Most people, when asked about their favorite book, will invariably include a book they read as a child. Hemingway famously proclaimed that "All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn". Twain's book, like its predecessor, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, were books whose intended audience was young readers. Such books speak to us on multiple levels. As literature, they are well-crafted and clever with memorable characters and conflicts, but they matter to us for more than these reasons because we discovered them at a formative period of our lives. Their ideas helped to form our own, and so they are more personal ...
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York: J. Kendrew, (c. 1820). 48mo. 31pp. Woodcut frontispiece depicting Crusoe, as well as several throughout portraying scenes of Crusoe's hunts, his interactions with Friday, and his ultimate rescue. An abridged version of Daniel Defoe's seminal work. Faint toning throughout, minimal edgwear, else fine in orange printed wrappers. More
Troy, NY: Merriam & Moore, (c. 1830). 24mo. 12pp. Replete with engravings, including two on the verso of the title page. This story was derived from Maria Edgeworth's "Frank," a collection of children's moral tales each involving the idyllic titular child. The one presented here describes Frank's eagerness to help..... More
New York: Mahlon Day, 1832. 16mo. 18pp., including inside wrappers. Illustrated with frontispiece, title-page and two smaller vignettes, and ten half-page figures, all wood engravings. Contains the title poem, as well as "The Cradle Hymn," "Winter Evening's Amusement," and ends with "The Duties of Children." This edition also carries a...... More
Birmingham: C. Caswell, (c. 1870). (16)pp. Engraved frontispiece. A moral tale on the ills of covetousness and theft, and the corresponding rights of honesty and confession. Bound in yellow paper wrappers. Untitled hymn (first line: "Among the deepest shades of night") appears on lower cover. Scant foxing and creasing to..... More
Cooperstown: H. and E. Phinney, 1834. 24mo. 31pp. The first Phinney edition of this familiar tale. With ten woodcuts, very neat indeed, and three more on the yellow wrappers. Previous young owners' names to front wrapper, wear to extremities, and some foxing to interior, else a near fine copy. More
NY: McLoughlin Bros, (c. 1873). (12)pp. A chapbook of moral songs by Isaac Watts, illustrated with four color engravings. Part of a series of "Illuminated texts for Sunday school rewards" published by McLoughlin Brothers. Minor internal soiling, previous owner's stamp to inside rear wrapper, which has offset onto last page..... More
Paris: Flammarion, 1931. Small quarto. (24)pp., + (10)ff. First edition. Features eleven full-page illustrations showing natural and household scenes as sample collage compositions, along with glossy decoupage paper in five colors for children to create the scenes for themselves. This activity book for children was one of two published by..... More
Florence: Felice Paggi, 1883. Small octavo. 236pp., + iipp. of advertisements. First edition. The enduring children’s classic about a mischievous marionette whose nose grows every time he tells a lie, in the original Italian and wonderfully illustrated with a full-page frontispiece of the titular character, as well as sixty-one additional..... More
(Paris: Plon, 1963). Spiral folio. 48 ff. With a Preface by Jean Cocteau. Color illustrations by the author. A bright and colorful cookbook for children with French text. Recipes include soups, hors-d'oeuvres, meat and poultry, sauces, vegetables, eggs and fish, and desserts. Some wear to front and back covers, spiral..... More
London: 1929; 1975. Bifolium. 4pp. Offprint from a children's annual containing original text and illustrations by Cox printed in two colors. Above the final illustration, Cox's name appears as "Mauris Cox." A story about a lazy boy who is cast out of his house by his mother; then, with the..... More
NY: Century Co., (c. 1933). Octavo. (x), 246pp. Copiously illustrated by Palmer Cox. This was the first adventure of the Brownies written in prose, and it is advertised as having "a detailed, connected story, with a beginning, a middle and an end." A later issue, with the text, binding, and..... More
NY: Lindner, Eddy & Clauss, (n.d.). 32mo. (12)pp. Full-page engravings throughout. Each illustrates a different customer of Clark's O.N.T. spool cotton, including the royal family, Native Americans, witches, and sailors. These are expounded upon by a four-line rhyming poem advertising the use of O.N.T. In pictorial paper wrappers. Fine. More
Paris: Nouvelle Librairie de la Jeunesse, (1890). Small quarto. (14)pp., including paste-down endpapers. A stencil-colored cut-figure book, with each page cut into three sections so that one can make numerous combinations of the head, body, and legs of "Mon Oncle Gaspard." The Gaspards range in profession and character, from a...... More
(Akron, OH): John Davey, 1905. Octavo. 165pp. Inscribed by the author to Richard Mickey and dated October 14th, 1916. The inscription reads, "From every tree and plant & flower / We learn of Wisdom, skill & power, / And from the starry host above / We hear the voice that..... More
(London): Dean & Son, (1860). Octavo. (6)ff. A collection of hand-colored engravings accompanied by rhyming stories about fictional people. Each story adopts a humorous tone, though some also bear moral lessons. Throughout its nineteenth-century lifespan, the publishing firm of Dean and Son specialized in innovative printing processes used in the..... More
London: Dean and Son / W. Kent & Co., (c. 1860). Octavo. Three volumes in one. (24); 30; (32)pp. A collection of three illustrated children's books published together by Dean and Son under the name Dean's Coloured Picture Book: The Home First Book. The titles herein are "The Nursery ABC..... More
Ashland, OR: Jubilation Press, (2010). Square octavo. (15)ff., accordion-fold. One of 100 copies. This brightly-colored abecedarium is a celebration of boys' creative, youthful spirits. Each letter is illustrated and surrounded by phrases and words beginning with that letter. For example, the letter "I" shows a child ice skating with his..... More
Paris: Didot, Typographie de Firmin, (c. 1810). 125pp., + (8)ff. Eight engravings on beige paper. The absurd adventures of Pierrot, born from a turkey's egg to La Fee Gourmande, and dedicated to gourmandise from that moment on, until his gluttony proves too much and dooms him. An extremely rare cautionary..... More
Chicago: Wilcox & Follett, 1945. Oblong 24mo. (8)pp., accordionfold. Each page richly illustrated in color with scenes of firemen patrolling the streets, operating safety equipment, and caring for civilians in a variety of locales, including cities, plains, and ships. A charming historical look into the operation of fire safety. Bound..... More
NY: The Childrens' Book Council, 1977. Octavo. x, 198pp. Signed by Edward Gorey, who provided the cover design. A catalog of winners of various awards for childrens' books. Bound in decorated wrappers. Rubbing to edges, else unsullied and near fine. More
Figbash stands (if he could stand) about six inches tall with an armspan of about 19 1/2 inches. Hand-sewn by Edward Gorey himself in a scarlet fabric with gold brocade. With the original tag reading "Designed life-size and sewn by hand and filled with rice by Edward Gorey." "Edward Gorey"..... More
Hamburg: Frederic Perthes, (c. 1833). Octavo. vi, (104), 32pp. French translation of German fables by Wilhelm Hey, printed on rectos only and accompanied by charming wood engravings by Otto Speckter. According to Hobbs, these fables “were originally devised not for publication but to cheer up [the author’s] children, sick with..... More
(Moscow: 1929). Six pen-and-ink drawings colored with watercolor, with an expressionistic look, each measuring 7 3/4 by 6 1/2 inches. These delicate, stylized illustrations are tinted with shades of orange, purple, and green. The first drawing has the title and illustrator’s name, Ausbrey, below it in Russian. The images recount..... More
(N.P. Interprint, late 20th century). Quarto. 23pp. One of 300 copies designed by Sarah Janson. This book is dedicated to Nina Vaughan, who died in 1970 at the age of 25, shortly after completing the image around which the story is based. The fantastical picture and the accompanying story, "represents..... More
Print Club of Cleveland, 1950. Woodcut measuring 21 by 14 1/2 inches. One of 250 copies, signed and dated by Antonio Frasconi, an artist born in Uruguay and known for his distinctive woodcuts and numerous illustrated books for children. In this depiction of Aesop’s fable, a hungry, curvaceous crocodile tempts..... More
