Alice - The Prelude

a new look

Legs locked under,

a book across innocent thighs,

knees covered with a calico print.

She reads aloud with perfect slowness,

clebrating each article and preposition,

every phrase climbing as a song.

With a pink-piggy finger

and a translucent fingernail,

she traces each letter.

Finishing each word with a flourish,

rudely wagging a finger,

giving the naughty book a good telling off...

Yet there are the first things wrong,

the sky thick with blue, bees agitated,

the earth starting to sink.

There are strangers waiting,

to steal her attention,

her long dark locks move windless. 

Reviews

[MoriartyMesa]

reminds me of Alice Cooper

[FJ Davis]

I guess this introduces a much younger version of the Alice who'll eventually visit Wonderland.
If so, the notion is a delightfully clever one; the poetic tale, mysteriously and charmingly told.
If not, all these good things will still be true, but for different reasons.
Immensely enjoyed this piece!

[Audrey Howitt]

Just loved this write--on about every level!

[h d e rushin]

Emotive, which I am a favorite of, is immediate and takes all other movement
from the room. This is good work. hder

[Suditi]

Oh this is amazing!
Leaves the reader curious!
Amazing imagery and i live how you gave the details of the tiniest actions in such a beautiful manner..

[flyingdreams]

In these verses you have painted a picture and let the picture tell a story...
The last lines suddenly infuse a tension to the scenery and the preceding verses take new meanings from them.

[Omar Fendri]

oh! A distinguished ingenuity in your imagination. The narration creates the story with a spotless scene with which I can relate... a scene which is rich with an arcane description... It made me ponder and re-read. How she is reading the books with deliberateness... how her fingertips are moving briskly and repeatedly to and fro... and then, the very ghastly ending... Pleasurable to read. :) excellent work here.

[...]

. loved the narration ... how she reads is beautifully described ... and the last stanza is intriguing ... a bit scary too ... a beautifully written piece of poetry ...