The Volland Edition of Mother Goose Nursery rhymes is a well-worn book that sits on our lowest shelf for our kids to access freely. This has resulted in a bit of fraying on the edges of the pages and a binding that has started falling apart. But I have no regrets that my kids have returned to this book often and with anticipation when I announce that it is story time.

In this Mother Goose collection, you will find all the favorite rhymes in their original form; beautiful, sentimental, at times seemingly savage to our 21st century sensibilities - they were all written without regard to political correctness. For instance, the little old woman who lived in a shoe actually whipped all her children soundly before sending them to bed (not "kissed"), and Jack and Jill really do "break their crowns" instead of their hats or just bumping their heads. A few other selections mention the deaths of children and animals. Parents will have to prepare to explain some serious things to children after reading some of these rhymes.

The language back then was apparently more sophisticated than modern versions: consider "The Cat and the Fiddle" in which the little dog laughed to see such craft, which rhymes rather better than the later versions' (dumbed down) sport or play. In my opinion, that only adds to their color and charm. Hey, you can use it as an educational opportunity to teach new word usages to your kids.

But the real reason to choose this rhyme book is that the Volland Edition of Mother Goose is illustrated with an eye to beauty that you simply won't find in modern nursery rhyme books. That is what really sets the Volland Edition apart from all the modern collections; magical, perfect watercolors for each rhyme. No picture book since the Volland Edition has matched the quality here and I do believe that children enjoy good artwork and benefit from it greatly. In my case, this very book was inspirational in setting a high standard for my aspirations to become an artist someday.

As a great way to teach children poems and rhymes that will stay with them their whole lives, or as a valued heritage from another century, the Volland Mother Goose is one book every family should experience IMHO.
-Andrea, aka Merribelle