Tinies' Book of Nursery Rhymes (1979, Dean, illus. Janet and Anne Grahame Johnstone)

Tinies' Book of Nursery Rhymes
A Dean Board Book
Illustrated by Janet and Anne Grahame Johnstone
© Dean & Son Ltd  1979
0 603 01636 7

This small board book of nursery rhymes, featuring nine rhymes, was illustrated by Janet and Anne Grahame Johnstone and published by Dean & Son Ltd in 1979 as part of their Dean's Board Books series, which was comprised of four nursery rhyme collections and four fairy tale retellings.

Back cover of Tinies' Book of Nursery Rhymes

The cover features two figures from the nursery rhyme 'Tom, He Was a Piper's Son' (showing the same Tom from the interior illustration of the nursery rhyme, although on a different angle, but with a new child dancing after him). While the front cover is illustrated by the Grahame Johnstone sisters, the back cover I believe is a standard for the series and style-wise doesn't appear to be illustrated by them.

I liked the textured background colours of the interior pages, which seemed to show off the illustrations very well. The illustration for 'Humpty Dumpty' was unusual (painted as an ornate egg, perhaps speaking to Pysanky or Fabergé traditions) and the illustration for 'Mary, Mary Quite Contrary' was a surprise, featuring a red-headed girl in modern (for the time – i.e. 1970s) clothing, in contrast to the period clothing of the other illustrations (and the usual Grahame Johnstone style). It's always interesting to see what illustrators will do with the 'pretty maids all in a row' and in this case a group of dolls is hanging from a washing line, held in place by old-fashioned clothespins (also known as 'dolly pegs', not because they were frequently used to hang dolls but because they were easily fashioned into them!).

Illustration for 'Mary, Mary Quite Contrary'

I enjoyed the vibrant activity of the illustration for 'Tom, He Was a Piper's Son', the spritely Willy Wonka-ish look of the happy crooked man, the tumbling beauty of Jill following Jack down the hill, and the pastel colours and delicacy of the illustrations for 'Lavender's Blue', and 'Ride a Cock-Horse to Banbury Cross'. The concluding little nut tree verse surprised me, as I'd never come across the variant of a 'silver apple' rather than a silver nutmeg.

Illustration for 'Ride a Cock-Horse to Banbury Cross'

This is a sweet little collection, great for sharing with young children as, despite its age, it has a timeless quality, and the thick board book pages are hardy. There seem to be a few volumes online for sale. It's the only one of the series I own so far, so I'll look forward to comparing this with the others in the series once I track them down.

Tinies' Book of Nursery Rhymes – Contents

• Humpty Dumpty
• Lavender's Blue
• Mary, Mary Quite Contrary
• Jack and Jill
• Tom, He Was a Piper's Son
• There Was a Crooked Man
• Goosey, Goosey Gander
• Ride a Cock-Horse to Banbury Cross
• I Had a Little Nut Tree