Published three years before the author achieved fame as the creator of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, this engaging volume, inspired by well-known nursery rhymes, added an exciting new dimension to old, much-loved verses. In 22 captivating fantasies, Baum tells about Old King Cole; The Man in the Moon; The Jolly Miller; Little Bo-Peep; Tom, the Piper’s Son; The Woman Who Lived in a Shoe; Little Miss Muffet; The Cat and the Fiddle, and others. Twelve charming drawings by famed illustrator Maxfield Parrish enhance a unique collection that will delight Baum admirers, youngsters, and the young at heart.
If you have never heard the legend of Gilligren and the King’s pie, you will scarcely understand the above verse; so I will tell you the whole story, and then you will be able to better appreciate the rhyme. Gilligren was an orphan, and lived with an uncle and aunt who were very unkind to him. They cuffed him and scolded him upon the slightest provocation, and made his life very miserable indeed. Gilligren never rebelled against this treatment, but bore their cruelty silently and with patience, although often he longed to leave them and seek a home amongst kinder people. It so happened that when Gilligren was twelve years old the King died, and his son was to be proclaimed King in his place, and crowned with great ceremony. People were flocking to London from all parts of the country to witness the festivities, and the boy longed to go with them.
