Saturday, April 16, 2005

500 Copies of Pilgrim's Progress

My kids were teasing me yesterday after we came home from a book sale with yet another copy of Pilgrim's Progress. I think that makes about 5 different editions we have now, including my favourite with Edward Ardizzone illustrations. The one I found yesterday was published by Sears, probably in the 1920s, and is in amazingly solid condition except for a little chipping at the bottom of the spine.

But the kids have nothing to complain about; here's an essay by somebody who has 500 copies, or did nine years ago anyway. [Updated link]

We also found four volumes of Charlotte Mason (we dug around to see if the other two were in a box but didn't see them); Hawthorne's Twice-Told Tales; a book of James Whitcomb Riley's poems (Ponytails wanted that one); a James Herriot picture book; Claire Turlay Newberry's book Smudge; and a nicely-abridged copy of Don Quixote for the Apprentice's school next year. All in all it was a successful trip.

2 comments:

Headmistress, zookeeper said...

Hooray for Ponytails for wanting the James Whitcomb Riley.;-)

What sort of animal is Newberry's Smudge? We once had a small little smudge of a black kitten, who we naturally called Smudge. However, he grew up to be a large, sinister looking tomcat who would more appropriately be called something like Lucifer, or Baelzebub, or His Satanic Majesty the Dark Prince of the Night.

Mama Squirrel said...

Smudge is a black kitten. You can see a copy of the cover here: http://www.fiona.co.jp/images/PICTURE_BOOK/KINDERGARTEN/SMUDGE_NEWBERRY .