Marcham, Oxford: Alembic Press, 2005. Two oblong quarto volumes. (22); (22)pp., accordionfold. One of thirty-five copies. The two volumes are meant to be opened in tandem: the first volume contains a poem by Anne Bell printed in grey ink, illustrated with color linocuts, including five pop-ups, by the Australian-born painter... More
London: Motor Oils Dept., Shell-Mex and B.P. (c. 1933). Folio. 16pp. Five full-page color reproductions of automobiles and engines, all with one or more folding plates that, when lifted, reveal additional parts, plus one full plate of a "Chamber of Horrors" engine. These elaborate illustrations provide a hands-on learning experience... More
British made, (c. 1930). Moveable doll set, complete with original envelope and instructions. The Charlie Chaplin doll, with his signature mustache and bowler cap, is decked out in a red and yellow waistcoat with a matching red bow tie and yellow flower. His legs are jointed at the hips and... More
Guildford: Circle Press, 1986. Small folio. (36)pp., french-fold. From an edition of 80 copies, this is one of 65 comprising the regular edition. Signed by the illustrator, Ronald King, and the poet, Roy Fisher. Illustrated in color with numerous photo-collage vignettes, seven tableaux from drawings, and twelve movable puppet designs... More
(Guildford): Circle Press, (1978). Quarto. (4)pp. First edition. One of 100 copies, signed by author, Roy Fisher. This alphabet acrostic poem is illustrated with a pop-up "ABC" down the center of the spread. The pop-up was designed by Ronald King. This book was a precursor to the alphabet series printed... More
Sweden: (N.p. n.d.). Small quarto. (14)ff. Illustrated cut-figure book, with each page cut into two sections. On the rectos are full-length figures, divided into torsos and legs. On the versos are faces, divided at the nose. This particular transformation book has an impressive variety of figures—men and women, fat and... 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
(Harmondsworth, Middlesex): Penguin, (1946). Small octavo. Single page of text, followed by twelve leaves cut horizontally into three sections. First edition. Cut-figure book illustrated by Richard Chopping, who is perhaps best-known for designing the dust wrappers of Ian Fleming's James Bond novels. A brief narrative introduces the reason for these... More
(N.p. c. 1860). Octavo. Single-sheet valentine. This "cobweb"-style valentine was so-named for its intricate lacework and circular central device, which, in this instance, is decorated with flowers. This circular element pulls out, creating a delicate, detailed peep show labeled, "Road to Happiness," which depicts two lovers sitting on a bench... More
Kansas: 1898-1899. Oblong octavo. (19)ff. A double accordion-fold album of thirty-one woven paper designs in brown and coral. Included in this group are two weavings with movable elements, and one in the form of a frame with an image in the center. These examples of a popular kindergarten activity were... More
(Malaysia): Bayard Jeunesse, 2007. Small quarto. (16)pp. A book of pop-up images depicting father and child animals, together with two pop-up maquettes of the father squirrel and the father bear as separate examples of this book's skillful paper-crafting, both signed by the paper engineer, Jean-Charles Rousseau. Each short poem is... More
(N.p. c. 1890). 24mo. (56)pp; (42)pp. With copious illustrations in both color and monochrome. Blow books are classic magic tricks, most popular through the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries. The magician presents the book and riffles through it, showing a set of like illustrations. Then with the book closed, he or... More
NY: Bouillon-Sanders & Chopp, (1926). Quarto. (16)pp. Illustrated throughout in color and black & white, and in a bright orange binding featuring the main character, Willie, with fully movable arms. A "Willie Wait a Minute," who is always postponing his responsibilities to play just a minute longer, is able to... More
Amsterdam: (n.d.). Small octavo. (15)pp. With eight full-page illustrations, printed in orange and black. At the back of the volume are a head and two legs set to rotate on brass rivets; when unfolded, they align with the torso on the upper cover to create the illusion of a full... More
Esslingen & Munich: J. F. Schreiber, (1899). Quarto. (7)ff. Contains six slatted transformations showing boys’ tricks and their consequences. For example: two little rascals pour sand into their father’s umbrella. Pull the tab at the bottom, and one sees sand spill on Papa when he opens his umbrella in the... More
Paris: A. Capendu / Dean & Son, (c. 1889). Octavo. 6ff. Illustrated with six full-page movable images. Each illustration bears a tab at the bottom, which, when pulled, causes birds to flap their wings, a turkey to plump its feathers outward from the page, and cows to nod their heads... More
Paris: A. Capendu, (c. 1900). Oblong octavo. (12)pp. Illustrated with six movable color images. These appear opposite poetic retellings of such familiar La Fontaine stories as "Le Corbeau et le Renard" ("The Dove and the Fox") and "La Cigale et la Fourmie" ("The Cicada and the Ant"). The illustrations move... More
Amsterdam: Cohen Zonen, (n.d.). Octavo. (10)pp. Four full color moveable images, and pen-and-ink drawings throughout. The moveables illustrate humans and animals taking part in charming circus scenes: monkeys clamber about a ladder, an elephant balances a clown upon its trunk, another well-dressed elephant plays the tuba in front of an... More
London: Dean & Son, (1857). Small octavo. (9)ff. A very unusual and humorous children's book, with seven movable pages. On each page is a cut-out character, lithographed and hand-colored, standing against a wall. The figure may be moved aside by means of a tab, exposing the revealing shadow he has... More
Munich: Braun & Schneider, (1887). Quarto. (17)pp. Illustrated with eight full-color movable plates. The illustrations depict eight different animals and mimic their movements. The lion lowers its head in preparation to pounce, the parrot rocks back and forth on its perch, and the giraffe cranes its neck upward to a.... More
Esslingen: J. F. Schreiber, (n.d.). Small quarto. (7)ff. Six full-color movable images. For each, the upper half may be flipped downward to reveal the second half of the scene. Each is titled at the top and captioned by a four-line poem at the bottom. Mischievous children adorn each image. Their... More
London: Dean & Son, (n.d.). Small quarto. 8ff., printed one side only. Eight pages with full hand-colored images—sometimes more than one to a page—all of which bear movable features. These are manipulated through paper tabs toward the bottom of the illustration. Pulling a tab back and forth causes Mother Hubbard's... More
Paris: A. Capendu / Dean & Son, (n.d.). Small quarto. (8)pp. Contains four full-color movable illustrations, with other whimsical circus imagery throughout the accompanying text. The movable images show clowns balancing on their heads, performing tricks with dogs, and riding donkeys. Copyrighted by Dean & Son, the fascinating illustrations dovetail... More
Leiden: P. J. Trap, (1864). Small quarto. (8)ff. Eight hand-colored lithographed illustrations, each with moving parts operated by tabs. The images show a variety of spectacles, from a monkey playing the violin, to children riding an elephant, to two different escapades of the French tightrope walker, Charles Blondin. Below each... More
Munich: Braun & Schneider, (c. 1890). Quarto. (17)pp. Illustrated with eight complex color movable images, positioned opposite humorous lyrics. The scenes include "Der Billardspieler," "Der Schmetterlilngsfanger," and "Der Apfeldieb." The images are manipulated through tabs at the bottom of each page. The tabs move multiple parts of the scene at... More
