Orrin Schwab Books
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List of Scarce and Rare Children's Books
Last Updated December 7, 2011
1. Alger, Horatio. SLOW
AND SURE: FROM THE STREET TO THE SHOP.. Philadelphia:
Porter & Coates, 1872. 280 pages. Brown pattern-stamped cloth covers with
gold decorated spine. There is slight shelf wear only to the spine edges and
corners. The pages are browned a bit at the edges. The hinges are sound, with
only a hint of cracking. Overall a near very good condition copy of this early
Horatio Alger title. The verso of the title page has 1872 as the printing date. Early
edition. No publication date, but the preface is dated 1872. $70.00
2. Bacon, Peggy. THE
GOOD AMERICAN WITCH.. New York: Franklin Watts,
1957. 1st Edition. 222 pages. First printing. Shelf wear to spine edges and
corners. Dust jacket has small tears and chips to the edges. This is a very
scarce dust jacket. $44.00
3. Bannerman, Helen, Illustrated by Julian
Wehr.. LITTLE BLACK SAMBO. Animated by Julian Wehr..
New York: Duenewald Printing Corporation,, 1943.
This is the animated moveable edition by Julian Wehr. Spiral binding and
semi-flexible board covers. There is slight wear to the edges of the spine and
the corners. The plastic spiral binding is in fine condition. All of the movable
illustrations are in perfect working order. This is an extraordinary copy in
beautiful condition. $175.00
4. Baum L. Frank. THE
SONGS OF FATHER GOOSE. FOR THE KINDERGARTEN, THE NURSERY AND THE HOME.. Chicago
& New York: The George M. Hill Company, 1900. 84 pages. 1900 first edition
illustrated by W.W. Denslow. Shelf wear and rubbing to the spine edges and the
corners. The corners are rubbed through. There is a repaired tear to the cloth
at the top of the front joint. Light soiling to the pictorial covers. The
binding is tight. A beautiful copy. $100.00
5. Baum, L. Frank. THE
SONGS OF FATHER GOOSE FOR THE KINDERGARTEN, THE NURSERY AND THE HOME.. Chicago
& New York: George M. Hill, 1900. 1st Edition. 84 pages. 1900 first edition.
Quite a bit of shelf wear to the binding and rubbing to the spine and corners.
Corners rubbed through. Paper over board illustrated covers show some soiling.
Red cloth spine has a split near the top of the spine, under 2 inches in length.
The text block has some cracks, but the binding is holding and the pages are
tightly bound. Overall a very presentable copy of this early L. Frank Baum
title. Includes words and music for many whimsical songs. The illustrations are
by early Oz illustrator W.W. Denslow. $100.00
6. Biggers, Earl Derr. INSPECTOR CHARLIE CHAN SOLVES A NEW MYSTERY.. Racine, WI: Whitman Publishing Co., 1940. 424 pages. Some shelf wear to binding and rubbing to spine and corners. Corners slightly bumped. Corners are slightly bumped. $55.00
7. Bowen, Robert Sidney. DAVE
DAWSON AT TRUK.. New York: Crown Publishers, 1946.
243 pages. Green cloth covers show slight shelf wear to the spine edges and
corners. The binding is tight. There is some browning to the pages. Dust jacket
has some chips and tears to the edges and light soiling, but is quite
presentable. This is the rarest of the Dave Dawson titles. A beautiful copy.
$475.00
8. Brown, Abbie Farwell. SONGS
OF SIXPENCE.. Boston: Houghton, Mifflin, 1914.
Shelf wear, else near VG in dust jacket with small chips to edges. D.j. also has
soiling and a small round chip missing on the front panel. Scarce dust jacket.
$40.00
9. Cardell, William S. THE
BOY OF PRINCIPLE, THE MAN OF HONOR: OR, THE STORY OF JACK HALYARD.. Philadelphia:
Uriah Hunt & Son, 1854. Shelf wear to spine & edges, with small chips
& tears at spine. Some fading to spine. Corners slightly bumped. Former
Sunday School label inside front cover. Small label remnant on spine. $40.00
10. David McKay Company. ROBIN
HOOD. Illustrated by N.C. Wyeth.. Philadelphia:
David Mckay, 1917. 362 pages. Title page states 1917 at the bottom. In rare dust
jacket. Book has shelf wear to spine edges. Slight fading to the gold on the
spine title. The dust jacket has tears to the edges and chips missing from the
top of the spine and the back panel. D.j. is also soiled on the white portions
of the panels and spine. Nice d..j illustration Robin Hood and his merry men in
Sherwood Forest. $250.00
11. Deming, Edwin Willard & Therese O.
Deming. LITTLE INDIAN FOLK. . New
York: Frederick A. Stokes, 1899. 1st Edition. Oblong illustrated
paper-over-boards on front and back covers.. Red cloth spine. Shelf wear to
spine edges, corners and edges of boards. Some rubbing to covers. A few small
soiled spots to cover. Binding is tight, hinges are sound and pages are clean
and free from tears or marks. A very nice copy of a scarce book. With 9
full-page color illustrations and numerous other smaller black-and white
illustrations by noted Native American artist E.W. Deming. 10056add. $120.00
12. Dixon, Franklin W. THE SECRET OF THE CAVES.. New York: Grosset & Dunlap Publishers, 1929. 210 pages. Shelf wear to spine edges and corners. Dust jacket has small tears and chips To the edges. The dust jacket spine has some soiling in the edges of the text block have a few soiled spots as well. The binding is tight. There are 13 titles on the flap of the dust jacket. The last title is "The Mark on the Door" (1934). The Back Flap of the Dust Jacket Lists 12 Titles in the "X Bar X Boys" series. $150.00
13. Dulac, Edmund. LYRICS,
PATHETIC & HUMOROUS, FROM A TO Z,. London:
Frederick Warne & Company, 1908. 1st Edition. 1908 first edition. Original
pictorial illustrated covers. Tan cloth spine shows some soiling and wear to the
edges. The corners and board edges show some wear. There is slight rubbing to
spots on the edges of the covers. Hinges are tight and binding is sound. A
beautiful copy of a rare children's illustrated book. Beautifully illustrated
throughout by Edmund Dulac. $500.00
14. Foote, Mary Hallcock. THE
LITTLE FIG-TREE STORIES.. New York: Houghton,
Mifflin, 1899. Wear to spine and extremities. Some fading to binding. Corners
rubbed through. Some soiling to covers. Binding tight. $12.50
15. Fryer, Jane Eayre. EASY
STEPS IN COOKING:. Oakland, California: The
Smithsonian Company, 1912. 175 pages. Heavy shelf wear to the edges of the spine
and corners. There is rubbing and scuffing to the binding, also a few small
stained spots. One page has a long tear across the middle that has been repaired
with archival tape. Delightfully written with vintage illustrations. $55.00
16. Handforth, Thomas. MEI
LI.. New York: Doubleday, Doran & Company ,
Inc., 1938. 1st Edition. This the first edition signed by the author. With the
Caldecott Medal bookplate on the half-title page, under which the author's
signature appears. Orange cloth covers show some soiling at the edges and slight
shelf wear to the spine edges and corners. The dust jacket has some chips to the
edges, particularly along the top edges of the front and back panels and the
spine. The chips affect the lettering in the title on the front panel. Jacket is
still quite presentable. A rare first edition signed of this Caldecott
winner. $650.00
17. Hare, Anne. THE
WOLLOPORS' FIELD DAY. Illustrated by Harry L. Miller.. Chicago:
Saalfield, 1910. Some wear and rubbing to spine and corners. Small tear to paper
near bottom of spine. Some soiling to covers. Scarce title. $20.00
18. Harris, Joel Chandler. UNCLE
REMUS OR, THE STORY OF MR. FOX AND BRER RABBIT.. London-et
al: Thomas Nelson and Sons, 1912. 155 pages. Red cloth covers show light shelf
wear to the edges of the spine and corners. The front cover has a pasted on
color illustration of Brer Rabbit. Illustrated in color. $45.00
19. Hofland, Mrs. THE
AFFECTIONATE BROTHERS. A TALE.. Boston: Munroe and
Francis, 1831. Red leather spine with marbled paper over board covers. Wear and
rubbing to board edges and spine extremities. Slight darkening and a few scuffs
to leather. A tight, clean copy. The authoress was a prolific English writer,
mostly of didactic children's stories. This particular title is quite didactic
and children were sure to get the point quickly. $35.00
20. Hornibrook, Isabel. GIRLS
OF THE MORNING-GLORY CAMP FIRE.. Boston: Lothrop,
Lee & Shepard, 1916. Some shelf wear. Corners slightly bumped. Scarce. A
nice pictorial cover. $30.00
21. Jacobsen, Virginia Budd and Lyman
Luther Daines. THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF JIMMY
MICROBE: STORIES OF GOOD HEALTH HABITS.. Salt Lake
City: Privately Printed, 1936. 96 pages. Signed by both authors on the front
blank endpage. Red cloth covers show shelf wear to the edges of the spine. The
corners are slightly rubbed through and slightly bumped. There are Dampstains to
the right edges of some of the pages, not obtrusive. This appears to be a
variant printing of the first Jimmy Microbe book, which was issued under the
title "The Adventures of Jimmy Microbe". The copyright information for
this book shows that it was privately printed in 1936. This predates the Reilly
& Lee edition by one year. This is a rare edition of the always-in-demand
Jimmy Microbe series books. There were three books issued in the series. $250.00
22. Jacobsen, Virginia Budd and Lyman
Luther Daines. THE ADVENTURES OF JIMMY MICROBE
STORIES OF GOOD HEALTH HABITS.. Chicago: The
Reilly & Lee Co., 1937. 94 pages. Shelf wear to binding and rubbing to spine
and corners. Corners slightly bumped. Scarce children's science book. $150.00
23. Jay, B.F. UNCLE
BEN JAY'S JUMBLE-JUNGLE: OVER 300,000 COMPOSITE ANIMALS AND JUMBLED JINGLES.. New
York: B.F. Jay, 1942. This copy has been tape repaired with clear strapping tape
on the inner hinges front and back. The spiral wire was broken in one place and
it has been glued and taped into position. Tape marks and scars across the edges
of the boards near the spine. Shelf wear to the board edges and the corners.
Contents complete. Still a very nice item with all movable page sections. A
delightful book. Sold as is. $75.00
24. Knapp, George L.. THE
QUEST OF THE GOLDEN CITIES.. New York: Dodd, Mead,
1924. That pages. Signed by the author. Slight shelf wear and a couple of faded
spots to front covers. The dust jacket has some soiling and chips and tears
around the edges. $25.00
25. McCloskey, Robert. TIME
OF WONDER. Illustrated by the author. Signed by the author.. New
York: Viking, 1957. This copy is signed by the author on the title page. Shelf
wear and some discoloration to the edges of the binding. The top right front
corner is bumped. The dust jacket has some older Scotch tape repairs along the
top and bottom panels, and some on the spine. There are a few chips missing from
the jacket edges, and a skinny length of jacket missing (about 5" long by
1/2" to 1" wide) and a few closed tears. Jacket is also worn at the
folds. The Caldecott medal is on the front cover. Rare signed first edition. A
wonderful children's book. $375.00
26. Mitchell, Muriel Moscrip. THE
ADVENTURES OF NIP AND TUCK.. Boston: P. F. Volland
Company, 1927. 40 pages. Original paper over board covers show wear to the
binding extremities. The corners are slightly rubbed through and there are a
couple of small spots on the spine for the colored paper has been rubbed away.
There is slight soiling to the covers as well. Page 37-38 has a small piece
missing at the top,not affecting the text, and a small tear repaired with
archival tape. A few pages have small fingerprint smudges to the right margin Beautifully
illustrated in rich color throughout by Mary Ellsworth. A scarce children's
title. $125.00
27. Price, Christine. TALKING
DRUMS OF AFRICA. Illustrated by the author.. New
York: Atheneum, 1973. 1st Edition. 48 pages. First edition in dust jacket. The
book and jacket have slight shelf wear to the edges. There are a couple of small
chips to the edge of the dust jacket. Overall a beautiful copy of this important
children's book. $100.00
28. Rae, John. WHY.
REFLECTIONS FOR CHILDREN. Verse and pictures by John Rae.. New
York: Dodd, Mead & Co, 1910. Binding shows wear to spine & corners. Some
scuffing to covers. Complete with original mirror in front pocket inside
front cover. A delightful and quite rare children's book. The text is written in
the form of a question on one page and the answer written in mirror-image on the
opposite page. The mirror is then held up to the backwards print and the answer
can be deciphered. This book is complete. A few pages have fingerprint smudges
and some soiling. The instructions on the back of the mirror state "The
reversed pages in this book can be read by reflecting them in the mirror which
can be removed by pressing the finger through the question mark in the front of
the cover. $100.00
29. Randolph, Althea. A
BOUQUET OF RHYMES FOR CHILDREN: VERSES BY RANDOLPH. Illustrated by Isabel
Whitney.. New York: Bonnell Silver & Company,
1909. First American edition. Large pictorial binding. Wear to spine and board
edges. Some soiling to binding and discoloration. Binding is tight and
contents complete. With beautiful full-page illustrations in color. A wonderful
children's book. $45.00
30. Rue, Flora C. THE
COCOA DANCER. Illustrated by Gladys Rourke Blackwood.. Chicago:
Albert Whitman & Co. , 1945. Spine and edges shelf-worn, with some fraying
to edges. Corners rubbed. Some scuffing to binding. The binding is tight and
contents complete. One page has quite a bit of tape repair with Scotch tape.
Crayon scribbles to back endpages, but not affecting the text. Scarce children's
book. $20.00
31. Schwarz, Sylvia W. A
WINDOW BOX OF VERSE. Illustrated by Kurt Wiese.. New
York: Samuel Gabriel & Company, 1930. Shelf wear to spine and corners. The
spine paper has been repaired with archival glue. Slight soiling to covers. $18.00
32. Segar, E.C. POPEYE'S
ARK. ADAPTED FROM THE FAMOUS NEWSPAPER COMIC SERIES. . New
York: Saalfield, 1936. Shelf wear to binding and rubbing to spine and corners.
Spine is missing. Covers are loosening a bit, but still firmly attached. Some
soiled spots. A very scarce book. Written with a utopian theme using Popeye as a
Biblical Noah character. $25.00
33. Syrett, Netta. THE
FAIRY DOLL, AND OTHER PLAYS FOR CHILDREN.. London:
Alston Rivers. Ltd, 1922. 113 pages. Original pictorial color illustrated
covers. There is quite a bit of shelf wear to the spine edges and the corners,
with corners rubbed at the edges. The front free endpage has a small piece torn
away. Binding is tight. A delightful little children's books. Scarce. $100.00
34. Taylor, Ida Scott . A
LITTLE QUAKER MEETING. Illustrated by Frances Brundage.. London:
Raphael Tuck, 1896. Oblong flexible paper covers. Front cover has color
illustrations. The binding is string-tied. Some wear to the edges of the covers.
One crease to the upper right corner on the front cover. One page has tape
repairs from the page being torn in half. The page is complete, but repaired
down the middle with archival tape. Illustrated with color lithographs by
Frances Brundage. beautiful book. Very scarce. $100.00
35. Wright, Dare. EDITH
AND BIG BAD BILL: A LONELY DOLL STORY.. New York:
Random House, 1968. Large photo-illustrated hardback covers. Some shelf wear to
binding and rubbing to spine and corners. Corners are slightly bumped. Overall a
nice copy. Binding is tight and the pages are clean and free from defects. A
scarce title in the Edith the Doll series. $100.00