Cautionary Tales

First published in 1907 and in print ever since, Hilaire Belloc’s Cautionary Tales for Children is a deliciously witty parody of the terribly serious moral tales for children, which were popular in Victorian times.Terrifying and funny at the same time, and with a true sense of the absurd, Belloc brings us the renowned Jim, Who ran away from his nurse, and was eaten by a Lion and unfortunate Rebecca, who slammed Doors for Fun and Perished Miserably.As well as these stories and many more, this edition includes a selection of mischievous poems from The Bad Child’s Book of Beasts and More Beasts for Worse Children. This volume includes the original illustrations by Basil Temple Blackwood, known as B.T.B.

Hilaire Belloc was born in France in 1870. As a child, he moved with his mother and siblings to England. As a French citizen, he did his military service in France before going to Oxford University, where he was president of the Union debating society. He took British citizenship in 1902 and was a member of parliament for several years.A prolific and versatile writer of over 150 books, he is best remembered for his comic and light verse. But he also wrote extensively about politics, history, nature and contemporary society. Famously adversarial, he is remembered for his long-running feud with H. G. Wells. He died in in Surrey, England, in 1953.