Section: «Poems»

Verse (ancient Greek ὁ στίχος — row, structure), a term in versification used in several meanings: artistic speech organized by division into rhythmically commensurate segments; poetry in the narrow sense; in particular, it implies the properties of versification of a particular tradition ("antique verse", "Akhmatova's verse", etc.); a line of poetic text organized according to a certain rhythmic pattern ("My uncle of the most honest rules").

Vegan Steven's Vegan Clothes

Remember that vegan called StevenYes he would not kill for no reason,Well I saw him todayWearing nothing I sayBut some cabbage leavesWith a few peas..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Ride

We first met on a golden nightAs the moon radiated love lightOn the dock of the bay.Somewhere between the real deal and an illusionWe lay..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

What Stephen Lawrence Has Taught Us

We know who the killers are,We have watched them strut before usAs proud as sick Mussolinis',We have watched them strut before usCompassionless and..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

The Death Of Joy Gardner

They put a leather belt around her13 feet of tape and bound herHandcuffs to secure herAnd only God knows what else,She's illegal, so deport herSaid..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Sos (Save Our Sons)

We Black men of EnglandToo proud to cry for shame,Let's cry a seaCry publicly,Expose our very pain,For Babylon the banditIs on our sisters trail,The..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Eat Your Words

I am a veggie tableA table made of veg,There’s so much fruit upon meAll living on the edge,Life is hardBut so are platesAnd tea can be quite hot,And..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Neighbours

I am the type you are supposed to fearBlack and foreignBig and dreadlocksAn uneducated grass eater.I talk in tonguesI chant at nightI appear..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Wot A Pair

I waz walking down Wyefront streetWhen me trousers ran away,I waz feeling incompleteBut still me trousers would not stay,When I found where they had..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Who's Who

I used to think nursesWere women,I used to think policeWere men,I used to think poetsWere boring,Until I became one of them.

© Benjamin Zephaniah

The Race Industry

The coconuts have got the jobs.The race industry is a growth industry.We despairing, they careering.We want more peace they want more police.The..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

De Rong Song

Your house isFalling downAroundYourFeet,And you gotNoughtTo eat,Don't worryBe happy.Your fishHave drownedYou wearA frown,You searchBut you don'tOwn a..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Fair Play

Mirror mirror on the wallCould you please return our ballOur football went through your crackYou have two nowGive one back.

© Benjamin Zephaniah

White Comedy

I waz whitemailedBy a white witch,Wid white magicAn white lies,Branded by a white sheepI slaved as a whitesmithNear a white spotWhere I suffered..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Everybody Is Doing It

In Hawaii they HulaThey Tango in ArgentinaThey Reggae in JamaicaAnd they Rumba down in Cuba,In Trinidad and TobagoThey do the CalypsoAnd in Spain the..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Dis Poetry

Dis poetry is like a riddim dat dropsDe tongue fires a riddim dat shoots like shotsDis poetry is designed fe rantinDance hall style, big mouth..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Nature Trail

At the bottom of my gardenThere's a hedgehog and a frogAnd a lot of creepy-crawliesLiving underneath a log,There's a baby daddy long legsAnd an..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

We Refugees

I come from a musical placeWhere they shoot me for my songAnd my brother has been torturedBy my brother in my land.I come from a beautiful placeWhere..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Talking Turkeys!

Be nice to yu turkeys dis christmasCos' turkeys just wanna hav funTurkeys are cool, turkeys are wickedAn every turkey has a Mum.Be nice to yu turkeys..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

The British

Take some Picts, Celts and SiluresAnd let them settle,Then overrun them with Roman conquerors.Remove the Romans after approximately 400 yearsAdd lots..

© Benjamin Zephaniah

Suzanna socked me Sunday

Suzanna socked me Sunday,she socked me Monday, too,she also socked me Tuesday,I was turning black and blue.She socked me double Wednesday,and..

© Jack Prelutsky

I Went Hungry on Thanksgiving

I was hungry on ThanksgivingBut I couldn't eat a thingI couldn't eat a drumstickAnd I couldn't eat a wingI couldn't have the picklesOr the gravy..

© Jack Prelutsky

A Wolf Is At The Laundromat

A wolf is at the Laundromat,it's not a wary stare-wolf,it's short and fat, it tips its hat,unlike a scary glare-wolf.It combs its hair, it clips its..

© Jack Prelutsky

Pumberly Pott's Unpredictable Niece

Pumberly Pott's unpredictable niecedeclared with her usual zealthat she would devour, by piece after piece,her uncle's new automobile.She set to her..

© Jack Prelutsky

A Pizza the Size of the Sun

I'm making a pizza the size of the sun,a pizza that's sure to weigh more than a ton,a pizza too massive to pick up and toss,a pizza resplendent with..

© Jack Prelutsky

I met a dragon face to face

I met a dragon face to facethe year when I was ten,I took a trip to outer space,I braved a pirate's den,I wrestled with a wicked troll,and fought a..

© Jack Prelutsky