May 12: Edward Lear

On this day in 1812, the British artist, illustrator, and writer, Edward Lear was born. He is known for his nonsensical poetry and his limericks, a form which he popularized. In 1846 he published A Book of Nonsense, a volume of limericks which went through three editions and helped popularise the form.

Edward Lear Banner

Use this banner on social media to share our collection of Edward Lear poems, limericks, and drawings.

<!-- AddThis Button BEGIN --><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style "><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --> <a class="addthis_button_preferred_1"></a><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --> <a class="addthis_button_preferred_2"></a><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --> <a class="addthis_button_preferred_3"></a><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --> <a class="addthis_button_preferred_4"></a><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --> <a class="addthis_button_compact"></a><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --> <a class="addthis_counter addthis_bubble_style"></a><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --></div><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --><script type="text/javascript">var addthis_config = {"data_track_addressbar":false};</script><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --><script type="text/javascript" src="//s7.addthis.com/js/300/addthis_widget.js#pubid=roywinkelman"></script><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] --><!-- AddThis Button END -->

Poems and Limericks of Edward Lear

This audiobook collects poems and limericks by British writer Edward Lear and includes selections from several 19th century anthologies. From the Lit2Go website.

Edward Lear Drawings

This gallery contains several dozen illustrations by Edward Lear from the ClipArt ETC website. Each drawing includes the original rhyme in the caption.