Children's Books
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 1 "A HALLOWEEN VERSION OF NORMAN ROCKWELL AND GRANT WOOD": HOMEBODIES, INSCRIBED BY CHARLES ADDAMS WITH AN ORIGINAL DRAWING 1. ADDAMS, Charles. Homebodies. New York, 1954. Tall slim octavo, original half pink cloth, pictorial endpapers, original dust jacket. $3500 First edition, second printing, of Addams’ fourth collection of cartoons, inscribed to one of his editors, “For Bill Gebert, with best regards and appreciation for the headaches of production in making these collections Chas Addams, New York, 1954.” Beneath the inscription is an original drawing of Wednesday Addams and a two-headed cat. Gebert was an editor at The New Yorker. Novelist Wilfrid Sheed remembers Addams as “a tall, laconic man, with a head he might have drawn himself and a voice straight out of Casket and Sunnyside, the mortician’s manual.” “Addams specialized in a bizarre brand of comedy founded on the inexplicable in nature and the antisocial in humanity… Although he sold cartoons to many magazines during the 1930s and 1940s, Addams is most closely associated with The New Yorker, where his macabre sense of humor became a fixture. That magazine bought its first Addams cartoon in 1935” (ANB). Addams’ prototypical American family, described by Sheed as “an American classic, a Halloween version of Norman Rockwell and Grant Wood,” inspired a hit television series and two movies. Book fine. Light soiling and edgewear and chipping to spine ends of bright, very good dust jacket.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 2 FIRST EDITION OF THE CHAS. ADDAMS MOTHER GOOSE, INSCRIBED BY CHARLES ADDAMS 2. ADDAMS, Charles. The Chas. Addams Mother Goose. New York, 1967. Folio (9-1/2 by 12-1/2 inches), original green cloth, dust jacket. $1500 First edition of Addams’ first book for children, wonderfully illustrated in both color and black-and-white, inscribed on the first page: “For Peter, Chas Addams.” “Fans of the Addams Family creator and New Yorker cartoonist Charles Addams are sure to savor the deliciously twisted take on nursery rhymes in The Charles Addams Mother Goose… the work trumps tradition, spicing up the original verse with offbeat illustrations” (Publisher’s Weekly). “Addams specialized in a bizarre brand of comedy founded on the inexplicable in nature and the antisocial in humanity… Although he sold cartoons to many magazines during the 1930s and 1940s, Addams is most closely associated with The New Yorker, where his macabre sense of humor became a fixture. That magazine bought its first Addams cartoon in 1935” (ANB). Novelist Wilfrid Sheed remembers Addams as “a tall, laconic man, with a head he might have drawn himself and a voice straight out of Casket and Sunnyside, the mortician’s manual.” Addams’ prototypical American family, described by Sheed as “an American classic, a Halloween version of Norman Rockwell and Grant Wood,” inspired a hit television series and two movies. Book fine, price-clipped dust jacket near-fine with only minor rubbing and toning to extremities. A desirable inscribed copy.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 3 SIGNED BY MARGARET WISE BROWN: LITTLE FUR FAMILY, FIRST EDITION, BOUND IN RABBIT FUR AND WITH ORIGINAL BOX 3. BROWN, Margaret Wise. Little Fur Family. New York, 1946. 12mo, original rabbit fur, cardboard box, custom clamshell box. $7500 Rare first edition, bound in rabbit fur, with the original illustrated box, signed on the title page by Margaret Wise Brown—the only copy of any Margaret Wise Brown book we have ever encountered signed by her. Margaret Wise Brown’s most whimsically designed book follows the adventures of a “little fur animal” as he explores his world. Beautifully illustrated by Garth Williams, of Charlotte’s Web and Stuart Little fame, this scarce first edition is bound in real rabbit fur. “The diminutive 1946 rabbit-fur-bound edition had proven difficult to store (moths got into Harper’s warehouse, destroying a large quantity of the first printing)” (Marcus, 33). Consequently, later editions had imitation fur or no fur at all. In the original publisher’s illustrated box with circular cut-out, through which real fur shows. Later editions were also larger than this edition, as its small size made it difficult for libraries to carry on their shelves. Book about-fine, slight soiling to rear panel only of box. An excellent copy, very scarce and desirable signed by Brown.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 4 “A BOOK… WHICH WILL BELONG TO ALL THE GENERATIONS… UNTIL THE LANGUAGE BECOMES OBSOLETE”: FIRST AUTHORIZED ENGLISH EDITION OF ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND 4. CARROLL, Lewis. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. London, 1866, 1872. Octavo, mid-20th century full red morocco gilt. $14,500 First authorized English edition of Carroll’s cherished romp through the realm of nonsense, illustrated with 42 engravings by John Tenniel, handsomely bound by Riviere & Son, with original cloth-gilt at rear. “More than a flare of genius,” Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland “was the spiritual volcano of children’s books” (Darton, 260). “Historians of children’s literature universally agree that [its] publication… marks the liberation of children’s books from the restraining hand of the moralists” (Carpenter & Prichard, 102). A mesmerizing masterpiece of comic nonsense, Alice also demonstrates Carroll’s gift for recognizing “the child’s inner fears, wishes, intelligence and imagination. He unleashed thousands of children’s minds… and invited them to laugh” (Silvey, 124). “It is, in a word, a book of that extremely rare kind which will belong to all the generations to come until the language becomes obsolete” (Sir Walter Besant). First published and authorized English edition, preceded only by the extraordinarily rare suppressed 1865 London edition, of which only about 20 copies are known to exist, and the scarce New York edition of 1866. Lewis Carroll Handbook 46. Lewis Carroll at Texas 3. See PMM 354. Bookplate. Newspaper clipping laid in. A bit of foxing to front blank endpapers only. A beautifully bound copy with the original cloth bound in.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 5 "THE INTENSE DRAMA AND SIMPLICITY OF THE FAIRY TALE": FIRST EDITION OF BOY, BOLDLY INSCRIBED BY ROALD DAHL 5. DAHL, Roald. Boy. Tales of Childhood. London, 1984. Octavo, original blue cloth, dust jacket. Housed in a custom clamshell box. $4800 First edition of Dahl’s lively first autobiography, boldly inscribed by him across the entire half title: “To Douglas Love Roald Dahl.” The funny and often macabre tales in Boy, Roald Dahl’s first autobiography, recall his childhood in boarding school, the excitement of summer vacations, the drama of The Great Mouse Plot and much more. These lively stories “feel as if they have been told as family folklore, honed down to essential incident and sharp detail. They have the intense drama and simplicity of the fairy tale, and its unequivocal extremes of good and evil” (New York Times). Precedes the American signed limited edition. Connolly, 103. Silvey, 185. Faint crease to dust jacket front panel. A fine inscribed copy.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 6 "ONE BY ONE A COW CAME BY HOWLING AROUND FOR THE MOON…": ROALD DAHL'S RARE FIRST BOOK THE GREMLINS, IN SCARCE ORIGINAL DUST JACKET, TWICE INSCRIBED BY DAHL 6. DAHL, Roald. The Gremlins. A Royal Air Force Story by Flight Lieutenant Roald Dahl. New York, 1943. Slim quarto, original half red cloth, dust jacket, custom clamshell box. $13,500 Presentation first edition of Dahl’s rare first book, with 14 vibrant full-page illustrations by Walt Disney Productions, twice inscribed by him: on the half title, “To Joe and Steve with love from Roald Dahl 10/5/47,” and opposite the half title, “One by one a cow came by/ Howling around for the moon/ They asked me where the hell it was/ I said it’s gone you dopes—you’re much too soon. R.” An exceptionally elusive and desirable Dahl first edition in any condition, particularly in the original dust jacket and inscribed by him. Dahl was sent to Washington in 1942 as an assistant air attaché for the British Embassy. After having a story published anonymously in the Saturday Evening Post, he was encouraged by C. S. Forester. He produced The Gremlins, a children’s story expanding on a mythical creature enshrined for years in RAF lore (notwithstanding Dahl’s claims to have invented the word) and sent it to Sidney Bernstein, the head of the British Information Service, who sent it on to Walt Disney. Disney decided to make it into a movie, at one point bringing Dahl to Hollywood to work on the screenplay. The story was published in Cosmopolitan in December of 1942, and as a book by Random House six months later. The film project, however, was sidelined and has never been produced. The story was received positively: Eleanor Roosevelt read it to her grandchildren, and invited Dahl to the White House. There are three existing editions: American, British and Australian; this, the American edition, is the first. According to Connolly, “This book is virtually unknown” (Modern First Editions, 90); Dahl chose never to republish The Gremlins. Text with two small ink corrections, probably in Dahl’s hand. Book nearly fine, with one small rub to front cover. Scarce dust jacket with two small chips and minor rubbing to extremities. A beautiful, near-fine copy.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 7 FIRST EDITION OF DISNEY'S "POP-UP" SILLY SYMPHONIES 7. DISNEY STUDIOS. The “Pop-up” Silly Symphonies, Containing Babes In the Woods and King Neptune. New York, 1933. Quarto, original pictorial boards, pictorial endpapers. $1650 First edition, illustrated with in-text line drawings and plates and four double-page full-color pop-ups. “As the Depression years deepened, American book publishers sought ways to rekindle book buying… Blue Ribbon Publishing of New York found a combination that proved successful. They animated Walt Disney characters and fairy tales with pop ups,” becoming “the first publisher to use the term… to describe movable illustrations” (Montanaro, xix). This book is based on two of Disney’s animated musical shorts from 1932: “While the character-based ‘Mickey Mouse’ films used music as an accompaniment to the action, the ‘Silly Symphonies’ created stories through the use of music” (ANB). “These pop-up books had the dual appeal of a book and a toy and became quite popular. Because of their unusual pop-up feature, they have become favorites among collectors” (Munsey, 164). Without very scarce dust jacket. Owner signature in a child’s hand. Pop-ups intact and fine, occasional trace of gutter-edge glue residue, mild soiling to bright pictorial boards. An excellent near-fine copy.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 8 OLIVIA, SIGNED BY IAN FALCONER 8. FALCONER, Ian. Olivia. New York, 2000. Quarto, original pictorial paper boards, dust jacket. $1350 First edition of this 2001 Caldecott Honor book, signed on the title page by Ian Falconer. “I’ve always felt that children’s books are for the most part condescending toward children and miss how smart children are,” Falconer has said. “Their little hands and mouths may not be able to articulate what is going on in their sharp little brains. Writing children’s books is an opportunity to express this, and it seems to be appreciated by both children and adults.” A fine signed copy.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 9 “GOODBYE BRANCH LINE, I’M GOING WHERE THE GREAT EXPRESSES ARE”: THE LITTLE TRAIN, GRAHAME GREENE’S 1946 CHILDREN’S BOOK 9. [GREENE, Graham] CRAIGIE, Dorothy. The Little Train. London, [1946]. Slim, oblong quarto, original yellow pictorial cloth, dust jacket. $2000 First edition of this collaboration between author Graham Greene and illustrator Dorothy Glover, which appeared under the pseudonym “Dorothy Craigie.” “Graham Greene and Dorothy Glover met in the spring of 1939 when he rented a studio from her in Mecklenburg Square for writing. At the time she was working as a theatre costume designer in London. They began an affair shortly after, Greene moving in with Glover as his family was in the countryside. During the Blitz of London in 19401941, Glover and Greene both served as neighborhood fire wardens. By 1946 his loyalty and interest in the affair was decreasing, but they continued to live together until the summer of 1948” (Dorothy Craigie Collection, Georgetown University). Greene would later acknowledge authorship of this children’s book on the title page of The Little Fire Engine, another collaboration with Glover. Brennan 18. Miller 23. Bookseller ticket. Cloth bright and near-fine; light foxing to endpapers. Light wear to extremities of scarce price-clipped dust jacket with lettering on spine rubbed out. A near-fine copy, rare in dust jacket.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 10 "IT WILL LIVE AS LONG AS AESOP'S FABLES": FIRST EDITION, FIRST STATE, OF JOEL CHANDLER HARRIS' FIRST UNCLE REMUS BOOK, IN ORIGINAL GILT-STAMPED CLOTH 10. HARRIS, Joel Chandler. Uncle Remus: His Songs and His Sayings. The Folk-Lore of the Old Plantation. New York, 1881. Octavo, original gilt- and black-stamped pictorial green cloth, custom clamshell box. $8500 First edition, first state, of the first and most beloved Uncle Remus book by Harris, the one American writer of the Reconstruction who “has made the most permanent contribution,” with eight plates and numerous text illustrations by Church and Moser, in original cloth-gilt. “Harris’ main concern in setting [the stories] down was to preserve the remnants of a folklore which he was sufficiently farseeing to know would one day perish from the earth unless someone who understood the racial psychology and social philosophy behind it acted as amanuensis to its surviving narrators” (Twenty-three Books, Winterich, 102). “Of all the American writers of [the Reconstruction] period, Joel Chandler Harris has made the most permanent contribution” (Braithwaite, in The New Negro, 32). “It will live as long as Aesop’s fables” (John Bigelow). First state, with “presumptive” in the last line of page 9 and no mention of Uncle Remus in the publisher’s advertisements. BAL notes four cloth variants and three endpaper variants, no priority. BAL 7100. Interior fine, text block with minor expert reinforcement at a few signatures, minor rubs to cloth spine ends and back panel, gilt bright and lovely. A near-fine copy, scarce in this condition.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 11 "…BUT FOR NOW I'M STUCK IN MIDDLE SCHOOL WITH A BUNCH OF MORONS": JEFF KINNEY'S PHENOMENALLY POPULAR DIARY OF A WIMPY KID SERIES, SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR-ILLUSTRATOR IN ALL NINE BOOKS 11. KINNEY, Jeff. Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series (Books 1-8: Diary of a Wimpy Kid; Rodrick Rules; The Last Straw; Dog Days; The Ugly Truth; Cabin Fever; The Third Wheel; Hard Luck. WITH: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Do-It-Yourself Book). New York, 2007-13. Nine volumes. Octavo, original glazed stiff pictorial boards, Housed in a custom slipcase. $6500 First editions of the first eight titles as well as the “Do-It-Yourself” volume of the wildly successful Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, each book boldly signed or inscribed by the author-illustrator, Jeff Kinney. When aspiring newspaper cartoonist Jeff Kinney failed to land a syndication deal, he turned online to start publishing what would become his blockbuster “novel in cartoons,” Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Millions of younger (and not-so-young) readers embraced the series’ refreshingly honest, frequently hilarious takes on adolescence in modern suburban America. An evergreen on numerous bestseller lists, the Wimpy Kid books have also garnered critical acclaim. In 2009, Time magazine named Kinney one of the world’s most influential people. “I tried to create a story that’s a celebration of childhood itself,” Kinney once told the New York Times. “I’m interested in absurdity and things that feel true. My number 1 goal is authenticity, so that kids can’t sniff that it was written by an adult.” Elements from the first several books formed the basis for three well-received motion pictures (2010-12). A fine signed set of an instant American young adult classic.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 12 "AN HONORABLE PLACE IN ANY LIBRARY OF CHILDREN'S BOOKS": FIRST EDITIONS OF KIPLING'S JUNGLE BOOKS 12. KIPLING, Rudyard. The Jungle Book. WITH: The Second Jungle Book. London and New York, 1894-95. Two volumes. Octavo, original gilt-stamped pictorial blue cloth. Housed together in a custom clamshell box. $6900 First editions of Kipling’s classic Jungle Books, “replete with adventure and excitement.” “Among the 15 stories in [these volumes] are some of Kipling’s most memorable narratives” (Abraham, 36). “The child who has never run with Mowgli’s wolf pack, or stood with Parnesius and Pertinax to defend the Northern Wall… has missed something that he will not get from any other writer” (Carpenter & Prichard, 297). Illustrated largely by W. H. Drake and Kipling’s father, J. Lockwood Kipling, “this most desirable pair… will always fill an honorable place in any library of children’s books” (Quayle 87). “Of the seven stories and seven poems comprising The Jungle Book, only the stories had previously appeared in periodicals (in 1893 and 1894), and when collected here, each story had an additional verse heading appended.” First edition of Jungle Book containing the imprint “R. & R. Clark” that appears in the “first copies… [of] the first print run… in later printings it is ‘R. & R. Clark Ltd.” (Richards A76); with numerous in-text and 20 full-page illustrations including frontispiece. First English edition of Second Jungle Book issued only three days after the American edition, containing numerous in-text illustrations, decorative initials and head- and tailpieces: with first edition imprint “R. & R. Clark, Limited” (238), rear advertisement leaf. Without rarely found dust jackets. Livingston 104, 116. Bookplates. Light scattered foxing to interiors, only slight rubbing and toning to spines, gilt bright. A handsome set in extremely good condition.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 13 SIGNED LIMITED FIRST EDITION OF THE ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL ELOISE, SIGNED BY HILARY KNIGHT 13. KNIGHT, Hilary. Kay Thompson’s Eloise: The Absolutely Essential Edition. New York, 1999. Slim quarto, original white cloth, slipcase, shipping carton. $1100 Signed limited first edition of the “Absolutely Essential” Eloise, number 222 of 250 copies signed by illustrator Hilary Knight, including not only the complete text of Kay Thompson’s cherished classic with Knight’s wonderful illustrations, but also a “scrapbook” of information, photographs and art relating to the creation and subsequent history of Thompson’s precocious alter ego. “Eloise’s birth was unexpected. At rehearsals of her act with the Williams Brothers, Thompson [who was a professional singer] prized punctuality. Then one day she was late. In a high, childish voice that she had never used before, she made her apology. One of her co-workers said, ‘Who are you, little girl?’ Thompson replied, ‘I am Eloise. I am six.’ The others joined in the game, each assuming a juvenile identity, and it became a regular rehearsal pastime” (New York Times). That pastime became a book, with three more to follow in Thompson’s lifetime. Eloise first published 1955. This “Absolutely Essential” edition includes 18 pages of new material (written by Marie Brenner). Fine condition.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 14 AUTHOR-CORRECTED ADVANCE ROUGH PROOF OF A. A. MILNE'S COLLECTION OF SHORT STORIES 14. MILNE, A. A. Birthday Party and Other Stories. London, 1949. Small octavo, original pre-publication brown wrappers lettered “Rough Proof.” $4200 Advance page proofs of the first English edition, with extensive corrections on the Foreword in Milne’s hand, initialed at the bottom by him. “Milne acquired several large and distinct audiences in his lifetime” (Stringer, 451). In 1948 the famous author of Winnie-the-Pooh prepared a collection of 15 short stories intended for the adult audience—in keeping with the three earlier collections of his articles from Punch. In his Foreword, he explains that one story in this collection was previously published, and details its history. In his edits, he rewrites several sentences for clarity, and adjusts the Foreword’s information for his English audience, as the Foreword was originally written for the American edition. He also adds a poem not previously published, referring to the readers who might have bought the story in its previous publication: “Theirs’ not to reason why/ Theirs’ but to go and buy.” In total he adds or changes 39 words, and deletes 27 words. Fine condition.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 15 "…A LITTLE BOY AND HIS BEAR WILL ALWAYS BE PLAYING": FIRST EDITION OF THE HOUSE AT POOH CORNER 15. MILNE, A.A. The House at Pooh Corner. London, 1928. Small octavo, original gilt-stamped pictorial pink cloth, dust jacket. $5000 First edition of Milne’s final Winnie-the-Pooh book, delightfully illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard. A lovely copy. “Even as Milne celebrates childhood” in this, the final book of his Pooh quartet, “he subtly prepares both characters and readers for the inevitable need to forge ahead” (Silvey, 462). The stories in this volume—the de- and reconstruction of Eeyore’s house, Tigger’s arrival in the Forest, Christopher Robin’s attempted farewell in an Enchanted Place—bring to a close tales that are “more successful as works written for children than anything else produced during children’s literature’s Golden Age” (Carpenter, 205). Payne IVA. Cutler & Stiles, 116. Faint offsetting to endpapers, text clean, cloth fine; dust jacket with very minor rubbing and faint wrinkling, evidence of adhesive to verso only. A lovely, nearfine copy.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 16 16. MONTGOMERY, Lucy Maud. Anne of Green Gables. Boston, 1908. Octavo, original gilt-stamped chocolate brown cloth, mounted cover illustration, custom half morocco clamshell box. $27,000 First edition, first issue, of Montgomery’s first novel, illustrated with eight plates by M.A. and W.A.J. Claus. The story of the red-haired orphan Anne Shirley and the elderly brother and sister who adopt her “is the most popular and enduring of a host of girls’ stories published in the United States and Canada in the first years of the 20th century” (Carpenter & Pritchard, 25-26). “Montgomery began writing about Anne as a serial for a Sunday school periodical in the spring of 1904. The character became so real that she eventually decided to develop the idea into a full novel. Much as would later with readers, Anne took hold of her creator, developing into a feisty, imaginative little being who demanded to be noticed and loved” (Keeline, 41). The novel was completed in 1905, but was rejected by four major American publishing houses, and it was not until 1907 that Montgomery found a publisher. The best seller that would make the remote Canadian province of Prince Edward Island known around the globe was not to be published in Montgomery’s native Canada until 1942, the year Montgomery died. Lucy Maud Montgomery’s “mother died when she was two, and she was sent to live with her maternal grandparents in their farmhouse. In character she seems to have much resembled her heroine Anne. She became a teacher, but gave it up to look after her widowed grandmother” (Carpenter & Pritchard, 356). “By age 21 she was earning her living in the thriving periodical market of turn-of-the-century North America. International acclaim came in 1908 with the publication of her first novel, Anne of Green Gables, which instantly became—and remains—a best seller… there is energy of another type that animates Montgomery’s books, which retain a strong hold on adult readers. It is the energy of social critique, and it operates just below the surface of many of her novels. Anne and Emily, her two best-known and best-developed heroines, may fulfill their womanly duty by marrying the saccharine-sweet boy next door, but not before each voices loud and angry criticisms of the way in which girls, orphans, and other disempowered members of society are ignored and trivialized” (Silvey, 465-66). First issue, dated “April, 1908” on the copyright page, in a variant chocolate brown cloth binding; most copies are found in pale green or buff cloth (L.M. Montgomery Institute). We have been able to locate only a handful of first-issue copies that have appeared at auction in the past 30 years. With eight-page publisher’s catalogue bound at rear. Peter Parley to Penrod, 124. Keeline, 41-43. Interior fine, lightest rubbing to spine ends of original cloth binding, spine leaning very slightly. An about-fine copy, exceedingly rare in such excellent condition and in a variant binding. “THE DEAREST AND MOST LOVABLE CHILD IN FICTION SINCE THE IMMORTAL ALICE” (MARK TWAIN): RARE FIRST EDITION OF ANNE OF GREEN GABLES
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 17 A BEAUTIFUL NISTER PRODUCTION: LITTLE PEOPLE’S BOOK OF AIRSHIPS, 1906 17. NISTER, Ernest. Little People’s Book of Airships. London: Ernest Nister; New York, (circa 1906). Oblong quarto, original half blue cloth, varnished paper boards. $2500 First edition of an exceptional Ernest Nister picture book, with 14 wonderful full-page aeronautical color plates and 16 full-page pen-and-ink line cuts in sepia, colorful chromolithographic front board, a splendid copy. This impressive volume of 30 full-page images of aircraft was issued by famed German paper-engineer Ernest Nister. His legendary firm was centered in Nuremburg, a center for toy making in the late 19th century. Between 1891 and 1900, Nister’s company produced countless children’s books of superior quality in both illustration and printing. Nister made numerous, vital contributions to the history of children’s literature—perhaps most notably in the genre of pop-up books. In keeping with Nister’s prized standards of production, this wonderful book of early aircraft, though not a pop-up, reflects his impeccable standards and is in the original chromolithographic front board. Included are splendid color plates of an airship over St. Paul’s Cathedral, Glenn Hammond Curtiss in his bi-plane above NY harbor and the Statue of Liberty, Count Zeppelin’s airship, Grahame-White in his aeroplane, and much more. Cotsen 6549. Large splendid illustrations bright and fresh, faintest trace of dampstaining to corners of boards. An excellent aboutfine copy.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 18 "THE NEST IS SO SNUG, WE SHALL BE SOUND ASLEEP ALL WINTER" 18. POTTER, Beatrix. The Tale of Timmy Tiptoes. London and New York, 1911. 16mo, original brown boards, mounted cover illustration, glassine dust jacket. $5200 First edition of Potter’s gift to her devoted American readers, with color frontispiece and 26 color plates, in extremely rare original printed glassine dust jacket. A decade after her most famous creation, Peter Rabbit, debuted on the stage of children’s literature, Potter had gained “many American friends and admirers, some of whom were children’s librarians. It is believed that The Tale of Timmy Tiptoes was written primarily for American children because they would be familiar with both chipmunks and bears. They would also be familiar with grey squirrels like Timmy Tiptoes and his wife Goody, who stored nuts for the winter months and met with various adventures while so doing” (Linder, 208). “The year 1911 appears on the front of the title page of the first two printings, which are believed to be identical” (Linder, 429). With extremely scarce original glassine. Quinby 20. Pencil “+” marks next to each title on rear panel of dust jacket. Book with just a few faint finger smudges to interior, faint stain to edge of half title, a couple tiny spots of soiling to boards, and small split at base of spine. Dust jacket with light wear and toning to extremities. A near-fine copy, most desirable with very rare glassine dust jacket.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 19 "AND APPLEY DAPPLY IS SO FOND OF PIES!" 19. POTTER, Beatrix. Appley Dapply’s Nursery Rhymes. London and New York, 1917. 12mo, original green paper boards, mounted cover illustration, custom half morocco slipcase. $2000 First edition of Potter’s original nursery rhymes for children, with title vignette and 15 color plates. “Beatrix Potter had always been interested in traditional rhymes,… but the majority of the Appley Dapply rhymes were of her own composition… One or two of them are delicious” (Linder, 225, 228). Potter began work on Appley Dapply as early as 1902, but continually put the project aside in favor of other opportunities. In June 1917, however, when Warne asked Potter for a new story, she replied, “Would it be too shabby to put Appley Dapply into a booklet the size of Miss Moppet? I find I could scrape together sufficient old drawings to fill one… Some of them [are] better than any I could do now.” It appeared in October. Stamped in variant red ink; no priority. Without scarce dust jacket. Quinby 23. Early ink owner gift inscription. A lovely copy in about-fine condition.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 20 20. PULLMAN, Philip. His Dark Materials: Northern Lights. WITH: The Subtle Knife. WITH: The Amber Spyglass. London, 1995, 1997, 2000. Together three volumes. Octavo, original cloth, dust jackets. $13,000 First editions of Pullman’s celebrated trilogy—including the very scarce first volume, Northern Lights—each volume signed by Pullman on the title page. A former schoolteacher and an accomplished playwright, Pullman followed several historical and realistic novels with this literate, sophisticated series, “perhaps the most highly acclaimed work of fantasy for young adults published in the 1990s—in part, certainly, because it can easily be enjoyed by older readers as well. The alternative 20th-century world Pullman creates is extremely imaginative, including creatures as diverse as water gypsies, witches and armored bears… The Dark Materials series is filled with moral ambiguity rather than clear-cut didacticism, and readers as well as [protagonist] Lyra must grapple with the difficult questions raised by the story” (Fantasy and Horror 7-311). “Initially… [Pullman] simply planned to infuse his story with Miltonian atmosphere—’the grandeur, the nobility, the overwhelming magnitude of ambition and imaginative power.’ Soon, however, Milton’s theme, the Fall of Man, crept into the novel… [Pullman explains,] ‘My story resolved itself into an account of the necessity of growing up, and a refusal to lament the loss of innocence” (The New Yorker). Volume I, Northern Lights (renamed The Golden Compass for the American edition) earned a 1996 Carnegie Award, “the most prestigious United Kingdom award for children’s literature” (Clute & Grant, 791); and the final installment, The Amber Spyglass, became in 2001 the first children’s novel ever to win the Whitbread Book of the Year Award. Each volume signed by Pullman on the title page. With two bookplates signed by Pullman, two bookmarks from the 2003 stage adaptation and publisher’s excerpt from The Amber Spyglass laid in. The Amber Spyglass dust jacket with bookstore price sticker to rear panel. A fine set, desirable signed in each volume by the author. “A REFUSAL TO LAMENT THE LOSS OF INNOCENCE”: PHILIP PULLMAN’S HIS DARK MATERIALS TRILOGY, FIRST EDITIONS SIGNED BY HIM IN ALL THREE VOLUMES
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 21 “HE ESCAPED FROM BEING A HUMAN WHEN HE WAS SEVEN DAYS OLD…”: PETER PAN, THE TITLE THAT MADE RACKHAM FAMOUS, SIGNED BY RACKHAM 21. (RACKHAM, Arthur) BARRIE, J.M. Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens. London, circa 1912. Quarto, original full pictorial vellum gilt, uncut. $9200 Enlarged third edition, deluxe issue in full pictorial vellum-gilt, with a color frontispiece, 49 mounted color plates, and 12 in-text line cuts (seven full-page and new to this edition)—this copy signed on the title page by Arthur Rackham. Peter Pan first appeared as a character in Barrie’s 1902 novel The Little White Bird; this book contains the chapters featuring the boy who never grows up. It is also “the book which first made Rackham’s work famous” (Carpenter & Prichard, 321) and is “a much-sought-after volume by the many collectors” of his illustrations (Quayle, 87). This is the deluxe issue of the 1912 enlarged third edition, bound in vellum rather than the cloth binding found on the trade issue. This edition was a faithful republication of the 1906 first edition, enlarged with a new color frontispiece and seven full-page black-and-white drawings not present in that 1906 edition. (A second edition was issued in 1910, with only 24 of the plates, making this third edition more desirable than the second, and possibly moreso than the first as well, as that edition had the plates bound in at the rear following the text.) This third edition was not issued in a signed limited edition, making this signed deluxe copy particularly scarce and desirable. Riall, 114. Latimore & Haskell, 40. Plates fine, a bit of tape residue to front pastedown; vellum with mild wear. Near-fine condition. Scarce and quite desirable signed by Rackham.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 22 "NO MONKEY IS AS CURIOUS AS GEORGE": FIRST EDITION OF CURIOUS GEORGE FLIES A KITE 22. REY, H.A. Curious George Flies a Kite. Boston, 1958. Square octavo, original pictorial blue cloth, dust jacket. $2800 First edition of the fifth Curious George title. Hans Augusto and Margret Rey created Curious George in 1939. The Jewish couple fled Paris on bicycles the next year as the Nazi army approached. They eventually settled in New York City, where they began publishing their muchloved series of George’s escapades. Although H.A. Rey died in 1977, Margret continued to write children’s books; she died in 1996. Book with light wear to extremities. Bright dust jacket with a few stray marks and light wear to extremities. An extremely good copy. Scarce in any condition.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 23 “STORIES ARE MADE OF WORDS, AND WORDS ARE MADE OF LETTERS”: CURIOUS GEORGE LEARNS THE ALPHABET, FIRST EDITION 23. REY, H.A. Curious George Learns the Alphabet. Boston, 1963. Small quarto, original gray cloth, dust jacket. $1800 First edition of the sixth book in Rey’s enormously popular series. In this richly illustrated sixth book in the series, Curious George stumbles upon books full of little black marks and, with the help of the man with the yellow hat, learns about the letters of the alphabet, how to put them together into simple words, and about the stories those words can tell. “Through the character of Curious George, the adventurous tailless monkey, Rey projected his own lively curiosity in the world around him and at the same time kept his stories within the realm of children’s activities and comprehension” (Silvey, 554). Book with small tape mark to front board and dampstain along bottom edges of both boards. Dust jacket with faintest soiling, light wear, a couple small tears to front panel, and evidence of tape removal to verso. An extremely good copy.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 24 "ANYONE CAN FLY. ALL YOU NEED IS SOMEWHERE TO GO THAT YOU CAN'T GET TO ANY OTHER WAY" 24. RINGGOLD, Faith. Dancing at the Louvre. Faith Ringgold’s French Collection and Other Story Quilts. California, 1998. Quarto, original half black paper boards, dust jacket. $300 First edition of the richly illustrated museum catalog from Ringgold’s influential first exhibition, boldly signed by her in the year of publication, “Faith Ringgold 10/14/98.” “The sophisticated populism of Faith Ringgold’s art allows it to glide across cultural and generational boundaries, like those separating children’s storybooks from mature meditations on history and identity. Organized by Dan Cameron, this first museum exhibition [this is the museum catalog from that exhibition] devoted to her narrative quilt-paintings features two series: ‘The French Collection,’ which tells of an African-American artist in ‘20s Paris, and ‘The American Collection,’ in which the subject’s daughter becomes an artist in postwar America” (ArtForum). First edition, first printing: issued along with wrappers edition, no priority established. A fine signed copy.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 25 INSCRIBED BY ARTIST FAITH RINGGOLD 25. RINGGOLD, Faith. Bonjour, Lonnie. New York, 1996. Oblong quarto, original pictorial laminated paper boards, dust jacket. $350 First edition of Ringgold’s evocative children’s book about an African American orphan living in France—her “lush, deeply imagined paintings… will tug at anyone who has seen—or wants to see—Paris”—boldly inscribed by her in black felt pen, “To B— G— Faith Ringgold.” Harlem-born artist Ringgold uses the images in her paintings, quilts and award-winning children’s books “as often to uplift as critique… in bright, bold and inviting ways” (New York Times). “In this fantastical, sweeping picture book, she reintroduces a character from Dinner at Aunt Connie’s (1993) in order to chronicle some pivotal moments in African American history.” Here the young Lonnie, who lives in a Paris orphanage, “is visited one night by a magical Love Bird who inspires him to ‘look everywhere’ for his loved ones. On his surreal search, Lonnie combs the streets and sights of Paris, even speaking to the Mona Lisa inside the Louvre. The journey changes course when he encounters the spirits of his deceased grandparents and parents. They explain both his mixed racial heritage and, more broadly, Black Americans’ contributions to the arts (e.g., the Harlem Renaissance) and to the Allies’ victories in the two World Wars. With an emphasis on acceptance and love, Ringgold’s text illustrates that families can come in all kinds of configurations” (Publishers Weekly). Ringgold’s “lush, deeply imagined paintings… will tug at anyone who has seen— or wants to see—Paris; their intense colors, stylized figures, and beautiful use of pattern draw the viewers in again and again” (Kirkus). First edition, first printing: with publisher’s gold label on front dust jacket panel. Faint creasing to front board and dust jacket. A fine inscribed copy.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 26 FIRST EDITIONS OF FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM AND QUIDDITCH THROUGH THE AGES, SIGNED AND INSCRIBED BY J.K. ROWLING 26. ROWLING, J.K. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. WITH: Quidditch Through the Ages. London, 2001. Two volumes. 12mo, original stiff printed pictorial wrappers; pp. 42, 56, schoolbag-printed plastic bag, custom half morocco clamshell box. $12,000 First editions of Rowling’s two whimsical “textbooks” from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, each boldly signed by her on the title page, with the Quidditch volume additionally inscribed by her: “To Christina, lots of love.” How long is an Ashwinder’s life span? When did wizards stop using baskets in Quidditch and start using goalposts? What is the only spell capable of repelling a Lethifold? How did the Moontrimmer mark “a leap forward” in broomstick manufacture? You’ll find answers to all these questions (and more you never knew to ask) in this highly creative pair of “textbooks,” direct from the Hogwarts library and copious marginal “annotations” by Harry Potter and his fellow students. Rowling wrote these slim, entertaining books as a fundraiser for Comic Relief, a major United Kingdom anti-poverty charity. Published simultaneously with the first American editions (March 12, 2001). Fantastic Beasts adapted to the screen in 2016. The original laid-in adhesive bookplate label from Hogwarts has been removed. Errington A10(a), A11(a). A fine pair in the original packaging, most scarce and desirable signed and inscribed by J.K. Rowling.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 27 “THE ONLY PLACE IN NEW YORK CITY THAT IS NOT IN THE UNITED STATES!” 27. SASEK, Miroslav. This is the United Nations. New York, 1968. Folio, original illustrated cloth, dust jacket. $450 First edition of the fifteenth book in Sasek’s celebrated series of children’s books about the world. Sasek gives children an introduction to the history and workings of the United Nations, with an emphasis on its mission of peace. Dust jacket price-clipped. Book fine. Only light wear and soiling to extremities of jacket, with one small tape repair to verso, extremely good.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 28 “A LAND OF INTELLECTUAL LIGHT AS WELL AS OF MYSTERIOUS DUST” 28. SASEK, Miroslav. This is Greece. London, 1966. Folio, original illustrated boards, dust jacket. $250 First English edition of the 13th book in Sasek’s celebrated series of children’s books about the world. This classic book in Sasek’s series of illustrated geographical guides for children features his drawings on every page of Greece. Published simultaneously with the American edition; both were printed in Italy by Fratelli Fabbri Editori. Front flap price-clipped by the publisher, with pricing sticker providing the new price. Book fine, dust jacket with a few minor rubs, closed tear at spine head, clean and bright.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 29 "ONE OF THE GREATEST OF AMERICAN ILLUSTRATED BOOKS" 29. SAUNDERS, Louise. The Knave of Hearts. New York, 1925. Folio, original black cloth, mounted cover illustration. $4000 First edition of “one of the greatest of American illustrated books” (Porter, 84), the last and most lavish children’s book illustrated by Maxfield Parrish, with mounted cover design, pictorial endpapers, 14 full-page color plates, and nine in-text color illustrations. By 1900, Maxfield Parrish had become “recognized as one of America’s most successful artists, achieving national popularity for his distinctively elegant style, detailed backgrounds and glowing colors” (Dalby, 42). He agreed to illustrate his friend Saunders’ play “on account of the bully opportunity it gives for a very good time making the pictures. Imagination could run riot, bound down by no period, just good fun and all sorts of things” (Yount, 8688). Without very scarce original glassine or box. Yount, 86-91. Silvey, 507. Slight marginal soiling to frontispiece, scattered foxing and soiling (mainly marginal) to text, light wear to cloth and cover illustration. A near-fine copy.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 30 “WHAT A TREAT TO HAVE A WHOLE PORTFOLIO OF GALLERY-QUALITY PRINTS”: COLLECTION OF 24 SENDAK POSTERS, SIGNED BY MAURICE SENDAK, FROM THE COLLECTION OF HIS CLOSE FRIEND AND NEIGHBOR 30. SENDAK, Maurice. Posters. New York, 1986. Folio (10-1/2 by 14 inches), original pictorial paper wrappers. $2500 First edition of this wonderful collection of Sendak’s “easy images,” signed on the title page by Maurice Sendak. From the collection of Sendak’s close friend and neighbor. This is a collection of 24 of Sendak’s “favorite posters and pictures,” with his introduction. “I have a disproportionate affection for these ‘easy’ images,” he confesses. “Why ‘easy’? They came easy. They were painted in rare moments of relaxation? Simply, they were fun to do.” Hanrahan A126. The former owner of this signed book was Maurice Sendak’s neighbor, Andrew, from Ridgefield, Connecticut. Sendak bought a home and studio in Ridgefield in 1972 with his longtime partner, Eugene Glynn, and lived there until his death. Andrew first encountered Sendak in 1975 during one of his daily dog walks. (Sendak owned many dogs throughout his life, and they often starred in his books.) Andrew was immediately taken with Sendak, who reminded him of his recently deceased father. One day, Andrew called Sendak at home and asked if he could join him on his walks. Andrew and Sendak thus embarked on a 37-year friendship that also included the Andrew’s mother, Betty, as well as Andrew’s brother. Sendak went on long walks and hikes with Andrew and his family regularly, discussing general life events, opera, and books. He also invited them into his studio to show off works in progress. Andrew’s mother, Betty, was an avid reader and collector and she and Sendak would talk late into the night about books. Sendak offered Betty advice about how to find and authenticate rare children’s books, which she used to build her collection. Additionally, he frequently bartered for autographs (i.e. a cake for an inscribed drawing). The many inscribed drawings, along with first editions, signed books, limited edition books, and other valuable items grew into one of the country’s premier Sendak collections. A few spots of foxing to preliminary and concluding pages. Near-fine condition.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 31 FIRST EDITION, PRESENTATION COPY, OF SOME SWELL PUP, INSCRIBED BY SENDAK TO A CLOSE FRIEND AND NEIGHBOR, WITH AN ORIGINAL DRAWING OF THE PUP 31. SENDAK, Maurice and MARGOLIS, Matthew. Some Swell Pup, or Are You Sure You Want a Dog? New York, 1976. Octavo, original brown cloth, dust jacket. $2200 First edition, presentation copy, of this sprightly cautionary tale of pet ownership, beautifully illustrated, inscribed to Sendak’s close friend and neighbor: “For Andy—Maurice Sept. ‘76,” with an original drawing of the book’s unnamed pup. Sendak co-wrote this story, which follows two children through the trials and tribulations of training their puppy, with a professional dog trainer. “Love, patience and understanding are the solutions in Sendak’s cautionary comic book tale” (Publishers Weekly). Hanrahan A97. The former owner of this inscribed book was Maurice Sendak’s neighbor, Andrew, from Ridgefield, Connecticut. Sendak bought a home and studio in Ridgefield in 1972 with his longtime partner, Eugene Glynn, and lived there until his death. Andrew first encountered Sendak in 1975 during one of his daily dog walks. (Sendak owned many dogs throughout his life, and they often starred in his books.) Andrew was immediately taken with Sendak, who reminded him of his recently deceased father. One day, Andrew called Sendak at home and asked if he could join him on his walks. Andrew and Sendak thus embarked on a 37-year friendship that also included the Andrew’s mother, Betty, as well as Andrew’s brother. Sendak went on long walks and hikes with Andrew and his family regularly, discussing general life events, opera, and books. He also invited them into his studio to show off works in progress. Andrew’s mother, Betty, was an avid reader and collector and she and Sendak would talk late into the night about books. Sendak offered Betty advice about how to find and authenticate rare children’s books, which she used to build her collection. Additionally, he frequently bartered for autographs (i.e. a cake for an inscribed drawing). The many inscribed drawings, along with first editions, signed books, limited edition books, and other valuable items grew into one of the country’s premier Sendak collections. Book very nearly fine, dust jacket near-fine with light wear and only faintest occasional foxing. A handsome signed copy with original drawing.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 32 "IN THE HOUSE, AND ON THE STREET, HOW MANY, MANY FEET YOU MEET" 32. SEUSS, Dr. The Foot Book. New York, 1968. Thin octavo, original pictorial paper boards, pictorial endpapers, dust jacket. $1200 First edition of Dr. Seuss’ whimsical celebration of the “many many feet you meet,” in colorful original dust jacket. One of Dr. Seuss’ Bright and Early Books for very young readers, this is a brightly illustrated guide to the wonderful world of feet. First edition, first printing; first-issue dust jacket with “195/195” on front flap; no ads for later titles. Younger & Hirsch 23. About-fine condition.
* * * C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S 33 "THE CIRCUS MCGURKUS! THE WORLD'S GREATEST SHOW ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH, OR WHEREVER YOU GO!" 33. SEUSS, Dr. If I Ran the Circus. New York, 1956. Quarto, original pictorial paper boards, dust jacket. $2000 First edition of this rhyming narrative about comically large aspirations for starting a circus. A revision of a 1955 magazine piece, Seuss’ romp under the Big Top introduces such compelling attractions as Rolf, the walrus who stands on one whisker; the punctuation mark-juggling Jott; and Great Daredevil Sneelock, who dives into a fishbowl from 4,692 feet up—”He’ll manage just fine. Don’t ask how he’ll manage. That’s his job. Not mine.” Younger & Hirsch 43. Book very nearly fine, price-clipped dust jacket near-fine, with a bit of wear and toning to extremities. A handsome near-fine copy.
C H I L D R E N' S B O O K S * 2 0 2 4 B A U M A N R A R E B O O K S * * * 34 “THAT CAT IS A BAD ONE, THAT CAT IN THE HAT”: FIRST EDITION OF THE CAT IN THE HAT COMES BACK, SIGNED BY DR. SEUSS 34. SEUSS, Dr. The Cat in the Hat Comes Back. New York, 1958. Octavo, original pictorial paper boards, dust jacket, custom half morocco clamshell box. $3800 First edition of the further antics of Seuss’ most iconic character, signed by Dr. Seuss. The year after Ted Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, broke new ground in children’s books with The Cat in the Hat, he brought back the immediately popular character—with 26 little cats under his red-and-white stovepipe, not to mention the mysterious “Voom”—for a new madcap adventure. The title was the second from Beginner Books, Geisel’s own imprint at Random House; in very little time, as that line’s identifying logo, “the Cat’s image would become synonymous with learning to read” (Cohen, 324). Younger & Hirsch 11. Bookseller ticket. Book with interior generally quite nice and only some wear and soiling to boards. Dust jacket bright and near-fine, with only light edgewear. An extremely good copy, exceptionally desirable signed by Dr. Seuss.
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