"THAT'S A LONG LONG TIME TO BE MISSING GOOD FRIENDS…": ON BEYOND ZEBRA, FIRST EDITION, INSCRIBED BY SEUSS TO FAMILY FRIENDS

SEUSS, Dr. On Beyond Zebra. New York: Random House, (1955). Quarto, original pictorial boards, pictorial endpapers, original dust jacket supplied from another copy. $5500.

First edition of Seuss' paean to free thinking, warmly inscribed: "For Judy, Marian and Joe, Whom I haven't seen since they were all 3-1/2 years old. That's a long long time to be missing good friends—Dr. Seuss."

"The story of the boy whose philosophy is 'most people stop with the Z but not me!' encapsulates all that has made Dr. Seuss so important and endearing. Fundamentally, the book posits the empowerment of children through the use of their imagination. Instead of rote memorization of that which has been given to them, there is excitement to be found in what has come to be known as 'thinking outside the box'… This kind of thinking was, for the times, downright radical" (Cohen, 316). Younger & Hirsch 63.

Interior generally fine, only slight wear to extremities of bright boards with expert restoration to spine head and endpapers; bright dust jacket with only minor wear. A very attractive copy with a wonderful inscription by Dr. Seuss.