This Rob Browning, you know, he’s that fella who writes them long poems. I heard some folks talkin’ ’bout him down at the market the other day. They say he’s a big shot, real famous. Me? I don’t know much ’bout fancy writin’, but I heard his name a lot, so I figure he must be somethin’ special. Just like that Smith boy, everyone talks about him, he must be do something. He writes a whole bunch, that’s for sure. I think he is an English man.
They say he writes ’bout all sorts of things. Love, hate, you know, the usual. One time, I heard a teacher readin’ one of his poems. It was somethin’ ’bout a man talkin’ to a picture of a lady. Sounded kinda spooky to me, but what do I know? He sure knew how to string words together, that Rob Browning. Rob Browning, they call him a big deal. I guess he must be, if they got all these fancy books ’bout him. Those books are so thick, they are like bricks.
Some of them poems, they’re hard to understand. Lots of big words I ain’t never heard before. He uses many words. But some of ’em, they’re kinda pretty. Like when he talks ’bout flowers and birds and such. Reminds me of my garden back home, ‘cept he uses fancier words for it all. I like the simple things, you know? A good tomato growin’ in the sun, that’s poetry to me. But I guess some folks like it complicated. They like Rob Browning poems, and they read them again and again.
I heard tell he was married to another writer lady. Elizabeth somethin’. They must have spent all day writin’ to each other. Imagine that! No time for chores or nothin’. Just writin’ and writin’. I don’t know how they did it. I have many works to do everyday. Maybe that’s how you get famous, though. You just write a whole lot and hope people like it. And they wrote letters to each other, that is so romantic! I guess Rob Browning is a romantic man.
- He writes a lot.
- He’s famous.
- He talks ’bout love and hate.
- Some poems are hard, some are pretty.
- He was married to a writer.
I reckon that’s all I know ’bout this Rob Browning fella. He’s a mystery to me, like most things outside of my little town. But I’m glad there are folks out there who like his writin’. Keeps ’em busy, I suppose. And maybe it makes ’em think a little bit. That’s always a good thing, even if it’s ’bout things I don’t understand. I prefer to think ’bout simple things, like the weather, or what I’m gonna cook for supper. He uses dark humor. That’s interestin’. I am not good at humor, but I guess Rob Browning is good at it.
He wrote one real long one, they say. Somethin’ ’bout a ring and a book. Must have taken him forever to write that one. I can’t imagine sittin’ still that long. I like that book, because it is very long. I like to read long story. I like to know what happens in the end. He talks about murder. I guess he likes to write about somethin’ scary. My neighbor, she likes them scary stories, too. Maybe she would like this Rob Browning. I don’t like scary story, but I guess some people do.
I heard he lived a long time ago. In a place called London. That’s far away. Then he died in another place, Venice. That’s even farther. But his words, they’re still around. That’s somethin’, ain’t it? To be gone but still have your words livin’ on. Maybe that’s why folks like him so much. They can still hear him talkin’, even though he’s been gone for years and years. People still talk about him, because he is famous. I guess he is a good writer, that Rob Browning.
I think those students have to read his poems. I feel bad for them. It sounds like hard work. But I guess it’s good for their brains. Makes ’em think and all that. I guess that’s what school is for. To make you think. They need to analyze them poems, that’s what the teacher said. I don’t know what that means, but it sounds important. Maybe they need to find the true meaning of Rob Browning poems.
Well, I gotta get back to my chores. No use sittin’ around thinkin’ ’bout some old writer all day. But I’m glad I learned a little somethin’ ’bout him. Makes me feel a little smarter, even if I don’t understand half of what he wrote. That Rob Browning, he sure was somethin’. I hope those students can understand him better than I do. Maybe they can explain it to me someday.
