Text Box: LET US BE HONEST As a parent and a child I notice that many books for children are sanitized with the plastic mediocrity of western contemporary life. And, quite frankly, a lot of these books induce sleep a little too swiftly. But in traditional nursery rhymes I find an honest, timeless account of everyday life, regardless of the application of a historical or modern interpretation. There is death and disease (Ring Around the Rosies), execution (Three Blind Mice), war (Humpty Dumpty), animosity (There Was a Crooked Man), torture (Mary Mary Quite Contrary), revenge (Orange and Lemons), loss (Cry Baby Bunting), fear and phobia (Little Miss Muffet), abuse (Peter, Peter, Pumpkin-eater), punishment (Tom Tom the Piper’s Son), intimidation (Goosey Goosey Gander), incitement (Jack Be Nimble), abandonment (Little Tommy Tucker), and so forth. Instead of shunning difficult subjects or drowning them in lies gasping with false hopes, the traditional nursery rhymes often take the incommunicable aspects of life and do something that perhaps has been forgotten: have fun with them. It seems we protect our children from our own fears and weaknesses, but, in reality, oft times children are stronger and have an incredible capacity to smile through the worst situations. So, in Nursery Rhymes of Our Time, there is a return to the traditional formula of nursery rhymes, while allowing a modern context in which to feel and understand them. These are frightening times, so let us talk about it . . . maybe make things better. Damien Bailey Editor

Nursery Rhymes of Our Time

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