I wasn’t expecting this little small-press red booklet to charm me the way it did, but Rhymes of a Vagabond by Charles de la Poer Gough has that certain je ne sais quoi. Published in 1949, it’s a slim, creased-up booklet of poetry with a signature scrawled boldly over a photograph of the author standing next to someone named Bill Ward. The signature is in pen, and under magnification you can still see the pressure from the ink — a lovely detail for collectors.
The author called himself “Chevalier,” which adds a bit of theatrical flair. I couldn’t find much about him anywhere, which leads me to believe this was self-published or printed in very small numbers. There are pen marks throughout — little blue dots between most of the poems, and a pen swirl on the cover.
It feels like the kind of thing that was meant to be read aloud — so I gave it a try.
In today’s video, I read a poem in the booklet called Go Get It. Then my daughter Kotori walked by, and I asked if she wanted to help. She read it straight through — better than me, since I couldn’t help pausing to chat.
You can watch the full video below — and if you’re curious about the book itself, you can view the signed copy here:
📘1949 Rhymes of a Vagabond by Charles de la Poer Gough – Signed Copy, Scarce Small-Press Booklet
This piece is now listed in my shop. It’s not pristine — there’s wear and some quirky reader markings — but it’s full of personality and mystery. A signed 1949 booklet by a little-known poet with a flair for the dramatic? Definitely a curiosity worth sharing.
