Land Of Topsy-Turvydom!

Illustration:  What Would You Do?  Mary’s Little Lamb.  Henry Altemus Company: Philadelphia. 1906.

 

“WHAT WOULD YOU THINK?”

If you saw an elephant climb a tree

Or a snail in an eggshell go to sea,

Or a donkey drinking a cup of tea –

What would you think?

 

If you saw houses upside down,

A beggar wearing a golden crown,

If the stars were red and the clouds were brown –

What would you think?

 

If you saw pennies not round but square,

Or an oyster walking down the stair,

Or a lobster sitting in your arm-chair –

What would you think?

 

If I saw all these things, or some,

I’m sure I’d say that I had come

To the land of Topsy-turvydom –

What would you think?

.

Mary’s Little Lamb.

Henry Altemus Company: Philadelphia. 1906.

 

11 thoughts on “Land Of Topsy-Turvydom!

  1. Love the question, “what would you think”, paired with outlandish situations , posed to child. The most important thing you can teach a child is to THINK!

  2. There’s so much wonderful inkwork in so many of the images you present and this is no exception. For it to be married with such whimsical writing makes it doubly delicious.

    1. The lobster in the arm chair (the post following this one) is one of my all time favorite illustrations. The artwork and it being of a lobster that just works for me!

      Elephant

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