Thank you so much to all those who never lost faith in The Tale. I know I did many times. It is both extremely touching and gratifying to know that there are people who appreciated all the hours of time I've poured into a project such as this. I thank my wife, for her unwavering support, my daughter for always wanting to hear the next verse. I thank my good friend Og Maciel who reviewed this book and gave wonderful advice and Nikhil Dhandre for his excellent LaTeX support....

The Tale of X and Y is my contribution to modern age rhyming poetry. Having been introduced to real poetry during my GCSE studies, and falling in love with the works of Christina Rosetti, in particular When I am dead, my dearest. I found it incredibly sad on reaching adulthood, that traditional rhyming poetry was on the decline. As a father I have read to my children and enjoyed many times, the works of authors such as Julia Donaldson and Simon Philip....