Kate Greenaway Mother

Gentle 19th century watercolors from Greenaway's own sketchbook illustrate five nursery rhymes in each of three small board books. This is an irresistible collection, combining art by a woman who seems to personify childhood innocence with a format that can stand up to abuse from young readers. Each verse features one illustration, taken from a work now held in the Arents Collections of the New York Public Library. A snatch of the poem is scrawled across each picture, with full text on a facing page. A finely conceived idea, successful in its realization. All ages. (March)