Mother Goose

Project GutenbergProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 36K words
Chapters: 4

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Mother Goose by Eulalie Osgood Grover and Frederick RichardsonAuthor: ,Language: English, Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres, Release Date: Feb 15, 2008

Editor's review

This is Mother Goose, a collection of nursery rhymes by Eulalie Osgood Grover and Frederick Richardson, a public-domain work of children's literature. Mother Goose rhymes are a long-standing verse tradition in the English-speaking world: short, rhymed, strongly rhythmic, and often used for early language exposure and parent-child reading. This edition is illustrated; the combination of pictures and text helps children grasp the verse's situations and preserves the look of early nursery-rhyme books. Its value lies in the rhythm of the language and its cultural background: many rhymes carry customs and allusions of English-speaking countries, and adult readers can trace that cultural context through them. Note that some traditional rhymes may seem old-fashioned or inappropriate today; parents should explain and select when reading together. Overall it suits light language and cultural reading rather than a continuous storybook.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Families with young children using English rhymes for early language exposure and a feel for rhythm
Readers and teachers studying children's literature or the Mother Goose tradition
Collectors of early illustrated editions and public-domain children's books

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a complete plot or long narrative
Parents wanting a modern adaptation with screened content
Readers with no English who need a Chinese parallel text

Reading tips

When reading together, read aloud first for rhythm, then discuss the pictures.
Pick a few short rhymes and repeat them rather than reading the whole book at once.
Look up unfamiliar allusions or archaic expressions before deciding what to explain to a child.
Compare with other Mother Goose editions to observe differences in selection and illustration.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

What age is this book suitable for?

Mother Goose rhymes are short and rhymed, generally suited to preschoolers for early language exposure; the exact age depends on the child's English level and interest. Younger children are better read to by an adult, who can explain alongside the pictures; children who can read may try reciting on their own, but still need an adult to explain some old-fashioned content.

Are all the rhymes suitable to read to a child as they are?

Not necessarily. Traditional Mother Goose rhymes are long-standing, and some content may seem old-fashioned today, or contain allusions and plots that are hard to explain directly to children. Parents should look through the book first, select or adapt unsuitable pieces, and explain in context rather than reading word for word.

How do Mother Goose rhymes help with learning English?

The rhymes and repeated rhythm help build English phonological awareness and a feel for the language, and make common expressions easier to remember. Repeated recitation familiarizes children with English rhythmic patterns and lays a foundation for later reading. However, the language is rather old-fashioned, so it should not be the only language-learning material; it is best used alongside other modern readers.

Comments

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About the author

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Project Gutenberg is not a single author but a nonprofit digital library founded by Michael Hart in 1971 and one of the world's earliest free ebook platforms. It relies on volunteers to digitize, proofread, and freely distribute public-domain works and is now operated by the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Its collection contains 2,692 works, mainly religious texts, epics, and story collections, including the King James Bible and the Douay-Rheims volumes, the epic Mahabharata, a literal translation of the Arabian Nights, and Danish editions of the Old and New Testaments. Public information is limited, and its nature is closer to a public-interest compiling and dissemination body; these texts are open to the public, easy to consult and circulate, and have had a profound influence on the spread of ebooks and the preservation of public-domain resources.