Pocketful of Posies By Salley Mavor

A Treasury of Nursery Rhymes

By Salley Mavor

“Ring around the roses, a pocket full of posies, ashes, ashes, we all fall down!” is one of the most familiar of all nursery rhymes sung by many families to their young children.  In this extraordinary picture book, Mavor’s text includes many other well known rhymes including Hey, Diddle Diddle, Jack and Jill went up the hill, Little Jack Horner and many more. However, she also includes more obscure ones such as Donkey, Donkey, old and gray, Here I am, Little Jumping Joan, and One Misty, Moisty Morning. Whether the rhymes are familiar or not previously known, they have all been passed from one generation down to the next. In this retelling, the spell of the rhymes and the creative art will captivate modern day children.

This book becomes extraordinary because of the three dimensional illustrations. Mavor uses a wealth of materials: acorn caps, pebbles, buttons, beads, and various fabrics. Everything was stitched by hand from naturally dyed felt. After all the individual pieces were finished, they were hand sewn onto the felt backgrounds. Last, each felt scene was photographed and printed.

This book is highly recommended to any home, primary school, and public libraries.