For the second year in a row, one of the winners of the Washington Post’s contest for child poets has been outed as a plagiarist. Credit the poem “Horrible. Just Horrible,” printed in the “KidsPost,” to Shel Silverstein. Ombudsmen Deborah Howell notes that the youngest reader to notice that a dead poet’s work had been resurrected by today’s youth was 10-year-old Hannah Engle.
I can only imagine that a 10-year-old fact checker is adorable. A stern look, horn rimmed glasses and a cardigan. Perhaps, and I can go either way on this, she’s a 10-year-old cat lady.
The correction did not mention any details about the young almost-poet. Perhaps he had some cuteness edge.
Next year, the Post might want to stick to something more difficult to cheat at. Like a bake-off or ultimate fighting.
