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Author Merriam, Eve, 1916-1992.

Title The inner city Mother Goose / by Eve Merriam ; visuals by Lawrence Ratzkin.

Imprint New York : Simon and Schuster, ©1969.

Copies

Location Call No. OPAC Message Status
 Axe Kansas Collection J Schick  811.54 M551i 1969    ---  Lib Use Only
Description 95 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm
text txt rdacontent
unmediated n rdamedia
volume nc rdacarrier
Note Poems.
Summary Mother Goose rhymes were not always considered to be nonsensical fare for young children, originally these verses were written as social and political commentary. In 1969 when author Eve Merriam wanted to comment about social and political issues of the time, she turned to Mother Goose rhymes in a nod to their original purpose. Her resultant poems, inspired by traditional "nursery rhymes," depict the grim reality of inner city life, including such topics as crime, drug abuse, unemployment, and inadequate housing.
Contents The nub of the nation -- Boys and girls come out to play -- Mary, Mary -- Numbers -- There was a crooked man -- Tweedledum and Tweedledee -- If wishes were horses, beggars would ride -- Take-a-tour, take-a-tour, congressman -- Sing a song of subways -- Black youth, black youth -- Here we go round -- Now I lay me down to sleep -- Lucy Locket -- Taffy -- Jack be nimble, Jack be quick -- Simple Simon -- Pussy cat, pussy cat, where have you been? -- Fire -- Oh where, oh where has my little dog gone? -- Oh, the brave old city of New York -- Diddle diddle dumpling -- Hickety, pickety, my black hen -- Wisdom -- Wino Will -- Poverty program hot, poverty program cold -- Little Jack Horner -- Three young cats -- Hector Protector -- Christmas is coming -- Star light, star bright -- Cherry stones -- Kindness -- Ding, dong, bell -- You'll find mice -- The recruiting sergeant -- Robin and Richard -- I do not like thee -- If -- Hey diddle diddle -- Here I am, Little Jumping Joan -- What are summer nights made of? -- What are winter nights made of? -- Hark, hark, the dogs do bark -- The rule -- Taxi Man -- To market -- Bow-wow, says the dog -- Solomon Grundy -- Jeremiah Obadiah, puff, puff, puff -- The cow jumped over the moon -- Rub-a-dub-dub -- On tevee -- I had a little -- Hushabye baby -- Hickory dickory dock -- This little pig -- Tom, Tom -- Run, run -- One, two -- One misty moisty morning -- Twelve rooftops leaping -- As I went over -- Who killed nobody? -- Fee, fi, fo, fum -- There was a man.
Biography "Eve Merriam, 1916-1992, was an award-winning writer, playwright and poet for both children and adults. Merriam dedicated her life and most of her work championing the virtues of poetry and wrote extensively on how to read, write and enjoy language and poetry. As her reputation grew in the sixties and the seventies, she, like other poets of her time, 'shifted her concerns to reflect the inner emotional conflicts and stark realities of the world facing children: anxieties, alienation, racial and social injustice, war, in-humane technology, and the struggles of urban life.' (Zaidman, 1987). This concern over social issues undoubtedly motivated her to write the Inner City Mother Goose rhymes, and her choice of Mother Goose as the pattern for her satirical messages pays homage to the political derivation of the original rhymes. Merriam explains in her introduction to the 1982 edition (and reprinted in the 1996 edition), ' ... when I wanted to comment about some social and political issues of our time, I was following an old tradition of using Mother Goose characters. What modern situations would they face, and where would they live?'"--Contemporary Censorship of Mother Goose <http://eclipse.rutgers.edu/goose/censorship2.aspx>
Audience Young Adult.
Despite the use of the child-friendly moniker of Mother Goose in its title, The inner city Mother Goose, originally published in 1969, expanded and self-published in 1982, and revised and reissued in 1996, was never been meant for children-- the first and second editions of the book were directed at an adult audience, and the third edition was published specifically for young adults.
Subject Mother Goose -- Parodies, imitations, etc.
Mother Goose. (OCoLC)fst01356341
Inner cities -- Juvenile poetry.
Slums -- United States -- Juvenile poetry.
Social problems -- United States -- Juvenile poetry.
City and town life -- Juvenile poetry.
Children's poetry, American.
City and town life -- Poetry.
American poetry.
Nursery rhymes.
Children's poetry, American. (OCoLC)fst00856347
City and town life. (OCoLC)fst00862081
Inner cities. (OCoLC)fst00973711
Slums. (OCoLC)fst01121194
Social problems. (OCoLC)fst01122778
United States. (OCoLC)fst01204155
Genre/Form Poetry.
Juvenile works. (OCoLC)fst01411637
Parodies, imitations, etc. (OCoLC)fst01423840
Poetry. (OCoLC)fst01423828
Added Author Ratzkin, Lawrence, illustrator.
ISBN 0671202898
9780671202897
0671202901 (pbk.)
9780671202903 (pbk.)

 
    
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