Leonard B. Stern, Creator of “Mad Libs,” Dies at 88, June 7th, 2011 – by Aneesa Davenport
Hooray! Remember book order day?
A dozen copies of The Guinness Book of World Records arrive in class.
Never seen fifth-graders read so fast.
Most intriguing, the list of records closed
from competition since the previous edition:
The swallowing of swords, the consumption of cigarettes,
bicycles, and trees are all considered final.
Imaginations run wild. Eyes flash around the room.
Who wants to bet I could eat that tape cassette?
The teacher corrals us: it’s time to learn grammar.
“Noun (plural),” she asks and we clamor
to fill in the blanks in the book.
“Swords!” “Cigarettes!” “Bicycles!” “Trees!”
We can barely keep our seats.
“The World!” “Guinness!” “8-tracks!” “Poetry!”