Positively Mother Goose

Rating:
Summary: Change is not always for the best
Review: Although the illustrations are good, this will not appeal to everyone. I was always a bit uncomfortable reading aloud a few of the traditional verses -- "she whipped them all soundly and sent them to bed" -- is an especially alarming example. But adults don't always give children enough credit; many generations have mentally sorted through these verses with no lasting harm. The rhythm, cadence and whimsy of the original versions have been sacrificed to be replaced with clumsy morals and motivational messages.

Rating:
Summary: Change is not always for the best
Review: Although the illustrations are good, this will not appeal to everyone. I was always a bit uncomfortable reading aloud a few of the traditional verses -- "she whipped them all soundly and sent them to bed" -- is an especially alarming example. But adults don't always give children enough credit; many generations have mentally sorted through these verses with no lasting harm. The rhythm, cadence and whimsy of the original versions have been sacrificed to be replaced with clumsy morals and motivational messages.

Rating:
Summary: Fairy tales diluted beyond repair
Review: Fairy tales and nursey rhymes often have a dark edge, which, together with elegant wording, is usually what gives them their power and longevity. Children are small things, but they have big fears, and fairy tales and nursery rhymes have always helped them face those fears, instead of pretending they don't exist. Now imagine this:

Hey, diddle, diddle,
The cat and the fiddle,
The cow jumped over the moon;
The little dog laughed
To see such a sport,
And the dish said, "We'll all do it soon."

or, more poignantly:

Little Miss Muffit sat on a tuffet,
Eating her curds and whey;
Along came a spider, who sat down beside her,
And brightened Miss Muffit's whole day.

or this:

Rock-a-bye, baby, on the tree top;
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock;
Birdies and squirrels will be at play,
And you can watch them
All through the day.

You don't have to imagine it. That's "Positively Mother Goose," and it gives me the willies.

The illustrations are pleasant, and the title gives little indication of what's inside. The jacket says that it "offers a refreshing new version of the traditional rhymes, promoting the values of self-esteem, conflict resolution, lifelong learning, and innovative thinking." (Buzzword alert!) Apparently, the "positive" new rhymes are "designed to honor what is valuable from the past while gently guiding us into the future." And the original rhymes (the "negative" ones, I guess) appear inside the covers for reference.

The back flap hints at the real story: "When [young co-author] Julia heard the line 'And down will come baby, cradle, and all,' her body stiffened, and she asked her mother to help pick up the crying child. [Her mother] Diane quickly got some white-out [my emphasis], and she and Julia wrote a new and positive Rock-a-Bye Baby. [Co-author Karen Kolberg] was fascinated by the cow who jumped over the moon. On the other hand, she was upset and scared by the dish that ran away with the spoon. Were they unhappy or afraid?"

Upset and scared by Hey Diddle-Diddle? I am a pretty lefty-leaning, love-is-good, save-the-world guy, but I find the book repellent, largely because its attempts at "positivizing" are so clumsy and didactic. I guess the authors don't want kids knowing that fear is normal and okay, or asking any questions about life. ("Why did the dish and spoon run away?" has all sorts of potentially interesting answers, in my mind.) The third co-author, Diane Loomans, is also the author of "The Lovables in the Kingdom of Self-Esteem."

I am not making any of this up.

Rating:
Summary: I wish they'd been written this way first!
Review: I've shared this book with my oldest granddaughter and she loves it. I've also bought a copy for my newest granddaughter. Hopefully her parents will bring her up with the mindset contained within. Why anyone would criticize this book as saccharine is beyond me. Isn't there already enough pain, fear, anger etc. in the world?

Rating:
Summary: This is a book about the world that lives within us.
Review: One of the most revered mothers of all time is Mother Goose. Unfortunately, in most editions, "expressions of fear, weeping, moans of anguish, biting, pain and evidence of supreme selfishness may be found in almost every other page." So, like most adults, you may choose to read only those rhymes that"feel" suitable for a child to hear. That choice springs from the wisdom inherent in your heart. The heart knows what is grotesque and grim; what is "off" or awful. It's the head that judges the sweet and saccharine as unwitty or unrealistic. It's the head that fears being Pollyannish. We wrote this book not only as a counter-balance to the traditional rhymes but also to show the power of re-framing. Re-framing is more than just rewriting. Re-framing is the ability to become aware of a thought pattern that is obsolete, inappropriate or destructive and transform it by putting a new frame around it to gain a new perspective. Positively Mother Goose is not a book about the world that we live within, but the world that lives within us. Trust the sweetness in your heart.

Rating:
Summary: What is Horn Book thinking!?!?!
Review: This was one of our family's FAVORITE books when my kids were preschoolers! The sing-song nature of the rhymes makes them easier to memorize, and the positive outlook they imbue is so refreshing compared to the dark outlook of so many of the rhymes they replace. It's just unfortunate that the kids wound up learning the original versions of the rhymes at school and don't remember these bright alternatives.