Generations of readers have delighted in the work of the great American humorist Don Marquis, who was frequently compared to Mark Twain. These free-verse poems, which first appeared in Marquis's New York newspaper columns, revolve around the escapades of Archy, the philosophical cockroach who was once a poet, and Mehitabel, a streetwise alley cat who was once Cleopatra. Reincarnated as the lowest creatures on the social scale, they prowl the rowdy streets of New York City in between the world wars. The antics of these two immortal characters are now made available for the first time in their original order of publication in this unique, comprehensive collection, which features many poems never before reprinted.

• First time in Penguin Classics
• Archy and Mehitabel is considered the inspiration for E.B. White's Charlotte's Web
• Features many new poems never reprinted since they were first published early in the twentieth century
• Introduction places Marquis in the context of American humor and the history of satire