Nursery Rhymes Your Mother Never Taught You

Book excerpt: Nursery Rhymes Your Mother Never Taught You brings wry humor in the form of parodies to twenty-four of the world’s best-loved nursery rhymes. The parodies in Part I are a reaction to the people and politics of the 21st century. They are matched with the traditional nursery rhymes that are found in Part II. These original versions include some bizarre historical theories as to derivation; also, their first known publication dates are given. All the rhymes are divided into four sections: Food, Fun, People, and Politics. At the end of each section in Part I there are three thoughts to ponder for each parody. They range from such as, ‘What does food have to do with marital bliss?’ to ‘Who was the bully in your school?’ Caution: discussions are recommended for good-natured groups only!