In this slim volume, Renaissance man David Ellis—poet, musician, chess champion and athlete—offers humorous verses commenting on his Australian homeland and other situations.

The collection starts with dozens of limericks (actually not very “naughty”), divided into sections about chess, food, prominent Aussie politicians, male/female relations and more. After these, he offers an odd mix of poems in varying forms, usually written in rhyming couplets. They continue Ellis’s tongue-in-cheek style, occasionally foregoing strict adherence to meter in favor of a mixture of iambs and anapests.

Although Ellis frequently fudges on pronunciation and line length, his limericks are mildly amusing. For example: “A cougar called Eve from Baywater/ Had designs on the young hotel porter./ With her come-hither smiles/ And experienced wiles,/ He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.” Or: “A sedentary lady called Nellie/ Spent all her days watching telly./ She kept eating chips/ Which expanded her hips/ And gave her a whopping great belly.”

Like others in the collection, the above limericks follow the rule that the first, second and fifth lines rhyme, and the third and fourth rhyme. Additionally, (which isn’t true of all of Ellis’ limericks), they illustrate the tradition that the first two lines present a situation; the next two provide a complication or information; and the final line is a conclusion.

The book’s later poems are an eclectic mix of subjects, including chess, Covid, and VE day. A few are reminiscences of Ellis’s childhood on Britain’s Scilly (pronounced “Silly”) Isles: “There is a C in Scilly/ And Scilly’s in the sea.” This leads to some light-hearted verse about an idyllic time for Ellis in the 1940s.

With its tame limericks and odd assortment of additional work, the collection isn’t likely to become a classic and will appeal most to readers Down Under. Still, it might inspire a smile or two in those who appreciate light verse and a touch of nostalgia.

Also available in hardcover and ebook.