Mother Goose's Menagerie - Illustrated by Peter Newell

By Carolyn Wells and Peter Newell

Mother Goose’s Menagerie was written by Carolyn Wells, and contains a set of beautiful, full-colour, Peter Newell illustrations. The ‘Mother Goose Rhymes’ are a collection of fairy tales and nursery rhymes, originally penned by the legendary (and only some claim imaginary), ‘Mother Goose.’ They have inspired many folklorists and illustrators (including Charles Perrault, Arthur Rackham, Jessie Willcox-Smith and Jennie Harbour) – as well as countless generations of children and parents. The book encompasses favourite tales such as ‘Five Little Pigs’, ‘Mother Hubbard’s Dog’, ‘Mary’s Lamb’ ‘The Three Bears’ and ‘The Cow that Jumped Over the Moon’ – all of which appear in their original translation.

Carolyn Wells (1864 – 1942) was an American author and poet, who penned many works of fiction as well as a series of adult mysteries. Her masterful text is accompanied by the drawings of Peter Newell (1862 – 1924); a fellow American artist and author. A native of Illinois, Newell built a reputation for his humorous drawings and poems, which appeared in many magazines, as well writing and illustrating his own children’s books. The combination of Wells’s text and the Peter Newell illustrations, create a wonderful book – to be revelled and delighted in by both young and old alike.

Pook Press celebrates the great ‘Golden Age of Illustration‘ in children’s literature – a period of unparalleled excellence in book illustration from the 1880s to the 1930s. Our collection showcases classic fairy tales, children’s stories, and the work of some of the most celebrated artists, illustrators and authors.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pook Press
• Release date: Jan 31, 2018
• ISBN: 9781528782494

Carolyn Wells

Carolyn Wells (1862-1942) was an American poet, librarian, and mystery writer. Born in Rahway, New Jersey, Wells began her career as a children’s author with such works as At the Sign of the Sphinx (1896), The Jingle Book (1899), and The Story of Betty (1899). After reading a mystery novel by Anna Katharine Green, Wells began focusing her efforts on the genre and found success with her popular Detective Fleming Stone stories. The Clue (1909), her most critically acclaimed work, cemented her reputation as a leading mystery writer of the early twentieth century. In 1918, Wells married Hadwin Houghton, the heir of the Houghton-Mifflin publishing fortune, and remained throughout her life an avid collector of rare and important poetry volumes.

Book preview

Mother Goose’s Menagerie

I

TIM AND TILLY

TWO little children, once there were,

Whose names were Tim and Tilly.

His skin was brown and rosy; her

Fair face was like a lily.

And they were just as good as gold,

And always did as they were told.

Their pretty ways

Deserve much praise,

Dear little Tim and Tilly.

One summer morning, hand in hand

Along the roadside walking,

Tilly and Tim went singing, and

Occasionally talking,

When, being tired, they thought it best

Upon a stone to sit and rest.

To them there came

An aged Dame

Along the roadside walking.

Good-morning, said she, children dear;

Good-day, said they, politely.

Her dress was just a trifle queer,

Though not at all unsightly.

She wore a quilted petticoat,

A cap with buckles at the throat,

A peaked hat,

With brim quite flat,

But not at all unsightly.

Perhaps, my dears, you don’t know me;

No, ma’am, they answered, smiling.

Why, I am Mother Goose, said she

(Her manner was beguiling).

"I’m on a journey to my Zoo,

I’m sure that it would interest you,

And if you’d care

To visit there—"

Yes, ma’am! they answered, smiling.

Jump on my broomstick, then, she cried,

"Dear little Tim and Tilly,

’T will be a long and rapid ride,

I hope you won’t be chilly."

They took their places nothing loth,

She wrapped her cloak about them both;

With wild delight

They held on tight

And were not even chilly.

After they’d gone a mile or three,

They reached their destination;

And Mother Goose said pleasantly,

Welcome to my plantation.

Then every kind of sound was heard,

The purr of cat and song of bird,

The bark of dog

And croak of frog,

Around the whole plantation.

Joyfully Tim and Tilly spied

Animals of all ages;

Some walking with a stately stride,

And some shut up in cages.

In kennels, stables, stalls, and pens,

In coops and holes and caves and dens,

In ponds and brooks,

In nests and nooks,

Were creatures of all ages.

Now Tilly, as I must admit,

Was just a trifle fearful;

But Tim said, "I don’t mind a bit,

They’re all so kind and cheerful."

And this was true. You never saw

Animals that inspired less awe;

Even the Bears

Sat in their lairs

With aspect kind and cheerful.

Dear Mother Goose, then Tilly said,

"May we not interview them?

That dog, and lamb, and robin red,

I feel as if I knew them!"

Said Mother Goose, "No doubt you do;

I rather think they know you, too.

Just try and see

How glad they’ll be

To have you interview them."

So Tim and Tilly, hand in hand,

Into the Zoo went bravely;

They met a dog who nodded, and

Regarded them quite gravely.

A handsome dog, and so well-bred,

With big brown eyes and noble head.

Upon a