Zusammenfassung
Zusammenfassung von Das große Buch der Kinderreime
Go deeper: the whole of Das große Buch der Kinderreime
About 1 h 10 min to read.Für wen es gedacht ist
You will love this book if you enjoy rhythm and rhyme, read aloud to children, or collect old songs and sayings. It suits parents, grandparents and teachers.
Worum es in diesem Buch geht
What happens when an old woman cannot get her pig over a stile? She asks a dog, a stick, a fire, some water, an ox, a butcher, a rope, a rat and a cat for help, and the cat finally agrees on a condition. That small scene sits inside The Big Book of Nursery Rhymes, gathered by the English writer and editor Walter Jerrold. It shows what these verses do. They turn a plain problem into a game of sound and pattern that a child can follow and repeat.
The book holds hundreds of short pieces, from Humpty-Dumpty and Jack and Jill to Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. Nearly all are made to be said aloud, clapped to or sung to a child.
In dieser Zusammenfassung
- 1Four lines can hold a whole storyFree
- 2Foolish characters make children laugh and learn
- 3Counting, letters and days teach through rhythm
- 4Animals act out small human dramas
- 5Chains and repeated patterns build memory
- 6Weather, seasons and luck fill the country calendar
- 7Trades, money and daily work shape the verses
- 8Lullabies, play and warnings shape how to read aloud
Punkt 1 von 8
Four lines can hold a whole story
The collection opens with the Queen of Hearts, who bakes tarts on a summer day. The Knave steals them, the King demands them back and beats the Knave, and the Knave returns the tarts and promises to steal no more. That is a theft, a punishment and a promise in a handful of lines. A child hears a complete tale before attention has time to wander.
Many rhymes work this way. Doctor Foster goes to Gloucester in a downpour, steps into a puddle up to his waist and never goes there again. Jack and Jill climb the hill for water, Jack breaks his head, and old Dame Dob patches him with vinegar and brown paper. Each one has a cause, an event and a result.
Notice what the rhymes leave out. There are no long descriptions and no explanations. Humpty-Dumpty sits on a wall, has a great fall, and sixty men and sixty more cannot put him back together. Nobody says why he climbed up there, so a child fills the gap with questions and guesses. Each rhyme is a small performance with a setup, a pause and a turn.
A good rhyme tells a whole tale in one breath, and its gaps invite the listener to imagine the rest.
That’s 1 of 8 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
- Nothing to pay today · Renews every year
- We email you before you pay
- Cancel online in two clicks
Go deeper: the whole of Das große Buch der Kinderreime
About 1 h 10 min to read.Questions about Das große Buch der Kinderreime
What is The Big Book of Nursery Rhymes about?
It is a collection of hundreds of short traditional verses for children, including lullabies, counting rhymes, riddles, animal tales and weather sayings. Famous pieces such as Jack and Jill, Humpty-Dumpty and Old King Cole sit beside less familiar ones.
Who is Simple Simon?
Simple Simon is a foolish young man who tries one impossible task after another. He fishes with his mother's pail, tries to fetch water in a sieve, and washes with shoe polish. Children laugh because they can see the mistake before he does.
What does The House That Jack Built teach?
It shows how a chain of repeated lines builds a long tale step by step. Each new character is added to the front, and the whole list is said again, so listeners practise memory, order and cause and effect.
Who wrote these nursery rhymes?
Most are anonymous and passed down through speech and song over many generations. Walter Jerrold is the editor who gathered this collection. The verses carry traces of old farm, market and street life in their words and subjects.
Is it a good book to read aloud?
Yes, it is made for reading aloud. The verses are short, with strong beats, refrains and funny sounds, so a voice can lift, slow down or pause easily. Children can join in, clap and learn favourites quickly.
Cite this edition
Jerrold, Walter. The Big Book of Nursery Rhymes. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-big-book-of-nursery-rhymes.
Jerrold, W. (2026). The big book of nursery rhymes. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-big-book-of-nursery-rhymes
Jerrold, Walter. The Big Book of Nursery Rhymes. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-big-book-of-nursery-rhymes.
@book{jerrold2026big,
author = {Jerrold, Walter},
title = {The Big Book of Nursery Rhymes},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-big-book-of-nursery-rhymes}
}
