A Selection of Nonsense Verse

About Edward Lear

Edward Lear wrote his most famous nonsense poem 'The Owl and the Pussycat' as a get-well treat for a friend’s young daughter. It was later published in 1870 making him a household name.

Born in 1812, Lear showed a remarkable talent for drawing from an early age and earnt his living as a draughtsman for the Zoological Society of London. In 1846 he published a collection of his verses, A Book of Nonsense, which became extremely popular with children and adults alike.

Reflecting Lear’s own artistic talents, this edition includes some of his own drawings of birds and glimpses into the life of the man himself.

“He reads, but he cannot speak Spanish, 
He cannot abide ginger beer;
Ere the days of his pilgrimage vanish,
How pleasant to know Mr Lear!”

Each poem in this collection is brought to life with a series of illustrations by Robert Ingpen, who has also added his own discovery of the Botany of Bong-tree Land.