A Ghoulish Collection of Poems
By Curtis Norris
Illustrated by Seylah Bae and Hulan Chadraa
Published on October 24, 2025
Age Group: 10-13 years
Word Count: 260 words
Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes
Curtis Norris has published seven books for children internationally, including Return to Deathwater, Leap of the Lion, and Magipelago. He specializes in writing bespoke books for individual children by commission and has written over thirty such books to date. He loves to hear from readers, or the curious, and can be reached at curtishcmc1@gmail.com.
MIND YOUR MOTHER
Children, mind your mother,
For there’s something in her stare
That speaks of a mad hunger
For abominable fare.
Watch her hands for fork and knife
When she checks on you at night.
She has a taste for tender life
And she just might take a bite!
THE PEMBERTON GHOULS
At Pemberton, a boarding school,
The kids sneak out at night.
Each one with a digging tool
In search of grim delight.
They find a grave and dig away
With wide rapacious eyes.
Robbing graves is how they play.
Fresh corpses are the prize!
LITTLE PENNY PARADOX
Little Penny Paradox
Always wears two different socks.
If one is white, the other’s black
(In any case, they never match),
And should the problem you point out
She’ll whisper softly with a shout:
“They’re really quite the same!”
Little Penny Paradox
Never speaks, but always talks,
And says the most peculiar things,
About the squareness of her rings.
And if the issue you should raise,
She’ll stamp her foot and mutely say,
“I want to play some other game!”
Little Penny Paradox
Went to play amongst the rocks
When a big, unbalanced boulder
Took a tip and bowled her o’er.
A passing boy asked, “Are you caught?”
She answered oddly, “Yes, I’m not!”
Her rescue never came.
Little Penny Paradox
Six feet under in a box
Of cedar wood that still smells sweet
Despite the rotting of her feet.
No more will she confuse the many,
No more will she, no more will Penny
Live up to her name.
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Midnight Verses © 2025 Curtis Norris