Awful Alvin and Other Peculiar Poems by Stephen Brooke
- May 19
- 1 min read
Awful Alvin is a collection of poems for young readers, by Stephen Brooke, fully illustrated with the author's pen and ink art. Join Alvin as he finds the friend he needed, help Lynn and Pete decide what might be found down a really deep hole, or teach the Frog King how to sing.
A poem from the book:
The King Must Sing
A call from the Great, Grand High Frog
brought all, to the least polliwog,
before his throne, high on a log,
for he was the King of the Bog.
The King blinked his big, bulging eyes,
announcing, to each frog’s surprise,
“I’m tired of just catching flies
or sitting up here looking wise.
“It’s time that I act like a king,
and I know exactly the thing:
a leader’s voice surely should ring,
so someone must teach me to sing!”
No, frogs cannot actually frown,
but some of their mouths did turn down;
they even asked, “What’s with this clown?
His head is too big for his crown!”
For this task appealed to no one,
with most frogs preferring to shun
all work and just sit in the sun—
they’re lazy sorts, when all is done.
One little tad finally spoke,
“Your Highness must certainly joke.
You already have a fine croak
and don’t need the help of we folk.”
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