THE BABES IN THE WOOD
By
In a 1640 rhymed text, the doleful tale of two orphaned children who die in the woods after their uncle, greedy for their inheritance, has ordered them killed. Ardizzone's pictures accomplish near miracles in combining fidelity to the old fashioned tone and setting with vigor, affection, and a total avoidance of camp -- which is however the spirit in which the ballad is likely to be read today.