Classic Nursery Rhymes and Classic Fairy Tales
These beautiful hardback books, full of vintage artwork, are bursting with classic stories and verses.
‘Classic Nursery Rhymes’ is full of gorgeous watercolour artwork by Dorothy M. Wheeler, Enid Blyton's original illustrator. These beautiful illustrations offer a timeless charm and sense of calm. Each coloured picture is surrounded by a decorative border full of line drawings with a circular vignette showing an additional scene beneath. For children used to bright, bold, chaotic illustrations, this gentle style offers something very different with plenty to provoke discussion. All the favourite rhymes are here and a section at the end gives the sheet music with words for each, allowing those unfamiliar with the tunes to learn and enjoy them.
Anyone not familiar with some of these rhymes should, perhaps, read them before sharing with little ones! ‘The Babes in the Woods’, for example, is about children, who having been ‘stolen away’ lie down and die in the woods, supposed to be inspired by events either in Wayland Wood, Norfolk, or events in 1374 in Lancashire. Classic rhymes are, of course, full of traditional roles with marriage and being pretty high on the agenda for little girls, something which can be discussed as appropriate.
‘Classic Fairy Tales’ contains a selection of stories from Hans Christian Andersen and the Brothers Grimm. Although the text has been slightly adapted, these versions have been kept close to the originals in both language and content. Anyone expecting the sanitised Disney versions will be in for a shock as they read the original story of ‘The Little Mermaid’, wincing with her as her every step feels as if ‘she trod on knives’ and choosing her own death rather than that of the prince or discover that one of Cinderella’s sisters cuts off her toes and one her heel in order to fit into the golden slipper (Charles Perrault’s version talks of glass slippers). However, the magic of these tales has stood the test of time and this collection offers a lovely mixture of favourite stories from the Brothers Grimm and Andersen.
Illustrations by A. Duncan Carse and Charles Folkard add to the ‘classic’ feel of this collection and the overall presentation of both this and ‘Classic Nursery Rhymes’, with their beautiful covers and ribbon markers, makes them perfect for giving, sharing and handing down to future generations.
Classic Nursery Rhymes
Illustrated by Dorothy M Wheeler
Bloomsbury ISBN: 978-1472932389
Classic Fairy Tales
Hans Christian Andersen and the Brothers Grimm,
illustrated by A. Duncan Carse and Charles Folkard
Bloomsbury ISBN: 978-1801997751