Fun old skool humor. George Herriman's illustrations of Archy, the cockroach with the transmigrated soul of a vers libre poet, and Mehitabel, the alley cat with the morals of , well...an alley cat (what in ---- have I done to deserve all these kittens"), are priceless. ( )

This has been in my TBR for over 15 years and I figured that as I'm home and need a break from cleaning, organizing, & moving furniture that I'd take the time to read it... Also I haven't been to the Library in about a week, so I'm out of my current interests.

Archy is a cockroach (who in another life was a famous poet) that writes poetry & a journal of sorts..... he does this by using a typewriter, jumping on the keys in order to strike a letter. Because he is only able to hit one key at a time, there is not punctuation or capital letters used in his prose.

Archy has a friend, Mehitabel, an stray cat who in a previous life was Cleopatra. Archy write a lot about his friendship w/ Mehitable and her life as well as writing about rats, other insects, people, and other cats.

I'm not going to say that I "liked" this, but considering when it was written it is extremely clever & entertaining.... Therefore the number of stars.
( )

This collection of verse libre, purportedly by a cockroach named archy, is a delightful time piece from the 20s, with excellent illustrations by George Herriman of 'Krazy Kat' fame. ( )

; with Pictures by George Herriman ( )

Three Archy and Mehitabel books in a 1940 omnibus edition, with the illustrations by George Herriman. The point of Archy and Mehitabel for me has always been Mehitabel -- the indomitable cat who deals with endless reverses of fortune, and with the major consequences of minor misteps (just one damned kitten after another), but remains toujours gai, toujours gai. (I inherited this book from my mother, who loved it dearly, and may have overidentified with Mehitabel). But there is much more to Archy and Mehitabel than one proto-feminist cat. It captures an era that in some ways feels as distant as colonial days; it is fiction written in eminently readable verse (not a easy trick), and it has those great illustrations. Also, this volume has one of the great dedications of all times: "dedicated to babs
with babs knows what and babs knows why". ( )