Old Mother Goose may know all the nursery rhymes, but it is daddy goose who knows the stories! Find out why the cow jumped over the moon, how Humpty Dumpty was put back together and whether Little Miss Muffet is really scared of spiders! Read about the stories behind all of your favourite nursery rhymes.

The twelve nursery rhymes included in this story book range from the very familiar Little Miss Muffet and Baa Baa Black Sheep to the more unusual Hickory Dickory Dock and Pat-a-Cake. Many parents and grandparents may remember these rhymes from their own childhood. Each of the rhymes is included alongside the 'real story' as told by Daddy Goose.

The concept of this book is excellent, rather than just singing a rhyme to the children who are, today, unlikely to understand its significance, Vivian French has actually developed each of them into stories, all of which are quite believable and will help children to understand the underlying message in each of the rhymes. By giving the voice of the storyteller to Daddy Goose she is also encouraging the idea of the father figure as storyteller, encouraging dad’s to spend time reading to children. This is an issue that has been and remains under discussion elsewhere and it is an important one. What this book does well is introduce both parents as storytellers, involving a mother and father figure in the telling of the rhyme.

Four illustrators contributed to this volume and it is easy to spot their distinctive styles of drawing and their differing techniques, from plain bold colour, to crayon, bold and simple pictures to detailed, life-like characters to cartoon-style there is something for everyone with plenty of fun and surprise!

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2008-07-02