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Poems
"The Ant-Eater"
Information Plot/Description
Information
Plot/Description
Spoiler Warning! In the U.S.A., near San
Francisco, lived a very stupid and spoiled boy named Roy. His parents
bought him everything he ever wanted. One day he decided that he wanted a
peculiar pet that no one else owned: he wanted a giant ant-eater. His
father wrote to all the zoos, but none of them would sell their
ant-eaters. Finally the father found an Indian man willing to part with
his for 50,000 gold rupees. When the ant-eater arrived, it was half-dead
with starvation from the long journey. He asked Roy for food, but the
cruel boy told the ant-eater to go find ants. Unfortunately there weren't
any in the garden. The ant-eater again begged for food, but Roy told him
to eat ants. That very day, Roy's aunt Dorothy came to visit. She was a
foul old hag of 83. Roy introduced her to the ant-eater saying,
"Ant-eater! Don't lie there yawning! / This is my ant! Come say
good-morning!" (Here the narrator interjects to point out that Americans
say "aunt" and "can't" incorrectly.) The ant-eater was excited to see such
a huge "ant" and quickly gobbled her up. Roy fled to the potting shed and
hid. "But ant-eater came sneaking in / (Already it was much less thin) .
And said to Roy, 'You little squirt, / I think I'll have you for
dessert.'"
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Created and maintained by Kristine Howard, © 1996-2008
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