Wikipedia page about this book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bab_Ballads

Release date is 1997-06-01

Transcribed from the 1920 Macmillan and Co. edition of “The Bab Ballads” (also from “Fifty Bab Ballads” 1884 George Routledge and Sons edition) by David Price

"The Bab Ballads" by W. S. Gilbert is a collection of light verse first published in book form in 1869. Named after Gilbert's childhood nickname, these illustrated comic poems showcase his signature "topsy-turvy" style—establishing ridiculous premises and pursuing their logical, absurd conclusions. Written before his famous Gilbert and Sullivan collaborations, the ballads reveal his cynical wit and became wildly popular, read at dinner parties and even in the House of Lords. Many later provided plot elements and characters for his celebrated comic operas. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Original publication data not identified