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Feb. 19th, 2016 02:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
the_rckSince I’m discovering that people on my FL are interested in old children’s books (mainly mysteries), I thought I’d mention some of the odd ones that I’ve got in hand, just in case someone is interested.
Brains Benton
Wyatt, George. The Case of the Stolen Dummy. MCMLXI. Western Publishing Company, Inc. I’m pretty sure this was issued without a dust jacket. The cover is colorful but scuffed and dented. The front shows two boys running from a bearded man, probably in a graveyard. The end sheets are orange, and someone wrote '.25' on the inner one, possibly in pencil, possibly not.
Wyatt, George. The Case of the Roving Rolls. MCMLXI. Western Publishing Company, Inc. Probably also issued without dust jacket. Front cover shows about half a a careening car that has no driver. Next to it, there is a boy who seems to be jumping and about to come down (unfortunately for him) on the spokes of the front wheel of a fallen bicycle. There are two additional cyclists riding further back. Someone has written '5 [cent mark]' on the front cover, and there are the remains of a small round sticker covering part of the N and S in BRAINS. The cover is less scuffed than the above book but still somewhat so. There’s a crack in the binding just before the first page of the first chapter. Things have not detached completely, but netting is visible. End pages are olive green.
Dana Girls
Keene, Carolyn. The Clue of the Rusty Key. 1942 (maybe). Grosset & Dunlap. Illustrated by F. Warren. No dust jacket. The cover is a dusty pink, very dark, with black print and a circle on the front with two girls (shoulders up), one holding a magnifying glass and one holding a necklace. The cover is very faded, irregularly so. The pages are all yellowed and pretty certainly brittle.
Hardy Boys
I’ve got six of these. One is a withdrawn library book. One is oldish with a tan cover. The others are all the blue binding with pictures on the front and not in great shape. I will list the specifics if someone’s interested in them but not otherwise.
Judy Bolton
Sutton, Margaret. The Name on the Bracelet. 1940 (maybe). Grosset & Dunlap. Illustrated by Pelagie Doane. No dust jacket. My first name, in ink, is inside the front cover. There’s also some writing that I think is in pencil. The cover is green with maroon lettering and a little box showing a woman standing between a tree and a bush and looking at a partially open door. There’s a lot of wear around the edges of the cover. The end sheets are pink with a woman on a stairway; the picture is entirely white outlines, including a crosshatched shadow.
Sutton, Margaret. The Clue in the Patchwork Quilt. 1941 (maybe). Grosset & Dunlap. Illustrated by Pelagie Doane. No dust jacket. My first name, in red ink, is inside the front cover. The cover is green with maroon lettering and a little box showing a woman standing between a tree and a bush and looking at a partially open door. The end sheets are pink with a woman on a stairway; the picture is entirely white outlines, including a crosshatched shadow.
Kay Tracey
Judd, Frances K. The Murmuring Portrait. 1938. Cupples and Leon Company. Hardcover with yellow boards and red print on cover. No dust jacket. 'JAC' written on back cover, possibly in pencil, but I’m not sure it’s removable. A previous owner filled in the ’This is my Book' section inside the front cover, probably in pencil but also likely not removable given the age. There’s a small (less than 1 cm) scrape in the back cover near the bottom outside corner. The cover is well attached, and, as far as I can tell, all the pages are there and attached firmly.
Judd, Francis K. The Mystery of the Swaying Curtains. 1935. Cupples and Leon Company. Hardcover with very damaged yellow cover. The front is missing a little less than 1/4 of the cover. The back cover is damaged but much less so. No dust jacket. The ’This is my book’ section has been filled in in red ink (not by me). Up through p.22, the pages are just barely attached. The page block appears damaged, possibly chewed on? It’s all still readable, but… The end sheets are black and white with a geometric pattern. I’m inclined to throw this one out.
Nancy Drew
I’ve got 20-30 Nancy Drews of varying ages and conditions (no dust jackets on any). If somebody collects them, I’m willing to list them but, otherwise, not. If there’s a particular title you’re looking for, feel free to ask. I probably don’t have it, but who knows? Maybe we’ll be mutually lucky.
Tahara
Sherman, Harold M. Tahara Among African Tribes. 1933. Goldsmith Publishing Company. Hardcover. No dust jacket. From what I remember, this one is probably as appallingly racist as the date and title might indicate. I just didn’t notice when I was eight. The front cover and spine cover are peeling away from the page block but are still sort of attached. Only one page has separated completely, but many feel a little loose.
Sherman, Harold M. Tahara in the Land of the Yucatan. 1933. Goldsmith Publishing Company. Hardcover. No dust jacket. Partially peeled away book plate inside front cover. Also, 'McAlpine' written inside front cover. Binding seems sound, and all the pages seem to be attached.
I thought I had a third of these out of a possible four books, but I can’t find it, and well, I haven’t read them in at least thirty five years, so my memory is likely to be faulty.
Tom Swift Jr
Appleton, Victor II. Tom Swift and His Outpost in Space. 1955 (maybe). Grosset & Dunlap. Hardcover. Probably issued without a dust jacket and almost certainly more recent than the date inside the book. The front cover shows men in space suits and a space station and (I think) part of a space ship. The cover is a bit scuffed. The listing of the series on the back finishes with Tom Swift and the Mystery Comet. There are three names written inside the front cover. The end sheets are illustrated with a man looking out of a window and watching a space ship fly by. He’s surrounded by lab equipment and research materials. It’s all in shades of blue.
Uncle Wiggly
Assuming no one here wants this, I’m planning to ask Books By Chance if this might be an exception to their rules about older children’s books because the pricing makes it look like something collectible rather than likely to be purchased for children. I just copied my query to them and pasted the text here without editing.
Garis, Howard R. Uncle Wiggly and His Friends. MCMLV, MCMXXXIX. Platt & Munk, Publishers. This is a children’s book, but I think it might be collectible, so I thought I’d ask. This looks like the picture of the green cover edition (no dust jacket) that Sutton Books is currently selling on AbeBooks for $65 with $4.50 shipping, but the description doesn’t quite match up. Other copies (there are only six listed), not necessarily this edition, range in price from $11.97 with no added shipping to $120 with $3.50 shipping. My copy is worn at the edges and corners of the cover. The pages are all intact, and I couldn’t find any marks except a child’s handwritten inscription of her name and street address, upside down, inside the back cover. I think that’s in pencil, but the end sheets are green, and I’m not sure that attempting to erase the inscription wouldn’t do more damage.
Brains Benton
Wyatt, George. The Case of the Stolen Dummy. MCMLXI. Western Publishing Company, Inc. I’m pretty sure this was issued without a dust jacket. The cover is colorful but scuffed and dented. The front shows two boys running from a bearded man, probably in a graveyard. The end sheets are orange, and someone wrote '.25' on the inner one, possibly in pencil, possibly not.
Wyatt, George. The Case of the Roving Rolls. MCMLXI. Western Publishing Company, Inc. Probably also issued without dust jacket. Front cover shows about half a a careening car that has no driver. Next to it, there is a boy who seems to be jumping and about to come down (unfortunately for him) on the spokes of the front wheel of a fallen bicycle. There are two additional cyclists riding further back. Someone has written '5 [cent mark]' on the front cover, and there are the remains of a small round sticker covering part of the N and S in BRAINS. The cover is less scuffed than the above book but still somewhat so. There’s a crack in the binding just before the first page of the first chapter. Things have not detached completely, but netting is visible. End pages are olive green.
Dana Girls
Keene, Carolyn. The Clue of the Rusty Key. 1942 (maybe). Grosset & Dunlap. Illustrated by F. Warren. No dust jacket. The cover is a dusty pink, very dark, with black print and a circle on the front with two girls (shoulders up), one holding a magnifying glass and one holding a necklace. The cover is very faded, irregularly so. The pages are all yellowed and pretty certainly brittle.
Hardy Boys
I’ve got six of these. One is a withdrawn library book. One is oldish with a tan cover. The others are all the blue binding with pictures on the front and not in great shape. I will list the specifics if someone’s interested in them but not otherwise.
Judy Bolton
Sutton, Margaret. The Name on the Bracelet. 1940 (maybe). Grosset & Dunlap. Illustrated by Pelagie Doane. No dust jacket. My first name, in ink, is inside the front cover. There’s also some writing that I think is in pencil. The cover is green with maroon lettering and a little box showing a woman standing between a tree and a bush and looking at a partially open door. There’s a lot of wear around the edges of the cover. The end sheets are pink with a woman on a stairway; the picture is entirely white outlines, including a crosshatched shadow.
Sutton, Margaret. The Clue in the Patchwork Quilt. 1941 (maybe). Grosset & Dunlap. Illustrated by Pelagie Doane. No dust jacket. My first name, in red ink, is inside the front cover. The cover is green with maroon lettering and a little box showing a woman standing between a tree and a bush and looking at a partially open door. The end sheets are pink with a woman on a stairway; the picture is entirely white outlines, including a crosshatched shadow.
Kay Tracey
Judd, Frances K. The Murmuring Portrait. 1938. Cupples and Leon Company. Hardcover with yellow boards and red print on cover. No dust jacket. 'JAC' written on back cover, possibly in pencil, but I’m not sure it’s removable. A previous owner filled in the ’This is my Book' section inside the front cover, probably in pencil but also likely not removable given the age. There’s a small (less than 1 cm) scrape in the back cover near the bottom outside corner. The cover is well attached, and, as far as I can tell, all the pages are there and attached firmly.
Judd, Francis K. The Mystery of the Swaying Curtains. 1935. Cupples and Leon Company. Hardcover with very damaged yellow cover. The front is missing a little less than 1/4 of the cover. The back cover is damaged but much less so. No dust jacket. The ’This is my book’ section has been filled in in red ink (not by me). Up through p.22, the pages are just barely attached. The page block appears damaged, possibly chewed on? It’s all still readable, but… The end sheets are black and white with a geometric pattern. I’m inclined to throw this one out.
Nancy Drew
I’ve got 20-30 Nancy Drews of varying ages and conditions (no dust jackets on any). If somebody collects them, I’m willing to list them but, otherwise, not. If there’s a particular title you’re looking for, feel free to ask. I probably don’t have it, but who knows? Maybe we’ll be mutually lucky.
Tahara
Sherman, Harold M. Tahara Among African Tribes. 1933. Goldsmith Publishing Company. Hardcover. No dust jacket. From what I remember, this one is probably as appallingly racist as the date and title might indicate. I just didn’t notice when I was eight. The front cover and spine cover are peeling away from the page block but are still sort of attached. Only one page has separated completely, but many feel a little loose.
Sherman, Harold M. Tahara in the Land of the Yucatan. 1933. Goldsmith Publishing Company. Hardcover. No dust jacket. Partially peeled away book plate inside front cover. Also, 'McAlpine' written inside front cover. Binding seems sound, and all the pages seem to be attached.
I thought I had a third of these out of a possible four books, but I can’t find it, and well, I haven’t read them in at least thirty five years, so my memory is likely to be faulty.
Tom Swift Jr
Appleton, Victor II. Tom Swift and His Outpost in Space. 1955 (maybe). Grosset & Dunlap. Hardcover. Probably issued without a dust jacket and almost certainly more recent than the date inside the book. The front cover shows men in space suits and a space station and (I think) part of a space ship. The cover is a bit scuffed. The listing of the series on the back finishes with Tom Swift and the Mystery Comet. There are three names written inside the front cover. The end sheets are illustrated with a man looking out of a window and watching a space ship fly by. He’s surrounded by lab equipment and research materials. It’s all in shades of blue.
Uncle Wiggly
Assuming no one here wants this, I’m planning to ask Books By Chance if this might be an exception to their rules about older children’s books because the pricing makes it look like something collectible rather than likely to be purchased for children. I just copied my query to them and pasted the text here without editing.
Garis, Howard R. Uncle Wiggly and His Friends. MCMLV, MCMXXXIX. Platt & Munk, Publishers. This is a children’s book, but I think it might be collectible, so I thought I’d ask. This looks like the picture of the green cover edition (no dust jacket) that Sutton Books is currently selling on AbeBooks for $65 with $4.50 shipping, but the description doesn’t quite match up. Other copies (there are only six listed), not necessarily this edition, range in price from $11.97 with no added shipping to $120 with $3.50 shipping. My copy is worn at the edges and corners of the cover. The pages are all intact, and I couldn’t find any marks except a child’s handwritten inscription of her name and street address, upside down, inside the back cover. I think that’s in pencil, but the end sheets are green, and I’m not sure that attempting to erase the inscription wouldn’t do more damage.
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no subject
Date: 2016-02-21 07:19 am (UTC)And, God, I remember reading a bunch of those Tom Swift books in grade school, since they made up a good 50% of the library S.F collection.
no subject
Date: 2016-02-25 06:17 pm (UTC)Otherwise, I'll try to figure out how to deal with taking a photograph once my head clears from this bug I've got.
no subject
Date: 2016-03-01 01:05 am (UTC)I am indeed in the US (my Kindle predictive typed it to Galaxy, yes, I'm in the same galaxy as well. I don't want to even contemplate postage to Andromeda or Pegasus.)
Anyway, if the offer still stands, I'll be glad to get it. I'm in Nashville TN.
Thanks either way,
Karen
no subject
Date: 2016-03-01 01:20 am (UTC)childhood nostalgia
Date: 2016-02-19 10:50 pm (UTC)When I was in first grade, my best friend and I would hang out with this frail kid a year or two older, David Welch, who had a congenital heart problem. David was an obsessive book reader because he couldn't do any of those physical kid activities, and he was the first science fiction reader I ever knew. David pushed Tom Swift Jr. books on me, and those were my introduction to science fiction. I collected them maniacally until I outgrew them around 4th grade when I moved on to Arthur C. Clarke and "A Treasury of Great Science Fiction." From the series list on the back, "Mystery Comet" would have been one of the last few that I read, so your edition is from the early-mid 1960s when I was reading them. (A web resource on all the Tom Swift series says "Mystery Comet" was 1966, so that's a good date for your copy.)
I lost track of David as we moved through school -- I would run into him at the library sometimes. Maybe he became too ill to attend school regularly, I'm really not sure. He didn't live far into his 20s; my mom sent me his obituary while I was away at college. I hope it's not too depressing that I'm memorializing someone who played a pivotal role in my life, who's been gone for almost 40 years now.
(The illustration on the inside cover of your book depicts Tom Swift, of course. I kept my hair in a crew cut until maybe 8th grade because that was the Tom Swift style.)
Re: childhood nostalgia
Date: 2016-02-21 01:29 am (UTC)I don't mind the nostalgia or the memorializing. I figure a lot of us have memories around some of these series that involve people who aren't around any more.
no subject
Date: 2016-02-20 01:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-02-20 10:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-02-22 04:15 am (UTC)(I wrote Judy Bolton fanfic for Yuletide a couple of years ago, and am still fond of the series.)
no subject
Date: 2016-02-24 07:37 pm (UTC)Please PM me with your address.
no subject
Date: 2016-02-24 07:51 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-02-22 04:17 am (UTC)