Audiobook · read by volunteers
Raggedy Ann Stories
Johnny Gruelle (1880–1938)
Read by Shannon · 14 chapters · 1 h 49
About the book
Raggedy Ann is a rag doll with a great deal of heart, and when the nursery is quiet she and her friends come to life. These stories, written for children and dedicated to everyone who has loved a rag doll, tell of her gentle adventures: lessons learned, kindnesses done and small troubles solved with good humour. Recorded by LibriVox volunteers, the stories are as gentle and charming today as when the book first appeared in 1918. The tone is warm and unhurried, with the kind of small incidents that a child can easily imagine happening at home. At around an hour and three quarters, it is a lovely choice for a bedtime or a rainy afternoon, for children and for the adults who read with them. A rag doll, a nursery and a great deal of kindness.
Introduction
Johnny Gruelle (1880–1938) was an American cartoonist and illustrator who created Raggedy Ann, inspired by a doll that belonged to his daughter. He published the first book of Raggedy Ann Stories in 1918, with his own drawings, and followed it with many sequels and a long line of toys. The books helped establish the rag doll as one of the best-loved characters in American children’s literature.
The recording opens with the preface and dedication and an introduction, then moves through stories such as Raggedy Ann Learns a Lesson. The tales are simple, kindly and a little whimsical, and they treat the toys in the nursery as living friends. The mood is of comfort and reassurance, with gentle humour and an unforced sense of right and wrong. For adults, the pleasure lies in recognising the nursery world of a century ago.
Because there are fourteen separate parts, children can choose a story at a time, or listen to several together. The stories are short enough to hold a young listener’s attention without effort.
Fourteen recordings, about 1.8 hours in all, are the work of LibriVox volunteers. The titles say what to expect: Raggedy Ann and the Kite, Raggedy Ann Rescues Fido, Raggedy Ann and the Fairies’ Gift, Raggedy Ann’s New Sisters. Each is its own bedtime story, and a child who finds a favourite will probably ask to hear it again. Gruelle dedicated the book to everyone who has loved a rag doll, and the stories keep faith with that dedication: they are small adventures with a kite, a washing, a painter, kittens, a mouse and chickens, about a doll who keeps her good cheer whatever happens.
Public domain
Johnny Gruelle died in 1938: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text