Mother Goose

by Gyo Fujikawa (Illustrator)

Pat-a-Cake,” “Simple Simon,” “Rock-a-bye, Baby:” these and the many other rhymes that make up Mother Goose have become almost as much a staple of child-rearing as the rattle and the bottle. Little ones love its mix of lullabies and limericks, humor and sing-song verse, and they learn from it too. Gyo Fujikawa brought her inimitable style to this version, which features a mix of enchanting line drawings and warm color pictures. Adorable mice, led by a duck in uniform, man the boat in “I Saw a Ship a-Sailing.” A multicultural group of children circle round “The Mulberry Bush.” And “The Three Kittens” have never been cuter. Fujikawa has succeeded in creating a truly magical world for kids to enter.

Genres: Picture Books, Poetry, Childrens, Nursery Rhymes, Classics, Art, Fiction

130 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1881

About the author

Gyo Fujikawa was an American illustrator and children's book author. A prolific creator of more than 50 books for children, her work is regularly in reprint and has been translated into 17 languages and published in 22 countries. Her most popular books, Babies and Baby Animals, have sold over 1.7 million copies in the U.S. Fujikawa is recognized for being the earliest mainstream illustrator of picture books to include children of many races in her work, before it was politically correct to do so.

-Wikipedia

Reviews

[Polly Batchelor · Rating 4 out of 5]

39/1001 1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up

"Polly put the kettle on,
Polly put the kettle on,
Polly put the kettle on,
We'll all have tea.

Sukey take it off again,
Sukey take it off again,
Sukey take it off again,
They've all gone away."

[La Coccinelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Er... no.

This isn't the first Mother Goose collection I've read, but it's probably the weakest one I've seen so far. It was published in 1881, so I'm not expecting it to be modern and unproblematic. However, I honestly don't know if much thought was put into the selection of rhymes included here. There are many I'd never heard before. Some are quite boring. Others are downright disturbing. There's elder abuse (an old man gets hurled down the stairs because he won't say his prayers), mutilation (something about two mothers discussing "chop-a-nose day"), and cruel attitudes toward the poor (the very first poem teaches children to fear the poor, and advocates using violence to drive them out of town).

I usually like Kate Greenaway's artwork, but I'm not a fan of it here. Whether the original drawings got mangled in the reproduction, or they were just weak to begin with, I'm not sure. But there are only a few pictures that I actually like.

Overall, this was a disappointment. For a much better book of Mother Goose rhymes (both for selection and aesthetic), check out Mary Engelbreit's Mother Goose: One Hundred Best-Loved Verses by Mary Engelbreit.

[Lara's · Rating 5 out of 5]

Synopsis : Various collection of Mother Goose poetry paired with beautiful, watercolor illustrations.
Review : This is a small book that I'm not so certain will "stand up to the abuse from young readers" as Publishers Weekly claims (see below). However, when you set out looking for a Mother Goose book, these are the epitome of what I consider Mother Goose illustrations. Kate Greenaway's work is so lovely you could easliy take each image and frame it. Paired with the some of the classic, rough tales of Mother Goose, it's a great step back in time. When I say "rough tales" I mean to tell you that some of the rhymes are not all that sweet. Let's take the lesson for a tattletale as an example, "Tell tale tit, your tongue shall be slit; and all the dogs in the town shall have a little bit". (wonderful stuff!). These poems reflect a alternate view of childhood rearing where consequences where made clear if misbehavior ran amok. Something that parents of the modern age might find interesting.
Critical Reviews:Publishers Weekly found this book to be, "an irresistible collection, combining art by a woman who seems to personify childhood innocence with a format that can stand up to abuse from young readers".

[Melody Schwarting · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kate Greenaway's version of Mother Goose just feels right. Lovely illustrations accompany each poem. While the poems are not always the edition I'm familiar with, the illustrations capture the sentiment of each one as if it's being told by the people in the image.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

My grandparents gave me this book when I was three years old. I still have it, although it is near shreds. I loved it so much that I recently bought a clean copy from ebay. Still, I can't bear to part with my original copy. My sister and I spent hours staring at the pictures and imagining ourselves there - holding an alphabet letter, living in the shoe, sleeping under the moon. Gyo Fujikawa is a master illustrator and the Mother Goose rhymes wouldn't be the same without her interpretation.

[Melissa Coyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kate Greenaway's charming illustrations are delightful now as they were in the late eighteen hundreds. And it is always fun to reread Mother Goose's nursery rhymes.

[Alanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best Mother Goose book. The pictures are so cute. I read this to my daughter almost every night and she absolutely loved it. When we got to "I see the moon" she would start to tear up and whimper because she knew it was time for bed. I am so glad they rereleased it so other children can enjoy. Would make a great baby shower gift!

[Darcy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kate Greenway's drawings are lovely. The color scheme is muted, yet the compositions are lively. I particularly like the Regency clothing in these illustrations.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

A reproduction of Kate Greenaway’s 1881 book, this is a really nice quality printing. The illustrations are the obvious draw. Greenaway chose to illustrate people dressed in attire reminiscent of the early 1800s, equivalent to someone publishing a book with people in 1940s or ‘50s attire today. Greenaway was a great success in her time, and her pretty illustrations and harmonious use of muted colors are still lovely today.

The rhymes are versions she remembered from her childhood in London and Nottingham-shire. While some were familiar, a few with tweaks, several were new to me. The introduction notes that nursery rhymes were not, generally, written for children, but adapted for them from adult works. That explains the ones full of inappropriate suggestion, like:
Goosey, goosey, gander,
Where shall I wander?
Up stairs, down stairs,
And in my lady’s chamber:
There I met an old man,
Would not say his prayers;
Take him by the left leg,
Throw him down the stairs.

Then there’s this threat in rhyme:
Tell Tale Tit,
Your tongue shall be slit;
And all the dogs in town
Shall have a little bit.

There’s even a little illustration of a dog beneath the poem to drive the point home: “snitches get stitches.”

My favorites are the ones that are stunningly obvious, like the rhyme that pairs with the cover illustration:
Here am I, little jumping Joan;
When nobody’s with me,
I’m always alone.

I shall close with another disturbing one:
My mother, and your mother,
Went over the way;
Said my mother, to your mother,
“It’s chop-a-nose day.”

Best go and mark your calendar, you don’t want to miss out on chopping noses next year!

[Kristal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read on archive .org

A quick google search reveals that Kate Greenaway was a very influential children’s illustrator and author in the Victorian era. I really liked these illustrations and can see why she was popular, but of course like other mother goose books from over a hundred years ago, many of the rhymes are quite disturbing to the modern reader (physical and sexual violence found in many). Other rhymes I was familiar with (little miss muffet being one), some rhymes were quite boring (like the two kids taking a walk on a Sunday when a boy said tomorrow is Monday...lots of insight there...) while others didn’t make a lot of sense to me since I’m not super familiar with different terminology of that time. Glad I read it for historical reasons, but would not buy for a child nowadays .

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

The rhymes are placed one a page with a picture, like a picture plate, and therefore really easy to flip around. This particular edition that we looked at was from 1978, and the pictures do not take up the whole page. The kids didn’t seem impressed. Also, some of these are obvious rhymes placed in the time when they were written about activities or using word use that no longer makes sense to today’s children. Yes, it is a classic, but they only knew a handful of these that have aged well and are still widely known.

We found this through the inter library loan system, and I am glad we gave it a read. Fun for me to look at the old fashions in the pictures.

[Madison Harvey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book of collections of nursery rhymes including Jack and Jill and many others. This book might get confusing for early childhood students, as the rhymes don’t necessarily run together and often don’t make much sense. I love this book, but I’m not sure I would use it in the classroom setting.

[Bailey Winter]

This book is a collection of 44 traditional nursery rhymes with drawings of life in Victorian times. This Mother Goose book was originally published in 1881, it contains many nursery rhymes and tales together with her beautiful illustrations. Many of the earliest children's books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive.

[Mathew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kate Greenaway's third compilation of poetry saw her bring together some well known nursery rhymes and others less so. Illustrations of rural settings were based on her visits to extended family in Nottinghamshire since Kate spent her life in London. The clothing appealed to Victorians of the time as the actions of the children which seemed innocent and well-mannered (on the whole).

[Rick Silva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three volume boxed set of boardbooks featuring Kate Greenaway's lovely watercolor illustrations.

Apparently there are more rhymes that Greenaway illustrated, and the collection is a bit limited by its format, allowing only about five rhymes per book. They are reasonably durable and are good fodder for a quick bit of bedtime reading for young children.

[Shannon Nicole Wilkinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A few of the old nursery rhymes this book contains are just downright creepy and wrong. But I couldn't help but give it a third star for Kate's regency-style illustrations which I found to be, for the most part, quite lovely throughout.

[Makaylia McDonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this book contains classic nursery rhymes, it may be confusing for young students who decide to pick the book up to read for pleasure. The rhymes don't run in a specific order so I would not include this book in my library inside my classroom.

[Ericka · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations are charming Regency pictures, but many of the nursery rhymes are cut short. In reading this I really came to realize that modern readers need a little bit of help to understand many of the rhymes because they aren't that innocent.

[Callie Coox · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good - there were so many (all?!) of the nursery rhymes. Some of them were so strange, short, or I had never heard before, but we enjoyed reading this book and hearing familiar ones and learning new ones.

[Tammy U · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most comprehensive book of nursery rhymes I've ever seen. All my old favorites and many I don't think I 've ever seen. The stars of the book are Gyo Fujikawa's color illustrations. Black and white pages alternate with stunning double page spread color masterpieces worthy of framing.

[Barbara VA · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this for my daughter right after she was born in 81 and I loved reading it to her.

[Reading]

《凯特·格林威图画书集》（英）凯特·格林威。


如果有插画师的全集的就好了。

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not an exhaustive number of nursery rhymes, but has adorable illustrations.

[Grumpy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute

[Grandma M · Rating 3 out of 5]

This isn't the version I have. Mine is grimy and illustrations are not great. Give away and buy a better version. Actually - I think I have another version. Will look for that before buying.

[Stacy Renee (LazyDayLit) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simple rhymes.
Some were a little 'wacky' and almost violent.


Catching up with my daughter on the 1001 Children's Books to Read Before You Grow Up list.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Original first edition from 1881 available digitally via HathiTrust.

(join the Uni of Michigan as a friend of the Uni for a guest pass)

1978 edition via OpenLibrary
https://openlibrary.org/works/OL15162...

[Rachel Otting]

Nursery rhymes like Little Miss Muffet, Humpty Dumpty, Little Bo-Peep and many others.

[Shanna Gonzalez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kate Greenaway's Mother Goose book, originally published in 1881, includes most of the best-loved nursery rhymes illustrated in beautiful watercolor paintings. Their mood is gently romantic, rather than playful like DePaola's Tomie's Mother Goose Flies Again and Opie's The Very Best of Mother Goose Mother Goose collections. For parents who want to introduce a little "real" art to their young children, this could be a very nice fit. It's also available in a three-volume board book format.

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a lovely reprint of the 1881 edition and is illustrated with typical Victorian charm. There were many rhymes in this collection that I wasn't previously aware of and many others that were shorter and/or different than I remember. I really believe that it is important to foster a love of poetry starting from an early age and Mother Goose rhymes are an easy way to do that. This collection has short ones that will be fairly easy for children to remember and appreciate. Poetry also gives children a sense of the fun one can have with language which in turn fosters not only their intellect but also their creativity. All of which are good things.