Bakery of Lies
By
Judith Askew
My favorite is the cream puff lie,
the kind inflated with hot air,
expanded to make an heroic-sized story.
Another is the cannoli, a long lie,
well-packed with nutty details,
lightly wrapped in flakey truth.
A macaroon isn't a little white lie,
but it's covered
with self-serving coconut.
The apple tart carries slices
of sour gossip, only
slightly sweetened with truth.
Then there's the napoleon,
an Iago lie of pernicious intent,
layer upon layer of dark deceit.
the kind inflated with hot air,
expanded to make an heroic-sized story.
Another is the cannoli, a long lie,
well-packed with nutty details,
lightly wrapped in flakey truth.
A macaroon isn't a little white lie,
but it's covered
with self-serving coconut.
The apple tart carries slices
of sour gossip, only
slightly sweetened with truth.
Then there's the napoleon,
an Iago lie of pernicious intent,
layer upon layer of dark deceit.
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Disclaimer
We do not accept unsolicited submissions. American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation (www.poetryfoundation.org), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2016 by Judith Askew, "Bakery of Lies" from On the Loose, (Bass River Press, 2016). Poem reprinted by permission of Judith Askew and the publisher. Introduction copyright © 2024 by The Poetry Foundation.