Inspiring Young Readers
A different look at collecting children's books
If you take a look at the catalogues of most of the bigger, prestigious second hand book dealers, you'll find they have a children's book section which features the 'classics' of the genre - first or early editions of Lewis Carroll, J.M. Barrie, A.A. Milne and the like. There will also be first editions of those classics illustrated by notables such as Arthur Rackham, Edmund Dulac, Ernest Shepard, Kay Nielsen.
Relatively few late 20th and 21st century authors have broken into this elite company. Roald Dahl, J.K.Rowling and Philip Pullman do now appear but it's hard to think of any contemporary illustrators that are looked on as collectible in the way their Victorian or Edwardian predecessors were.
This is a mystery to me - and an opportunity for anyone wanting to build a collection. First editions of some magnificent illustrated children's books are out there waiting to be snapped up for just a few pounds. Quentin Blake - who has illustrated a wide range of other authors as well as writing his own books - is now a well known name but his books, first editions, can be picked up easily at the moment. Similarly, fine illustrators like Raymond Briggs, Michael Foreman, Judith Kerr, Shirley Hughes, Lauren Child, David McKee can all be accumulated for very little outlay. Many of these contemporary children's book authors and illustrators also work hard on the design of their books and the overall feel of their productions - most of them are simply beautiful objects in their own right. It's not going too far to say that they genuinely are works of art.
There has also been some pioneering work done in the field of paper engineering and the modern children's pop-up book is literally astonishing - what can now be achieved in 3D diorama really has to be seen to be believed. Watching children respond to these books can leave little doubt that these are something very special and that creators like Robert Sabuda should be more appreciated and more widely collected.
If you want to build a collection of children's books that reflect life in the late 20th and early 21st century there really can't be a better time to start. I think we're in a golden age of book design as publishers work hard to carve out a place for real books in the age of the electronic reader and children's books have led the way. In the not too distant future people will struggle to explain why the great contemporary children's authors and illustrators were not accorded the sort of desirability they so obviously deserve. You'll pay thousands of pounds for good examples of the 'classics' but you'll pay a few pounds for the current greats. It's surely an offer you can't refuse?
Terry Potter
March 2016