Sir, Having read Kim Bielenberg's article in The Irish Times about the "surprisingly violent contents of nursery rhymes", and Michael McGuire's reply saying that fairy tales could be just as "unsettling", I am wondering if these two people wrote with their tongues in their cheeks.
My own children were all reared on the well known and much loved rhymes and fairy tales, especially Grimm's, and could hardly wait for the evening half hour of reading before they went to bed. (They had no time at all for modern storybooks given to them by well meaning relatives.)
These rhymes and tales have been popular for ever 100 years and still appeal to the inborn romance in children, who are no more timid or insecure than their predecessors. I can't believe that they would prefer insipid stories about good little fairies Giants, witches, forests, castles, princes, etc. offer children a welcome relief from the crudity, crime, noise and ugliness of today's world. Yours, etc., Kiltennel, Gorey, Co Wexford.