Nursery Rhymes

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The verses from our childhood remain compelling, lodged in our memories throughout our lives. Their rhymes and insistent rhythms are part of their appeal, but so too is their disturbing mixture of comedy, innocence and cruelty. As Marina Warner writes in her introduction, ‘marvels mix with the everyday and banality meets mystery in the nursery rhyme’.

No one captures this eerie combination of magic and menace better than the acclaimed painter Dame Paula Rego. Her first solo show with the prestigious Marlborough Galleries in 1989 was a series of etchings inspired by nursery rhymes. We were delighted when she agreed to create five additional etchings for a special Folio Society book of rhymes based on the renowned anthology by Peter and Iona Opie, and published in 1994. We are pleased to announce that this very collectible book is being republished, giving more Folio Society members the chance to own a copy.

The illustrations are a superb evocation of the wondrous and mysterious world of classic rhymes, from ‘Little Bo Peep’ to ‘Three Blind Mice’. Sometimes Rego’s children tower over adults, elsewhere they lie like dolls, while dreamlike, beautiful scenes swirl about them. With an illustration for every rhyme and illustrations printed on the front and back boards, this is a magnificent edition that underscores the creative power of the humble nursery rhyme.