Raggedy Ann Stories

***Raggedy Ann Stories*** is an American children's novel written and illustrated by Johnny Gruelle. The first book in the *Raggedy Ann* series, it consists of an anthology of short stories centered on the doll. Published in 1918, the book has fallen into public domain, and it was followed two years later by *Raggedy Andy Stories*.

## Plot

**Preface and Dedication:** The author discusses the beloved doll.

**Introduction:** Marcella finds Raggedy Ann in the attic and returns her to her grandmother, who recounts playing with the doll as a child. Grandma fixes up the doll and gives her to Marcella.

**Raggedy Ann Learns a Lesson:** The dolls break into the pantry to eat goodies. When Marcella returns, she discovers they're sticky, so she washes them and hangs them to dry before giving them dinner and putting them to bed.

**Raggedy Ann and the Washing:** Marcella accidentally drops Raggedy Ann into the washing, and Dinah doesn't discover the doll until she's emerged on the other side, flattened.

**Raggedy Ann and the Kite:** The neighborhood boys can't get their kite to stay in the air, so Marcella suggests attaching Raggedy Ann as a tail. After an exilerating flight, the doll's skirt rips and she falls, serendipitously landing in a tree in Marcella's yard.

**Raggedy Ann Rescues Fido:** When the family's dog escapes, Raggedy Ann teams up with Peterkins, the neighbor's pooch, to retrieve the puppy from the dog catcher.

**Raggedy Ann and the Painter:** A house painter is so smitten with Raggedy Ann that he pulls her down to play and accidentally drops her in a bucket of paint. He brings her home, where his mother puts her through a restoration.

**Raggedy Ann's Trip on the River:** Fido drags Raggedy Ann outside and plays tug-of-war with another puppy, which results in the doll getting dropped in the river, where she's later fished out by daddy.

**Raggedy Ann and the Strange Dolls:** Marcella receives two new dolls from her aunt. The toys initially tease Raggedy Ann but come to realize the error of their ways.

**Raggedy Ann and the Kittens:** Fido discovers that the cat has had a litter of kittens. The mother is hesitant to let the family discover her children, but the toys insist on bringing them to the nursery.

**Raggedy Ann and the Fairies' Gift:** In the dead of night, Fido and Raggedy Ann discover a congregation of fairies singing in the garden. The creatures fly into the window to discover a mysterious bundle, which they later discover is Marcella's baby brother.

**Raggedy Ann and the Chickens:** After falling into the chickens' pen, Raggedy Ann discovers the birds have built a secret nest in an effort to prevent their eggs from becoming the family's dinner. The doll sits on the nest and helps hatch the eggs.

**Raggedy Ann and the Mouse:** After Marcella's new doll is literally defaced, Boots the kitten comes to stay in the playroom to keep mice out. When the feline attempts to kill a mother mouse, Raggedy Ann and her friends intervene.

**Raggedy Ann and Her New Sisters:** Marcella and Raggedy Ann visit a kind man who disassembles Raggedy Ann to use as a pattern for a line of dolls, which he mass produces.

## Trivia

* In Raggedy Ann and the Washing, it's remarked that Marcella was cross because she got out of bed backwards. Johnny Gruelle elaborated the next year in the *Friendly Fairies* story "Recipe for a Happy Day," explaining that children who emerge from bed backwards fall under the spell of old Witchy Crosspatch.
* Portions of this book were rewritten by Patricia Hall as "The Real For Sure Story of Raggedy Ann. "

## Characters

* Raggedy Ann
* Marcella
* Poppa
* Mommy
* Baby Brother
* Fido
* Grandma
* The French Dolly
* The Tin Soldier
* The Indian Doll
* The Dutch Doll
* Uncle Clem
* Jumping Jack
* Dinah
* Momma Robin
* Daddy Robin
* Peterkins
* Penny Dolls
* The Painter
* The Painter's Momma
* Jim
* The Strange Puppy
* Annabel-Lee
* Thomas
* Momma Cat
* Prince Charming Kitten
* Cinderella Kitten
* Princess Golden Kitten
* Old Ironside the Rooster
* Old Hens
* Jeanette
* Boots the Cat
* Momma Mouse
* Virginia
* Doris
* Freddie
* The Stranger Friend
* The Tide Fairies
* The Undertow Fairies
* The Roller Fairies
* The Spray Fairies
* The Wind Fairies

## Adaptations

Once Johnny Gruelle's stories had been exhausted, many of them were reinterpreted as storybooks for juvenile readers, with authors sometimes taking huge liberties. Ones from this book include:

* Raggedy Ann's Pantry Mischief (1984)
* Raggedy Ann's Trip Down the River (1984)
* Raggedy Ann Gets Lost (1987)
* Raggedy Ann's Nighttime Rescue (1987)
* How Raggedy Ann Got Her Candy Heart (1998)
* The Real-For-Sure Story of Raggedy Ann (2001)

**How Raggedy Ann Got Her Candy Heart** was featured on Ann's card from the Raggedy Ann and Friends Cardbook set in 1974.

**Raggedy Ann Learns a Lesson** was adapted into a read-along cassette set in 1979, and a book from the same set, Scotty and the Kittens, is likely an adaptation of **Raggedy Ann and the Kittens.**

**Raggedy Ann Rescues Fido** and **Raggedy Ann and the Painter** were adapted as part of The Raggedy Ann & Andy Storybook in 1980.

**Raggedy Ann and the Kittens** and **Raggedy Ann and the Fairies' Gift** were included as readings on the 2003 *Treasures from the Heart* album.

## External Links

* Project Gutenberg - eBook
* Internet Archive - eBook
* Libravox - Audiobook