Mr Punchs Shop : Books
| | |  | 1958 UK Hopalong Cassidy Book No 6 in Dust Jacket(Reference #06-5-27)
This 1958 Hopalong Cassidy was printed in Great Britain by Purnell and Sons by arrangement with Western Printing and Lithographing Company of Wisconsin, USA. The stories are written by Charles Hitchcock and illustrated by Hans Helweg. The book is in good condition with no tears, pencil or ink marking to any of the text or illustrations (black line and coloured). The book does have an ink inscription on the opening page which has been blotted out, although the words Nov 1958 are still legible. The dust jacket is (unusually) still present and is in a similarly good condition, apart from a small torn section at the base of the spine. If you recall Hopalong Cassidy from TV in the 1950s, then treat yourself to this nostalgic gem and rekindle those lost days of childhood innocence and imagination. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 | |
| 1961 Daily Mirror 'Dicing with Death' Racing Car Book(Reference #72-57)
Published by the Daily Mirror in 1961, this 'Dicing with Death' paperback comprises 12 chapters. These deal with the 1953 French Grand Prix, the 1953 Italian Grand Prix, the 1954 British Grand Prix, the 1955 Argentine Grand Prix, the 1955 Mille Miglia, the 1955 Le Mans 24-Hour Race, the 1955 Syracuse Grand Prix, the 1956 Italian Grand Prix, the 1957 German Grand Prix, the 1958 Belgian Grand Prix, the 1958 Moroccan Grand Prix, and the 1959 Monaco Grand Prix. The book is attractively illustrated with black and white line drawings and contains an absolute wealth of information about the 12 races. There is slight tearing and cardboard loss to the front cover and spine, and some foxing, but the book is in very acceptable condition overall. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 |  | |
|  | 1936 'Fifty Amazing Stories of the Great War' Hardback(Reference #1-47)
Issued by Odhams Press in 1936, this is a first edition hardback of a collection of stories relating to WWI. It includes a story by Bruce Bainsfather about the unofficial Christmas Day truce, a story by Compton Mackenzie about an attack on the Helles front, and one by Herbert Read about retreating from the front. The book also includes 17 black and white illustrations. The book is in good condition for its age, with only age-related discoloration to the edges of the pages. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 | |
| 1980s Personal Computer Pop-Up Book - Shrink-Wrapped(Reference #LBC37)
On offer here is a piece of history that shows how far technology has moved in the past 20 years. Published by Abbeville Press of New York some time in the 1980s, this 'Inside the Personal Computer' hardback book is 'a pop-up guide to the wondrous world of personal computers'. Open the book and a friendly computer pops out of the page to guide you through the inner workings. Three-dimensional models, illustrations, charts, and diagrams show you how the computer thinks, remembers, and communicates. The book measures 12" x 9" and is in unopened condition, so there's no risk that any of those lovely pop-ups will be damaged. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 |  | |
|  | 1910s High School Girl Book - Attwell Illustrations(Reference #01-6-3mm)
On offer here is a lovely Edwardian book in the girls at school genre. Entitled 'Dora: A High School Girl' and written by May Baldwin, it has a front cover illustration and five black and white plates by Mabel Lucie Attwell. It is in very acceptable condition for its age, but does suffer from some scuffing and marking, and lacks the frontispiece illustration which was also by Attwell. However, the five remaining plates are in very good condition and all of them are individually signed. If you're a fan either of this genre of Edwardian story-telling or of Mabel Lucie Attwell, then you can't go wrong with this book. (J) US$30.00
Price: £15.00 | |
| 1956 UK Lion Annual with Captain Condor Space Pictures(Reference #04-3-12)
Published by the Amalgamated Press Ltd for Xmas 1955, this LION ANNUAL exhibits a superb 1950s spacemen cover. The book measures 10.75 by 7.75 inches, and is in reasonable condition for its age. All the 160 pages appear to be intact, and the only points of note are that the book has a red ink dedication on the flyleaf, which has been coloured in with brown crayon (this could possibly be rubbed out). The spine is intact, but the edges of the book are worn and rounded with use. CAPTAIN CONDOR appears in one full colour comic strip story, entitled CAPTAIN CONDOR FIGHTS THE SPACE PIRATES. Nostalgia aside, this book cover would make a great backdrop to any collection of 1950s tinplate space toys or robots. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 |  | |
|  | 1954 (4th Edition) Down with Skool Book(Reference #04-4-2)
This 4th hardback edition of the Geofrey Willans and Ronald Searle classic dates from 1954 and has a hand-written inscription at the front. The book lacks its original dust jacket, and suffers from minor marking to a few pages, as well as slight evidence of pencil scribbles having been rubbed out on a few pages. However, it is in overall very good condition and would serve to bring back all those nostalgic memories of schoolboy humour. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 | |
| Hughes/Copping 'Tom Brown's Schooldays' Book(Reference #04-4-1)
This Collin's edition of 'Tom Brown's Schooldays' does not bear a date, but appears to be quite early. Measuring 4 by 6 inches, it is in excellent condition, has seven delightful black and white plates by Harold Copping, as well as the most charming frontispiece illustration of an elegant gentleman reading in an armchair. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 |  | |
|  | 1976 Warne Edition of Caldecott Picture Book(Reference #92-8)
Published by Frederick Warne in 1976, this is a facsimile hardback edition that combines four of Randolph Caldecott's Picture Books. In 1877 Edmund Evans, who was a colour printer and talented engraver, lost the services of Walter Crane as his children's book illustrator and asked Randolph to do illustrations for two books for Christmas. The results were The House that Jack Built and The Diverting History of John Gilpin published in 1878. They were an immediate success; so much so that he produced two more each year until he died in 1886. The stories and rhymes were all of Randolph's choosing and, in some cases, he also wrote or embellished them. The other two tales included in this edition are The Queen of Hearts and The Farmer's Boy. As you would expect, the illustrations are an absolute delight, and 30 of them are in full colour. The book measures 8 by 9.5 inches and is in exceptional condition. The only minor defects to note are slight marking to the front cover and to the front end paper. Why not take this opportunity to acquire a facsimile edition of the works of one of the most influential illustrators of the Victorian era? (WR) US$24.00
Price: £12.00 | |
| 1883 Ewing/Caldecott Jackanapes Child's Book(Reference #01-6-3z)
This is one of three books that Randolph Caldecott illustrated for that most prolific of Victorian women children's writers, Juliana Horatia Ewing. Published towards the end of their lives, it tells a rather sombre tale of soldier life. The book was very popular in its day, as this review demonstrates: "Among all the illustrated books we are disposed to place first one of the smallest. 'Jackanapes' is, in spite of its title, a somewhat tragical story of soldier life, written by Mrs Ewing, and illustrated by Mr Randolph Caldecott. It is hardly necessary to say that the result of such collaboration is simply charming. The grey goose, and the officer in his old-fashioned uniform, and Jackanapes telling his grandfather how he had laid out two shillings at the fair, and how he had since saved two pence towards the £15 requisite for the purchase of a pony - we should have to tell the story and enumerate all the cuts to give an idea of this delightful little book." - Saturday Review, November 3rd, 1883. The example on offer here has been particularly well loved: the covers are in poor condition, and are separate from the rest of the book, as are the front and back end papers. However, the remainder is complete and intact, and the only other defect to report is relatively minor foxing to some pages; this is more pronounced on the first and last few pages. In addition, the front end paper bears a hand-written name. In spite of its condition, this is an interesting Victorian children's book that unites two of the greatest talents of the age. (J) US$24.00
Price: £12.00 |  | |
|  | 1960 Modern Library Biggles' Black Peril Book(Reference #57-32)
Issued by Thames Publishing in the 1960s as part of its Modern Library series, this Captain W E Johns classic of The Black Peril has hard covers and measures 6.5 by 9 inches. The book has five colour plates, and is in good condition for its age, although it does suffer from some foxing to the first and last few pages, and there is an area of paper loss to the top right-hand corner of the front cover. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 | |
| Modern Facsimile Edition of Struwwelpeter(Reference #01-6-3pp)
As this Routledge & Keegan Paul hardback edition of Heinrich Hoffmann's Struwwelpeter is not dated, we do not know when it was published. However, it probably dates from the 1970s or 1980s when there was a vogue for these facsimile editions. Measuring 10" by 8", it is clearly a copy of one of the early English editions of the classic German collection of cautionary tales that was first translated and published in England in 1848. The book has 24 highly coloured pages and is in very good condition. The only minor blemishes are to the front and back covers that are slightly stained and marked. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 |  | |
|  | 1961 UK Deans Pop-Up Book of Trains(Reference #04-2-7)
Dean and Son Ltd published this POP-UP BOOK OF TRAINS in 1961. The book comprises ten pages with three pop-up pictures, and measures 9.25 by 6.75 inches. It is in good condition, except for some slight damage to one corner of the cover, and a small scuff mark to the top left hand corner of page one. All three pop-up pictures are complete and intact, and depict a Britannia Pacific no 70000, a Brush type 2, and a 3,300 horse power Deltic. The other pictures show three steam locomotives (the LNER's Silver Link, a 2-10-0 freight engine, and the Western Region King Class locomotive King John), and a three-car diesel train. The book is marked copyright 1961 on the last page. If you like pop-up books or evocative train illustrations, then this could be of interest. (J) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 | |
| 1964 Hogarth Press Laurie Lee's The Firstborn(Reference #70-31)
In this delightful little book of prose and pictures, Laurie Lee writes of the first child born to him in the twelfth year of his marriage. Lee had married Catherine Francesca Polge, a Provençal woman in 1950; they had one daughter - the subject of this book. According to the book jacket, 'the author's own photographs of mother and child which illustrate this essay have the style and grace of Italian paintings of the High Renaissance, and show that Laurie Lee is master of more arts than one'. With a Laurie Lee copyright date of 1963, and a Hogarth Press publication date of 1964, the book includes five black and white photographs of mother and baby. The book is in good condition for its age and still has its original jacket. This has wear and tear to the spine, and minor scuffing to the edges, but is in good shape overall. If you're a Laurie Lee fan, then this could well be the book for you. (J) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 |  | |
|  | 1942 Battle Forces of Britain Picture Book(Reference #7-1-28)
Published by WHC of London in 1942, this Battle Forces of Britain booklet (7 by 5.5 inches) contains a history of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force. Also included are 144 pictures (1.25 by 1 inch) of the fighting forces in action, insignia, ships, planes, tanks, and other equipment. The pictures can be used in various ways. Suggestions include colouring the outlines on the reverse of each picture, adding the pictures to a scrap book, or using them to decorate books with plain covers or toys. The book is in excellent condition for its age and does not appear ever to have been read. The only slight defect to report is some rust staining surrounding the staples. (#) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 | |
| WWI English Land and Water Children's Booklet(Reference #7-1-27)
This 12-page coloured Land and Water booklet was produced at the time of WWI. It measures 5.5 by 4.75 inches. The booklet features pictures and text relating to Shackleton's Endurance, a Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway locomotive, a squadron of RAF planes, a race between a Midland Express and a Great Eastern Express, a biplane on a night flight, a British Torpedo-Boat Destroyer, an observer using a Lewis gun on an aeroplane, a whaling steamship, the battle-cruiser Inflexible in the fight off the Falkland Islands, an aero-bus of the future, and the American dreadnought Nevada. The only slight defect to report is that the original staple has rusted away, leaving the pages loose and a rust mark in the seam. However, this is only a minor blemish on such an historically interesting piece of ephemera. (J) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 |  | |
|  | 1930s English ABC and Story Books (2)(Reference #3-10-355c)
Issued by Renwick of England in the 1930s as part of its Punch and Judy series, these two paper books (seven inches by five inches) are entitled OUR ABC and MY FAMILY. Both have a mixture of colour and black and white pages. The first one illustrates the letters of the alphabet with relevant pictures and words beginning with that letter (as, for example, G gives a gollywog). The second one describes in rhyme the seventeen toys that form a little girl's family. Both books are in very good condition for their age, without any tears or damage. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 | |
| 1890s UK Flowers of Shakespeare Book(Reference #01-12-05a)
Published by Sampson Low Marston Searle & Rivington of London, this delightfully illustrated chromolithographed book probably dates from the 1890s. The book measures 9" by 7", has 28 pages, and is in fair to good condition for its age. It depicts, by 'Viola', 24 chromolithographs of flowers found in the works of Shakspeare, with accompanying quotations from the relevant texts. These are all quite beautifully executed, and show the Victorian passion for flowers and their language. The chromolithographs are attributed to 'Emrik & Binger: Chromolithographers: 15 Holborn Viaduct: London: S: C '. The pages, though complete and untorn, are grubby with age and use, with slight incidental marking/staining to some edges. In its day this would have been a relatively cheaply produced book, and the bound pages are therefore now detached from their board covers. However, despite these faults, this is an interesting Victorian publication, and is not expensive for what it is. If all things Victorian are your abiding passion, then this could be well worth a look. (J) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 |  | |
|  | 1890 UK Edition of Gray's Elegy by Castell(Reference #01-12-05c)
This exquisite little edition of Gray's Elegy was published by Castell Brothers around 1890, and is in first class condition for its age. It measures 6" by 5", has 16 pages (including the end papers), and is profusely illustrated in black and white. There is no damage to report to this book, and the illustrations are an absolute delight, being typical of their period. Gray's Elegy is Thomas Gray's (1716 to 1771) best-loved work, and remains perennially popular. This version was printed in Bavaria, and would make an ideal gift for any lovers of this poem. (J) US$30.00
Price: £15.00 | |
| 1931 Gumps Cartoon Book(Reference #4-3-157)
Published by the National Art Company of New York and drawn by Sidney Smith, this cartoon book measures 10" x 14" and contains 31 one-page cartoon strips plus the frontispiece. The book is in generally good condition, but a few of the strips have been coloured in with crayon, and some of the pages have become detached from the central staples with the result that the edges are now slightly frayed. However, overall, this is a desirable vintage cartoon book. (J) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 |  | |
|  | 1930s Enid Blyton Book of Bunnies(Reference #9-2-01h)
Published by George Newnes of London, this hardback book measures 10" x 7" and comprises 132 pages. It contains 12 stories, two colour plates and two poems - all of which are about Flip and Binkle Bunny. The book is in reasonable condition for its age and has the binding intact. However, it does suffer from some scuffing to the edges of the covers and the pages, pencil scribble to the outside back cover, and one of the colour plates is loose. None of these is particularly serious though and if you're a fan of Enid Blyton or of bunny stories, then this could be the item for you. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 | |
| 1986 Sea Harrier/Tornado F2 Cut-Out Books (2)(Reference #84-15)
Published by Pitkin Pictorials in 1986, these two model cut-out books measure 14" by 9.75" and are in mint condition. They each comprise a 1:72 scale model of the aircraft, a realistic diorama, full-colour portrait and illustrations, and informative text. The Tornado F2 model - 'the Raf's spectacular new fighter' - has working swing-wings, while the Sea Harrier - 'the Royal Navy's versatile fleet defender' - has rotating jet nozzles and detachable undercarriage. As both of these books are old shop stock and have never been read or played with, there are no defects to report. (WR) US$20.00
Price: £10.00 |  | |
|  | 1920 Gruelle Raggedy Ann Story Book in Box(Reference #01-12-05f)
This twenty-fifth edition of the 'Raggedy Ann Stories' was published by P F Volland Company, the first publishers of the book and makers of the first commercially made Raggedy Ann dolls. The book bears the copyright date of 1918 and a handwritten inscription in the front that reads: 'San Francisco, California; to Gracie from Auntie Elizabeth, Xmas 1920'. The book measures 9.25" x 6" and benefits from the most delightful colour illustrations. For a book of this vintage, it is in very acceptable condition. The spine is missing and there is slight paper loss to the front hard cover, but both the covers and the pages are completely intact. The only defect to report to the inside is marking to the edges of some pages. Unusually, the book is still complete with its original box. This consists of a plain bottom and a top that bears the same image of Raggedy Ann as the front cover of the book. The top suffers from some paper loss and lacks all its edges, but it's always a bonus to have an original box - whatever the condition. (J) US$30.00
Price: £15.00 | |
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