fun to read, and the lovely new words. I'd beg my mom to read it again and again:
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Little Orphant Annie
by James Whitcomb Riley
Little Orphant Annie's come to our house to stay,
An' wash the cups an' saucers up, an' brush the crumbs away,
An' shoo the chickens off the porch, an' dust the hearth, an' sweep,
An' make the fire, an' bake the bread, an' earn her board-an'-keep;
An' all us other children, when the supper-things is done,
We set around the kitchen fire an' has the mostest fun
A-list'nin' to the witch-tales 'at Annie tells about,
An' the Gobble-uns 'at gits you
Ef you
Don't
Watch
Out!
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You can read the rest of the poem here. (Beware! Creepiness ahead!)
As I was searching for this poem online, I came across a folk singer who had set some of Riley's poems to music. Click here to see Anne Hills singing her musical verion of Little Orphant Annie. I thought it was really neat. I love how the audience joins in at the end of later verses.
Head over to The Writer's Armchair to read more poems this Poetry Friday.
Have a wonderful All Hallow's Read, everyone!
2 comments:
Thanks especially for the link. She plays a mean claw hammer/drop thumb banjo. A real treat for halloween.
Toby, I'll have to look up your post about it! Good to hear it's a favorite of yours, too. So creepy, and such lovely language. Really fun to read aloud.
Blythe, glad you enjoyed the link. I found another of her doing this song where you can see her talent up close:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4JlVSO4DTI
Thanks for stopping by, both of you!
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