Historical Children's Literature Collection

Books for children are what start all of us on the path of reading and we can form bonds with threadbare volumes we loved in our youth. Not only does the Historical Childrens' Literature Collection of over 3,000 volumes bring together all the early European and American books produced for children, it chronicles by example the history of reading and the changing definition of childhood. Educational practice, the place of entertainment literature, changing perceptions of gender, race and class and the role of religion in Europe and America are reflected in this Collection.

When describing the history of books for children, decorated medieval manuscripts and illustrated early printed books are generally considered the precursors of the form. The Historical Children's Literature Collection is complemented by examples of early bestiaries, travel books of maps and illustrated books on many topics in the Special Collections Division.

Early recreational reading by any age group was uncommon and books created specifically for children before 1700 are quite rare. It is assumed that books of the 16^th and 17^th centuries showing fanciful creatures such as the cameleopard [giraffe] and the manicore were the focus of children's interest. Even religious books such as John Foxe's Actes and Monuments, generally called The Book of Martyrs, had riveting images of deaths of saints. Other books not actually written for children were embraced by them: The Pilgrim's Progress, Robinson Crusoe and Gulliver's Travels. In 1654 Johannes Amos Comenius [1592-1670] wrote a book to teach children Latin called Orbis Sensualium Pictus or The World Around Us In Pictures. This was one of the first children's books and it stands almost alone in the 17^th Century.

In the 18th Century, children's books are more common, many designed to instruct with little entertainment value. The Collection has a nice sampling of these. Stories proved that good children were always rewarded, sometimes just by a virtuous death; bad children inevitably suffered and were punished. Sandford and Merton, Goody Two Shoes and the works of Mrs. Barbauld, Mrs. Sherwood, Sara Trimmer and Lady Eleanor Fenn are all good examples. For pleasure there were chapbooks, small 16 page pamphlets aimed both towards children and adults, that recounted stories of knights, fairy tales and sensational happenings of the day.

Dramatic changes happened in the book world in the 19^th Century and many new techniques were tested on the child market. Illustration and color printing remake the book and the text based black and white children's book of 1801 to multi-color, multi-image books in 1899. Such illustrated covers made books more interesting to children and more saleable to parents. Winning His Way [1883] is a boy's adventure book about the Civil War. The color printed cover shows two of the major characters of the book, Paul Parker as the soldier and Mr. Magnet celebrating the news of Paul's return from the War. Good Luck Story Book dates from 1900 and is one of a huge series of illustrated books published by the New York firm McLoughlin Brothers, noted for their color printing.

Decorated cloth bindings are a significant element of children's books in the 19^th and early 20^th Centuries. On a Pincushion [1877] has wonderful black and white woodcuts by William De Morgan with a distinct Pre-Raphaelite flair.

By the time of the Oz books, books had colorful dust jackets to further entice youthful readers. After the first book by L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz [1900], this popular series was added to by Baum until his death in 1919 and then continued by Ruth Plumly Thompson. W. W. Denslow and John R. Neill are both notable illustrators of the Oz books. The Lost King of Oz is from 1925.

Barry, Florence Valentine. A century of children's books. London, Methuen [1922]. Also: New York George H. Doran Company [1923] & Detroit, Singing Tree Press, 1968.

Cunningham, Hugh. Children and childhood in western society since 1500. London ; New York : Longman, 1995.

Hurlimann, Bettina, 1909- . Three centuries of children's books in Europe. Translated and edited by Brian W. Alderson. Cleveland, World Pub. Co. [1968, c1967].

James, Philip. Children's books of yesterday, edited by C. Geoffrey Holme. London, The Studio ltd.; New York, The Studio Publications inc.,1933. Also: Detroit : Gale Research Co., 1976.

McCulloch, Lou W. Children's books of the 19th century. Des Moines, Iowa : Wallace-Homestead Book Co., c1979.

Pierpont Morgan Library. Early children's books and their illustration. Boston : D. R. Godine, c1975.

Quayle, Eric. The collector's book of boys' stories. London : Studio Vista, 1973.

Quayle, Eric. The collector's book of children's books. New York, C. N. Potter; distributed by Crown Publishers [1971].

Quayle, Eric. Early children's books : a collector's guide. Newton Abbot, Devon : David & Charles ; Totowa, N.J. : Barnes & Noble Books, 1983.

Tuer, Andrew White. Pages and pictures from forgotten children's books brought together and introduced to the reader. London, The Leadenhall Press; New York, C. Scribner's sons, 1898-9.