tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post5868933887347090326..comments2024-03-10T16:42:34.106-04:00Comments on Collecting Children's Books: A Blog with Lots of QuestionsPeter D. Sierutahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09301507180150710089noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post-52708072551195258702011-12-02T01:22:21.999-05:002011-12-02T01:22:21.999-05:00I think the cover Sewell did for By The Shores of ...I think the cover Sewell did for By The Shores of Silver Lake is really well done, quite lovely. I like Sewell's covers for some of the early books. William's illustrations have a more human element and warmth to them and are much more appealing to young readers.Jil Caseyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01753282207863478870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post-48632396348988918822011-12-01T10:18:56.691-05:002011-12-01T10:18:56.691-05:00I am no big fan of the movie novelizations etc. Bu...I am no big fan of the movie novelizations etc. But I will say that my 4 year old loves the Easy Reader versions of all movies and shows and they have really encouraged him to blossom as a reader. The familiarity makes it easier for older kids who struggle with reading, too. So while I acknowledge their lameness, I do like that they exist.Briar, school librariannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post-72898239696010060682011-11-24T03:05:53.612-05:002011-11-24T03:05:53.612-05:00"ten years after turning down Purple House Pr..."ten years after turning down Purple House Press, the author allowed his book to be reissued by the New York Review of Books"<br /><br />This may have had more to do with WHO was asking than any particular qualms about reissuing in general. PHP has a long and distinguished history of trampling all over nostalgic re-releases while NYRB is QUALITY.<br /><br />PHP reprinted Victoria Walker's Winter of Enchantment and used the horribly abridged US edition (Fortunately Fidra books reprinted the original)<br /><br />From a review for Mr Pine's Purple House:<br /><br />"The only disappointment is that this edition is considerably smaller than the version I remember reading so it seems that the illustrations were shrunk down to fit on the page. For example, there is one page in the text where Mr. Pine plants a bush next to his pine tree to differentiate his house and wakes up to find that all 50 houses on his street now also have a bush next to their little pine tree. The problem is that you have to practically squint to make out what are supposed to be the bushes and the trees."<br /><br />From a review of Mr. Pine's Mixed-Up Signs:<br /><br />"Unfortunately this edition is printed in China and I found the pages are hard to turn. I had to keep looking at the page numbers to make sure I didn't skip any pages."<br /><br />Compare this to the note in John Masefield's Box of Delights done by NYRB:<br /><br />"THIS TEXT has been corrected—for the first time—against John Masefield's manuscript, now held at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, the University of Texas at Austin.<br /><br />Masefield produced different versions of The Box of Delights, and the manuscript preserves several earlier drafts of numerous passages. There are more than four hundred pages of manuscript and typescript with many corrections, additions, deletions, and alterations. There is evidence that at one point Masefield may have dictated the story to his typist. Additionally, there are several passages present in the published edition of The Box of Delights that do not appear in the author's manuscript and which have been retained here.<br /><br />During the process of book production the original publishers found, after setting the proof, that there was insufficient space to fit in all of the illustrations. Masefield therefore cut a few short passages to accommodate the illustrations provided by his daughter Judith. These passages have been restored here in addition to other sections present in the manuscript that failed to appear in print through error.<br /><br />This edition therefore presents a text based on a proof copy preceding the first English edition, corrected from the manuscript. I have resisted the temptation to include deleted passages unless there seems a compelling reason for their restoration. The appearance of Barney Dog in the train corridor is in Masefield's original version, and is, I think, clearer for a modern audience."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post-29533267077957163442011-11-21T20:57:35.132-05:002011-11-21T20:57:35.132-05:00I have worked for a number of bookstores over the ...I have worked for a number of bookstores over the years and they all handle Holiday books the same way. A few weeks before said holiday, we receive vast amounts of books pertaining to that holiday, which are then set up on some sort of display. They are even marked in the computer as Holiday so that they do not get shelved in with regular stock. Then, the day after, say Halloween, all the books are taken to the back room and returned to their respective publishers. People can order the books if they want, but not many people do. If there is a non-returnable book (we had a number of St. Patrick's Day titles this year), they are kept in the back room until that particular Holiday rolls around again. Typically, Holiday books sell very well. One thing you will rarely see though, books for 50% off. Yes, it happens, but usually it is the stuff we can't return. The good stuff like Polar Express and Dear, Virginia goes back because they know they can always sell it again next year, for full price.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02066282166494052315noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post-36115371973198537182011-11-21T20:39:43.652-05:002011-11-21T20:39:43.652-05:00Peter, I do see a slight uptick in seasonal and ho...Peter, I do see a slight uptick in seasonal and holiday requests, but I do get these requests all year round, maybe more such than shops that sell only new books. Since about 80% of my inventory is used, I get people looking for out-of-print books. As for how holiday or seasonal books sell, I’d say everything depends on the book, and generalizations can’t be made. MOUSEKIN’S GOLDEN HOUSE was OP the last time I checked. THE ALL-OF-A-KIND FAMILY came back into print. THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS will never stop selling. All of those are dear, beloved stories. Others appear, have their day (or don’t) and fall by the wayside.<br /><br />That Purple House story about Palmer Brown is the same one my son told me. Whatever the reason for his change of mind, I'm happy for it.<br /><br />Will have to look at the LITTLE HOUSE covers when I'm near a faster connection than I have at home.<br /><br />Happy Thanksgiving, Peter!!!!P. J. Grathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12693462910472164289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post-4178682532001729672011-11-21T17:34:54.335-05:002011-11-21T17:34:54.335-05:00Our holiday books are out in the open, but still k...Our holiday books are out in the open, but still keep their one-week check-out period, which probably limits their circulation. However, we occasionally do find the Christmas ones in a pick-up, and Dora the Explorer holiday books have been going out whatever the time of year.<br />I agree with Bybee that only Sewell's <i>The Long Winter</i> is a match for Williams' covers. I like the Sewell's style, that almost Art-Deco look, but it doesn't match up with the prairie.<br /><br />Happy Turkey Day, Peter! I give thanks that you do such thoughtful and fun entries.linnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post-57013322396565612422011-11-21T14:34:48.088-05:002011-11-21T14:34:48.088-05:00I work in a library that keeps holiday books in st...I work in a library that keeps holiday books in storage due to space issues (Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, Hannukah, Valentine's Day, & Easter). We tend to bring them out when we start getting questions (Christmas books made an appearance in early November this year). We don't get a lot of requests for them in the off-season, but I'm sure a lot of them would circulate if we had room to keep them out - especially the picture books. Probably not the informational ones.Jesshttp://jessmonster.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post-5369208994005413362011-11-21T00:12:40.983-05:002011-11-21T00:12:40.983-05:00Marjorie Hill Allee, author of The House, is a fav...Marjorie Hill Allee, author of The House, is a favorite of mine. She was a noted Quaker and as I recall she attended the University of Chicago and her husband was a noted scientist there. Her 20th century heroines are usually interested in and skilled at science in an era when that was unusual. Her books are in a box I have not yet unpacked but if I recall correctly The House is about a group of students at the University of Chicago.<br /><br />Her historical novels are often about resourceful orphans or intrepid Abolitionists.<br /><br />My favorite of her books is Winter's Mischief, a charming boarding school story set at a Pennsylvania school based on Westtown where Mrs. Allee's daughter was a student.CLMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03595294217111602231noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post-60598781791196899422011-11-20T17:55:34.158-05:002011-11-20T17:55:34.158-05:00Sewell v. Williams: Williams wins on all the cove...Sewell v. Williams: Williams wins on all the covers except for The Long Winter. Sewell takes that one. I never thought that the Williams cover matched the grimmer-than-usual fare within. On Sewell's These Happy Golden Years cover, Laura looks a little worried that Almanzo might run her over with his team and buggy.Bybeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10061186489010154661noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7046320545497573335.post-25504922883501972742011-11-20T14:47:56.354-05:002011-11-20T14:47:56.354-05:00My question to you is this: If you work in a libra...<i>My question to you is this: If you work in a library or bookstore, do you notice that holiday books only circulate/sell during a very small window of time surrounding that particular day?</i><br /><br />Halloween books are extremely popular year-round at my library. Fortunately, they are easily identified with stickers on the spine. I don't hear much demand for other holiday books "out of season," though on Friday I did field a request for leprechaun books!<br /><br />Thanks for the Sewell/Williams comparisons for the Little House books. I only knew the Williams illustrations and much prefer them. On the covers of <i>Little Town on the Prairie</i> and <i>These Happy Golden Years</i>, Laura looks like a frumpy middle-aged woman.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com