John Lennon loved words. More specifically, he loved to twist and tangle and warp and distort words. Norman writes in his biography (John Lennon: A Life) that, even as a young lad, John would leave his Aunt Mimi little notes when he needed money, bearing inscriptions such as "funs is low." Norman suggests that John's poor eyesight may have been partly to blame for his attraction to misspelled and pun-slanted words, but certainly it was his wonderfully warped sense of humor that was more to blame for fueling this particular fire.
Below is one of my favorite selections from John's first book, In His Own Write. If you haven't read the book, then allow me to make the obvious suggestion, Dear Sir or Madam, that you take a look. The following poem, "Good Dog Nigel", is a lot more fun (I think) if you read it out loud. Several of these word-clusters just sound very pleasing to the ear, and, as a bonus, there's a twisty little ending to boot.
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Good Dog Nigel
Arf, arf, he goes, a merry sight,
Our little hairy friend,
Arf, Arf, upon the lampost bright
Arfing round the bend.
Nice dog! Goo boy,
Waggie tail and beg,
Clever Nigel, jump for joy
Because we're putting you to sleep at three of the clock, Nigel.
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