The Racketty-Packetty House
Week of August 11, 2008
Block 12:
The Racketty-Packetty house is to be burned this morning. Peter Piper makes one last effort to cheer the group and asks everyone to join hands in a circle and dance round and round once more. But it was no use. They found they could not dance and fell into a heap and cried.
Queen Crosspatch steps in with a plan in full force. She tells the RP family to get up. All is not lost. Her Working Fairies have been hard at work in the nursery in preparation for the Princess’s visit. The nurse was working so hard at tidying the nursery she did not even see the hundreds of Fairies. They were everywhere, hanging on her apron, holding her back and slowing her progress. She could hardly move and couldn’t figure out why. She was so flustered she completely forgot about the Racketty-Packetty house.
While the Racketty-Packettys looked on, Cynthia began to show the Princess Tidy Castle and the inhabitants. The Princess was polite and looked everything over but without much interest. The Princess already had many grand dolls’ houses in her palace. Queen Crosspatch gives the order to her Working Fairies to push the big chair away slowly so that no one notices it is being moved. All of a sudden, the Princess spots the Racketty-Packetty house and is delighted with what she sees. Cynthia blushed, the nurse turned pale, and the Racketty-Packettys fell into a heap beneath their window and began to say their prayers very fast.
When Cynthia explained that the house was to be burned, the Princess was shocked. She declared that if it were hers, she wouldn’t have it burned for worlds. “There are no dolls’ houses like it anywhere in these days.” She says it is almost exactly like the one her Grandmamma had. The Princess was filled with joy. She picked up Meg and Peg and Kilmanskeg and Gustibus and Peter Piper as if they had really been a Queen’s dolls.
DISCUSSION:
Just as all is about to be lost, Queen Crosspatch and her Fairies step in to save the day. The poor RP’s, have fallen into a heap and saying their prayers. I think this is the first mention that they pray. I believe their prayers for rescue are going to be heard.
When the Princess sees the Racketty-Packetty house, it brings back
very fond memories of her Grandmamma’s dollhouse. What a difference between
the Princess and Cynthia. Cynthia could care less about the Racketty-Packetty
dolls and their house and the Princess absolutely loves the old beat-up dolls
and house.