Ridiculous Words

Words of Wonder, April Fools' Day Edition

For this bonus April Fools’ Day edition of Words of Wonder, the joke is that these words are real.

Sure, they sound like a string of random sounds with a made up meaning—but isn’t that what all words are?

I’m going to let these words speak for themselves without the foofaraw of captions or pronunciation.

Okay, there’s one joke word in the last panel: floccinaucinihilipilification. It was coined by frustrated Latin students and defined as “the act of regarding something as worthless.”

Is it a coincidence that April Fool’s Day is the first day of National Poetry Month? Maybe so.

Either way, Poetry Month is here. I’ll be featuring some Words of Wonder from the work of my favorite poets throughout April. Coming next week: words from the odes of Pablo Neruda.

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Poetry Month is a perfect time to read POETRY COMICS, my new book from Chronicle Kids Books.

Photo by Clare @childrensfiction

It’s out now worldwide; find it wherever books are sold. Signed copies are at Watermark Books, my hometown independent bookstore.

Thanks for all the support and enthusiasm for POETRY COMICS—launch week was a blast. I’d love to hear how this book is inspiring poetry writing (and drawing) in your home or classroom.

I’ll leave you with a quote I found in a book by Katherine Rundell:

“There are good books which are only for adults, because their comprehension presupposes adult experiences, but there are no good books which are only for children.”

-W.H. Auden