hans andersen's fairy tales

i had to stop myself from photographing each illustration in this lovely book. i always notice hans christian andersen books because, well, i love him. i can't believe this is my first post dedicated to one of his books! i've seen so many editions of his iconic fairy tales...so many have gorgeous illustrations, and yet, i think this may be my favorite so far. this book is illustrated by jiří trnka, "the walt disney of the east" who is best known for his stop-motion puppet movies. his movies are truly magical and i highly recommend them all.

it includes some of his best (in my opinion) fairy tales, such as : "the snow queen," "thumbykin," a.k.a. "thumbelina" "mother elder," "the wild swans" and many more. i will definitely be treasuring this book. i may even break it out and share it with guests...carry it around like my bible (ala mark david chapman minus the sinister) and sing it lullabies at bedtime.

hans andersen's fairy tales
designed and produced for artia by paul hamlyn
1967, paul hamlyn, london
illustrated by jiří trnka

where have you been?

this little pamphlet style book is one of my favorite finds of late. it's incredibly endearing from the short rhymes by goodnight moon's margaret wise brown to the illustrations by barbara cooney.

i love the illustrations so much i could get them tattooed all over my body. seriously, i can go ga-ga for some of these books. from time to time i think of the tattooed disney man and come back to my senses. anyways, if you can find a copy...snap it up!

where have you been? by margaret wise brown
first scholastic edition, 1965, scholastic book services
illustrated by barbara cooney

i know a giraffe

i love these silkscreen illustrations...although i think this book is actually all lithograph...but the blue, olive, gold and black palette on white is fantastic! the creatures are darling and the detail and patterns are also really something. a must own book.

i know a giraffe:a tall tale by david omar white
first edition, 1965, alfred a. knopf, new york
illustrated by author

collections

a set of 2 books presented as a collection.

anna karenina by leo tolstoy with an introduction by james t. farrell
living library edition, 1946, the world publishing co.
translated by constance garnett
illustrated by laszlo matulay

nine plays by eugene o'neill, selected by the playwright himself, with an introduction by joseph wood krutch
1932, liveright, inc.

the horse that liked sandwiches

i love aliki's early illustrations...and a horse named mario? can you get any better than that?!

the horse that liked sandwiches by vivian l. thompson
see and read, 1962, g.p. putnam's sons, new york
illustrated by aliki brandenberg

the big bark

another cute little 'tell-a-tale' book.

the big bark by christine woyke
tell-a-tale book, 1975, western publishing, wisconsin
illustrated by stina nagel

paddington at the circus

take a peek at my previous paddington post.

paddington at the circus by michael bond
first american edition, 1974, random house, new york
illustrated by fred banbery

paddington's garden

i'm fairly certain that paddington is the cutest bear ever. i remember this girl who lived down the street from me growing up...i have nothing nice to say about her so i won't say anything...anyways, she had a paddington bear doll with hat, raincoat, wellies and suitcase. it was my first dealings with serious stuffed animal envy.

i was lucky to find 2 paddington books...they aren't illustrated by peggy fortnum...but i do think the illustrations by fred banberry have the spirit of paddington that is essential and i remember these illustrations most from my childhood. they make me melt. if i could stuff little paddington into my pocket and keep him forever, i would.

paddington's garden by michael bond
first american edition, 1973, random house, new york
illustrated by fred banbery