Mother Goose in Prose facts for kids
First edition (1897)
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| Author | L. Frank Baum |
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| Illustrator | Maxfield Parrish |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Children's literature |
| Publisher | Way & Williams (1897) George M. Hill (1901) Bobbs-Merrill (1905) |
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Publication date
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1897 |
| Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
| Pages | 265 |
Mother Goose in Prose is a special collection of stories for children. It takes famous Mother Goose nursery rhymes and turns them into longer, exciting tales. This book was the very first children's book written by L. Frank Baum. He later became famous for creating the magical world of Oz. It was also the first book illustrated by the talented artist Maxfield Parrish. The book was first published in 1897.
Contents
What's Inside Mother Goose in Prose?
The book starts with an introduction by L. Frank Baum. He explains the history of Mother Goose. After that, each chapter begins with a classic nursery rhyme. Then, Baum tells a longer story that explains the rhyme. It's like finding out the full adventure behind a short poem!
Here are some of the nursery rhymes that became stories in the book:
- Sing a Song o' Sixpence
- The Story of Little Boy Blue
- The Cat and the Fiddle
- Black Sheep
- Old King Cole
- Mistress Mary
- The Wond'rous Wise Man
- What Jack Horner Did
- The Man in the Moon
- The Jolly Miller
- The Little Man and His Little Gun
- Hickory, Dickory, Dock
- Little Bo-Peep
- The Story of Tommy Tucker
- Pussy-cat Mew
- How the Beggars Came to Town
- Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son
- Humpty Dumpty
- The Woman Who Lived in a Shoe
- Little Miss Muffet
- Three Wise Men of Gotham
- Little Bun Rabbit
A Special Character
The very last story in the book is about a girl named Dorothy. She has a special gift: she can talk to animals! This idea of a girl named Dorothy who talks to animals might remind you of the Oz books. L. Frank Baum later wrote those famous stories.
When Baum used this story again in other books, he changed the girl's name to Doris. He did this so readers wouldn't confuse her with Dorothy Gale from the Oz books.
The Book's Journey
Mother Goose in Prose was a beautiful book. However, it was quite expensive for a children's book at the time. Because of its price, it didn't sell a huge number of copies. The publisher, Way and Williams, even went out of business a year later.
L. Frank Baum tried a different idea for his next book. In 1899, he wrote Father Goose: His Book, which had all-new poems.
Later Editions and Adaptations
Even though it wasn't a huge bestseller at first, Mother Goose in Prose has been printed many times since. New versions came out from publishers like Bounty Books in 1951 and Dover Publications in 2002.
The Jim Henson Company, famous for the Muppets, even made a TV series based on the book. It was called Jim Henson's Mother Goose Stories.
Mother Goose in Prose at Project Gutenberg
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