Charlatan Art
by Bill Yarrow
I bought some charlatan art
and hung it on the wall.
My friends applauded my savvy,
my relatives my excellent taste.
Then I won an iPad from the credit union;
the next day I got a merit raise at work.
Well, I bought another charlatan piece,
and that night my wife re-decided to love me.
Soon after, all my kids moved back to Illinois.
Oyez! There is tall magic in chicanery.
When the Blackhawks made the playoffs and my lupus disappeared,
I went back to the charlatan well.
Lo and behold, Pluto was renamed a planet,
Tolstoy was awarded a posthumous Nobel.
and hung it on the wall.
My friends applauded my savvy,
my relatives my excellent taste.
Then I won an iPad from the credit union;
the next day I got a merit raise at work.
Well, I bought another charlatan piece,
and that night my wife re-decided to love me.
Soon after, all my kids moved back to Illinois.
Oyez! There is tall magic in chicanery.
When the Blackhawks made the playoffs and my lupus disappeared,
I went back to the charlatan well.
Lo and behold, Pluto was renamed a planet,
Tolstoy was awarded a posthumous Nobel.
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Author's Note
A version of this poem appeared in The Olentangy Review.
Thanks, Darryl and Melissa Price.
This poem appears in Blasphemer (Lit Fest Press 2015).
Other stories by Bill Yarrow
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What a hoot! Love it. *
Give me some of that! Great.
ship one piece of charlatan art post haste!
fave*
Maybe it is the impossibility of things to move us forward. I like this piece, Bill -
"There is tall magic in chicanery."
*
Gracias a todos: Jake, Patti, Jerry, and Sam!
You sly boots, you.
This is terrific and funny.
"re-decided to love me." *
Fabulously cruel.*
Tart and smart.
Funny and sharp. *
Thank you, Gita, Amanda, Gary, and John--your comments are all bullseyes.
All of the above. Plus sardonic.*
Enjoyable, inevitable, and futurist. *
Thank you, Gary and Ann, for your stars and comments.