Category Archives: Limerick

The Evolution of the Book of Nonsense

Posted on December 16, 2025 by Marco Graziosi

My essay on the early editions of Edward Lear’s Book of Nonsense has now been published and is available on Project Muse: Graziosi, Marco. “The Evolution of Edward Lear’s A Book of Nonsense: The Making of the 1846, 1855, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Edward Lear, Limerick, Nonsense Lyrics | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Matchbox-Styled Book: The Limericks

Posted on December 24, 2023 by Marco Graziosi

A few weeks ago, kind Dough Harris sent me an extract from a book he recently acquired. Here is how he describes it: An interesting matchbox-styled booklet dropped through my letterbox today. Supposedly part of the ‘Safety [or Safest – … Continue reading →

Posted in Limerick, Nonsense Lyrics | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

W.S.’s Bosh Available Online

Posted on July 7, 2023 by Marco Graziosi

Dough Harris informs me that the limerick book I discussed here, Bosh by W.S. (London: Bickers & Son, 1876) is now available online at Google Books. According to Bob Turveys’s The Secret Life of Limericks (2025, chapter 5) W.S. was “the … Continue reading →

Posted in Edward Lear, Limerick | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

A Batch of Irish Learics

Posted on May 12, 2023 by Marco Graziosi

In a previous post, like this one inspired by Doug Harris, I showed a page of “Irish Literary Learics” from   Idyls of Killowen: A Soggarth’s Secular Verses (London: James Bowden, 1899), by Matthew Russell, S.J. The same limericks, however had already … Continue reading →

Posted in Edward Lear, Limerick | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Cylinder Nasties and Some T.S. Eliot Limericks

Posted on April 8, 2023 by Marco Graziosi

One of the “Limerick Company” I occasionally hear from, Bob Turvey, mentioned the following article from the 5 March 2023 Sunday Times “Culture” supplement, pp. 24-25: Here is the passage of interest from the book being reviewed: Another star, and arguably … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Limerick | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

John Parry’s Stray Leaves from “A Book of Nonsense”

Posted on March 19, 2023 by Marco Graziosi

This page containing nine limericks (which was kindly provided by Doug Harris) comes from John Parry’s Ridiculous Things Scraps and Oddities: Some with and Many Without Meaning, London: T. McLean, 1854. In the November 20, 1869 issue of Once a … Continue reading →

Posted in Edward Lear, Limerick, Nonsense Lyrics | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Aubrey Beardsley’s Limerick on Illustrating Le Morte Darthur

Posted on January 24, 2023 by Marco Graziosi

This manuscript records memories of Aubrey Beardsley’s mother about amateur theatricals put on at home by the adolescent Aubrey and his sister, Mabel, and her  son’s reluctance to fulfil his commission to illustrate an edition of Le Morte Darthur (1893–1894). … Continue reading →

Posted in Limerick, Nonsense Lyrics | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

“Nonsense!” – Words from Edward Lear, music by Mel Orriss

Posted on January 13, 2022 by Marco Graziosi

Festive Flutes and Mel Orriss perform six of Lear’s limericks set to music.

Posted in Edward Lear, Limerick | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

New Publications on Edward Lear (and more)

Posted on March 19, 2021 by Marco Graziosi

It’s been a long time since I updated the bibliographies, so here are quite a lot of items. Essays on Edward Lear: Walchester, Kathryn. “Non vedete. È una rivoluzione: Edward Lear Landscape Painter and Italy.” Journal of Tourism Consumption and … Continue reading →

Posted in Edward Gorey, Edward Lear, Lewis Carroll, Limerick, Nonsense Lyrics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Little Bits of Nonsense

Posted on March 5, 2021 by Marco Graziosi

Here is another sequence of illustrated limericks that appeared in the early American comics supplements, in this case in the Detroit Free Press of 22 November, 1902. I have been unable to find more instalments. Thanks to Sunday Press Books‘ Peter … Continue reading →

Posted in Comics, Limerick | Tagged , | Leave a comment