Edward Lear
/ˌedwəd ˈlɪə(r)/
/ˌedwərd ˈlɪr/
- (1812-88) an English nonsense writer and painter. He spent his early career drawing and painting animals, and in 1832 began work as a painter for the Earl of Derby. He wrote A Book of Nonsense (1846) for the Earl's grandchildren, and it was the first of a series of books of nonsense poetry containing limericks, drawings and longer poems such as The Owl and the Pussy-Cat and The Dong with a Luminous Nose.