The True Story of Humpty Dumpty

Anna Alice Chapin's The True Story of Humpty Dumpty begins with three sharp-tongued children—Meg, Bab, and Dick—who scoff at nursery tales, fairy queens, Santa Claus, and Mother Goose herself. But when their loving nurse warns that disbelief in the world of Make Believe may bring consequences, their laughter gives way to a journey where imagination must be learned, not mocked. Led by the lively goblin Bizzybuzz, the children are swept into a night flight on a giant owl across clouds, storms, enchanted skies, and the uncanny Owls' Inn, where a solemn innkeeper recounts a ghostly adventure of courage and sacrifice. At last they enter Make Believe Land, a realm of jeweled meadows, silver rivers, the City of Dreams, the Sea of Glass, and the shadow of the Wicked King. There Mother Goose pronounces their punishments: Meg must serve the Fairy Queen, while Dick and the others face quests of their own. As Meg wins the Queen's trust and receives the spell that can free Humpty Dumpty, Dick sets out alone through the Wonderful Wood toward danger, only to plunge beneath the Sea of Glass and confront a suspicious Sea Kobold. Playful, perilous, and richly imaginative, this fairy-tale adventure celebrates the power of belief. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.