Poetry is different from prose in that the former can express broad ideas in a limited number of words. Moreover, poems can use sophisticated rhyming, stylistic devices, and other approaches to convey the authors’ ideas precisely. The three pieces under analysis have different structures and seem to address various issues. Christina Rossetti’s “In an Artist’s Studio” depicts the painter’s favorite muse. Maggie Smith’s “Good Bones” describes a series of dangerous issues a child can encounter, but which, nevertheless, she keeps away from her children in order to make them feel safe and happy. Finally, Judith Askew’s “Bakery of Lies” presents a list of types of lies, each of them shaped and flavored differently, but all of them being shameless. Whereas the subjects of each poem look different, they are all united by the leitmotif of deception. Rosetti’s lie has the character of misinterpretation and fantasy, Smith’s has the form of concealment or white lies, and Askew’s is presented in the form of allegory to different kinds of desserts. The topic uniting all three poems is lies in various interpretations. This theme is the least obvious in Rossetti’s piece, for only by the end of the poem can the reader guess that the girl does not exist in reality. The words “as she fills his dream” indicate that the girl that is described with so much love and tenderness is only the object of the artist’s imagination (Rossetti 14). And then, when rereading the poem once again, more and more hints that the girl is too good to be true become noticeable. She is “hidden” (Rossetti 3), “nameless” (6), and never “wan” or “dim” (12). In this poem, lies are not implied as a means of brutal deceit. Rather, the spirit of fantasy makes one feel how helpful the girl’s image has been in the painter’s career by serving as his inspiration for many years. Unlike Rossetti’s romantic representation of fiction, Smith’s one is much harsher. The author emphasizes a variety of unpleasant things that one can encounter and says that she will not let her children know about them. The poet admits that “Life is short” (Smith 1), and the world is “at least fifty / percent terrible” (5-6), but she will not tell her children about it. She will not tell her children about the suffering and dangers that they may encounter. Smith compares herself to a “realtor” (14) whose job is to make people believe that they can “make this place beautiful” (17). Smith’s poem is much more dramatic than that by Rossetti. Smith sketches the world as it is, without making it seem more beautiful or friendly. However, there is one ‘but’ about this ugly truth: the author will never reveal it to her children. Therefore, the poet’s honesty is quite deficient, for she refuses to share it with the most precious people in her life. Finally, Askew’s poem is the sincerest, bluntly enumerating the typology of lies. This piece is different from the previous two because it directly speaks about lies instead of concealing them. However, it is similar to Rossetti’s and Smith’s pieces due to covering the same broad theme. Askew’s shrewd and smart comparisons of lies to desserts are not only ironic but also harsh The poet spe