The Farmer in the Dell

The timeless circle-game "The Farmer in the Dell" is one of the first that children learn to play, and its happy, lilting song is among the first they learn to sing.

Here, the celebrated picture-book artist Ilse Plume has imagined a fresh setting for the lyrics - a farmstead in the Pennsylvania Dutch country.

A young Amish farmer takes a wife, the beautiful wife takes a child, the child takes a nurse, the nurse takes a dog, and with each successive verse the seasons turn, the farmer grows older, and his farm grows more prosperous, more lively, more richly populated.

Ms. Plume's coloured-pencil drawings are inspired by the folk art and decorative motifs of the Pennsylvania Dutch.

They are as comforting as a star-patterned quilt, and as sweet, warm, and delightful as a homemade apple pie.

It includes sheet music, lyrics, and directions for playing the game.