The April Baby's Book of Tunes. By the Author of
" Elizabeth and her German Garden." (Macmillan and Co. 6s.)—The rhymes are our old friends "Mary, Mary, quite contrary," and the like ; as to the tunes, we do not know whether they are old or new. But certainly the setting, that is, the little story of the three girls and their mother in their German home, is pretty, and Miss Kate Greenaway's drawings are as charming as we are accustomed to find them.—Something of the same kind is Old English Singing. Games (George Allen, os.) Miss A. E. Gomme tells us that these games—there are ten of them—are selections from a great number which she has collected. Some of the names are strange. In fact, there is no quite familiar title among them, except "Oranges and Lemons." But as games they do not vary much from our old friends. " Three Knights from Spain," for instance, is not very different from "I See Three Dukes A-riding." "Isabella," again, may be described as a combination of "Kiss-in-the-Ring" and a country dance. The words are given and the music, with a description of how the game should be played. —From the same publisher we have also Barbara's Song- Book, by Cecile Hartog (5s.), a pleasing little collection of songs and tunes.—Christmas Eve at Romney Hall. Written and illustrated by Jessie Macgregor. (Elkin Mathews. 2s. Ed. net.)—The verses, telling about the old pictures in the Hall and the knights and beauties represented, are fairly good ; the drawings of the children whose delight it is to fancy themselves the same knights and beauties are a success.—In Red, White, and Blue (T. Nelson and Sons) we have represented pictures, together with a description in words, of British ships, past and present, of their armament, and of the crews by whom they are manned. Nor are the great fishing fleets and the mercantile marine forgotten. The frontispiece gives us a view of the fleet reviewed by the Queen at the Diamond Jubilee.—From the same publishers we have also picture-books which are sufficiently described by their titles, and of which we may say generally that they are credit- ably executed. These are :—A Week at the Farm (2s. 6d.), with excellent pictures of animals (possibly the pigs opposite p. 8 are just a little too human, and the bull on p. 15 is hardly as good as some); By Bail: a Picture Book about Trains (2s. 6d.) ; and Dear Old Fairy-Tales (2s. Gd.) (the bears were " fairy " bears, and we must not quarrel with their colour). —The Rabbit Book, by Charles Pettafor (Elkin Mathews, is. 6d.), containing comic extravagances which show the hand of a clever draughtsman.—Two other picture-books for young people may be mentioned, Days Out of Doors : Pictures, Tales, and Poetry (S.S.U., Is.), showing how town children enjoy the sights of the country ; the pictures of animals, &c., are really excellent ; and Tea-Table Stories for Little People, by Marianne Westrup and Gertrude E. Vaughan (same publishers, Is.)
Previous page
