The child said, “Mommy, I’m too scared to sleep.”
The mother said, “Hushabye baby, don’t weep.
“I’ll read you a fairy tale, from this nice book,
“Come darling, come dearest, and let’s take a look.”
“Why here’s a cute little girl all dressed in red,
“This wolf just devoured her granny in bed!
“And here’s a young princess, in dresses of white,
“Whose stepmother poisons her, simply from spite.”
“And this happy tale is called Hansel and Gretel,
“The witch in it boils kids in pots of metal.
“Or maybe we’ll read about giants instead,
“Who grind people’s bones, so they can bake their bread.”
“Now this is a king who imprisons his daughter,
“This boy broke his head fetching a pail of water.
“And here is a troll who jumps out from the ground,
“And here is a wolf who can blow a house down.”
“And here is a match girl who froze in the snow,
“And here is…well goodness sakes, what do you know?
“My dear little child has passed out from fright
“Let’s read this sweet book again tomorrow night.”
Barracudas, Buffaloes, and Balderdash: 