growing up

back on the growing up theme...books with baby animals are abundant and always pleasing! here are some other rand mcnally elf books.

growing up by jean fritz
a rand mcnally elf book, 1962, rand mcnally and co., chicago
illustrated by elizabeth webbe

lucinda: the little donkey

lucinda is a bad donkey who ends up saving the day. i love books about stubborn, willful animals. particularly when they end up being heroes. lucky for me, there are lots out there!

lucinda: the little donkey by irma wilde
an elf book, 1952, rand mcnally & co., chicago
illustrated by george wilde

muggins takes off

i just realized i have quite a few of rand mcnally's elf books...this is one that i love! the same author as this book too.

muggins takes off by marjorie barrows
a tip-top elf book, 1964, rand mcnally & co., chicago
illustrated by anne sellers leaf

scamper

i'm not a squirrel hater, i'm a squirrel lover. i don't understand people who electrocute them or purposefully run them over. you know who you are. bad squirrel karma is some mighty potent juju :)
anyways, this book is cute, cute, cute...what more can i say?

scamper by marjorie barrows
a rand mcnally elf book, 1959, rand mcnally & co., chicago
illustrated by jean tamburine

crybaby calf

poor little calf can't stop crying. i think this style of illustration is similar to the last post's. you can see the '40s style in both. lovely silkscreen book.

crybaby calf by helen and alf evers
1945 edition, rand mcnally & co., new york

the three billy goats gruff

yesterday i remembered that i had another the three billy goats gruff...you can see the other here...they are both completely different styles, albeit the same book (same publisher and authors). this book also includes the fable the little goat and the wolf (which i didn't photograph). it's interesting to see the two books in contrast i think. despite their being essentially the same book, they appear quite different. it's amazing what illustrations can do, is it not?

i forgot how "trip, trap, trip, trap" is so integral to the story!

there is a postscript in the back of this book that credits sir george dasent's popular tales from the norse (1858) as the introduction of this tale to english readers...rather than peter christen asbjørnsen and jørgen moe's norwegian folktales (1896) as wikipedia suggests. hmmm. oh, it appears dasent was publisher/translator of asbjørnsen and moe's text. all settled then.

the three billy goats gruff
adapted from the norwegian by alice o'grady and frances throop
1940, rand mcnally & co., chicago
illustrated by tony brice

the three billy goats gruff

the three billy goats gruff was one of my favorite tales as a child. i pretty much liked anything involving trolls. anyways, this start-right elf book is darling. its diminutive size paired with amazing illustrations by george wilde just makes it perfect.

the three billy goats gruff
retold by alice o'grady and frances throop
start-right elf books, 1966, rand mcnally & co., chicago
illustrated by george wilde

hiawatha

hiawatha by marion e. gridley
suggested by henry w. longfellow's poem hiawatha
elf book, 1956, rand mcnally & co., chicago
illustrated by irma wilde

little bear

an adorable little book i picked up for 5 cents somewhere last summer.

little bear by virginia hunter
a junior elf book, 1956, rand mcnally & co., chicago
illustrated by marge opitz

baby sister

this is a really cute book about bringing home a baby sister...so it's functional and cute. as all good books should be. i am totally enamored with the illustrations, especially the title page. that elephant just kills me. i could've used a book when my parents brought my little brother home...instead i got a baby alive doll which freaked me out because it pooped.

baby sister by valerie grayland

tip top elf book, 1964, rand mcnally & co., chicago

illustrated by marjorie cooper