Hop-O’-My Thumb and the Seven League Boots, “The Giant Ogre discovers Hop O’ My Thumb & his brothers whom his wife had endeavored to conceal from him.”

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Creator

George Cruikshank

Title

Hop-O’-My Thumb and the Seven League Boots, “The Giant Ogre discovers Hop O’ My Thumb & his brothers whom his wife had endeavored to conceal from him.”

Publisher

London. Published by D. Bogue, 86 Fleet St.

Date

[1853]

Description

In late 1852, Cruikshank, anxious to generate income, returned to the source of some of his greatest successes: fairies and giants. Rather than hiring a writer, he did the “editing” himself, salting his first tale, Hop, with some clumsy temperance propaganda.

Dickens, a growing critic of the temperance movement, published an anti-temperance article entitled “Whole Hogs” in Household Words earlier that year. When Hop appeared a year later, the great author became incensed and published another angry article in his magazine excoriating Cruikshank for having despoiled the precious realm of fairyland. Cruikshank, devastated by his friend’s criticism, responded in the February 1854 issue of his magazine, a copy of which is shown nearby.

Source

Source: George Cruikshank’s Fairy Library.

Relation

From the collection of Josephine Lea Iselin.