My First Picture Book of Nursery Rhymes (1976, illus. Rene Cloke)

Cover for My First Picture Book of Nursery Rhymes
Illustrated by Rene Cloke
© Award Publications Limited 1976 (reprinted 1985)
ISBN 0 86163 043 2

 
Cover for My First Picture Book of Nursery Rhymes
Illustrated by Rene Cloke
© Award Publications Limited 1976 

This edition first published 1997 (third impression 2003)

ISBN 0-86163-881-6 

I own two versions of this nursery rhyme collection illustrated by Rene Cloke. The covers of the books are very different, which is why I bought a second version without realising the interior was identical. The original work was copyrighted 1976 and neither of the books I own are from the original printing. I will outline the differences between the two and then go on to review the original illustrations and rhymes. I won't say much more about Rene Cloke here – there is an excellent overview on Wikipedia. See Rene Cloke.

Differences: Book 1

The older of the books I own is an oversize rectangular book measuring approximately 33.5 cm high by 23 cm wide. It features a variety of illustrations by Rene Cloke on the front cover. The illustration of the three men in a tub is repeated on the back cover and is the only image on the back cover, which is otherwise a deep pink. The front cover bears the name "Funtime Library" at the bottom while the back cover has the logo 'ap' for Award Publications. 

The copyright page notes that the book contains a "collection of traditional nursery rhymes including "Mary, Mary, quite contrary" [sic] and "Doctor Foster went to Gloucester". The copyright is 1976, with this edition reprinted in 1985. 

The title page features a number of characters illustrated inside the book – a fairy from 'Ladybird, Ladybird', various pigs from 'This little pig went to market' and Little Bo-peep sitting with Little Boy Blue.

A final page in the book (blank in the later version) notes that the book is part of the Fun Time Library [sic], and lists the six books in the series:

• My ABC and Counting Book
• My ABC of Nursery Rhymes  – see my review
• My Big Book of Nursery Tales
• My First Picture Book of Hans Christian Andersen Stories
• My First Picture Book of Nursery Rhymes
• My First Picture Book of Telling the Time

Differences: Book 2

The second book I own is a smaller hardback measuring 20cm by 25.7 cm. Oddly, for a book illustrated by Rene Cloke, the artwork on the front cover does not appear to be her work, but no cover artist is attributed. The back cover notes "A collection of 20 popular nursery rhymes compiled and illustrated by Rene Cloke. Age 2+" and features the 'ap' logo for Award Publications and an illustration of a pig in a dress, carrying a flower (this appears to be based on Rene Cloke's little pig that went to market (similar dress and flower), but is not her illustration).

The copyright page notes an illustrations copyright © 1976 Award Publications Limited, first published 1976, this edition first published 1997, third impression 2003. 

The title page features Tom the Piper's Son, a direct copy of Rene Cloke's illustration from later in the book.

Nursery rhymes and illustrations

Both books have the same lovely endpapers, featuring two girls and two boys playing around the base of a big tree, alongside forest birds and animals. They appear to be the artwork of Rene Cloke.

Both collections feature the same 20 nursery rhymes and illustrations, across 15 pages (unpaginated) (not including frontispiece, title, endpapers, etc.). Neither collection features a contents page or index of first lines so I've compiled one below (see end of post).

Each edition has the same illustrations and placement of text (largely), but the newer edition uses a different typeface and has removed all the quotation marks for speech from the rhymes. There are also some other minor textual differences, such as changes to capitalisation (e.g. Mother in 'The Three Little Kittens', lion and unicorn in the final rhyme) and punctuation (commas to semi-colons or vice versa). The pages of the newer edition are glossy, rather than matte. The images are much sharper, changing some of the colours slightly, and some of the text is placed differently, generally as an improvement – compare the typography for 'One for Sorrow, Two for Joy' (older + newer):

Another thing to note is that as the newer book is a lot shorter in height than the original version, some minor components of the original images are lost in the newer book, such as some bread loaves at the bottom of 'The Lion and the Unicorn', an amusing fish at the bottom of 'Rub-a-Dub-Dub', a discarded jacket and a few fieldmice at the bottom of 'Little Boy Blue' (the fieldmice matching the one to be found on his knee), and this pussycat and milk jug from the end of 'One, Two, Buckle My Shoe':

End illustration from 'One, Two, Buckle My Shoe', illustrated by Rene Cloke (1985)

 

Rene Cloke's illustrations are so delicate and quaint they feel older than their 1976 copyright date. The newer reprint captures their essence despite (or perhaps because of) the glossier, sharper images. There appear to be few copies of the earliest edition available online, and although several copies of the 1997-2003 version are for sale, they're advertised at exorbitant prices. I have, however, seen several 2012 editions for sale (with essentially the same cover as my 2003 edition but a night sky), and that appears affordable. If its interior is identical to my 2003 edition, which seems likely, it will match the original collection closely, which means more of us can enjoy Rene Cloke's nursery rhyme illustrations. 

My First Picture Book of Nursery Rhymes – Contents

• Simple Simon
• This Little Pig Went to Market
• Ladybird, Ladybird
• Daffy-Down-Dilly
• Doctor Foster Went to Gloucester
• One for Sorrow, Two for Joy
• Pussy-cat, Pussy-cat
• Old Mother Goose
• Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary
• Jack Sprat
• Three Little Kittens
• One, Two, Buckle My Shoe
• Rub-a-Dub-Dub
• Little Bo-Peep
• Tom, He Was a Piper's Son
• Little Boy Blue
• Four-and-Twenty Tailors
• Poor Old Robinson Crusoe
• See-Saw, Margery Daw
• The Lion and the Unicorn