The Romance of a Christmas Card
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, The Riverside Press, 1916. Hunt, Alice Ercle. First Edition. Hardcover. Octavo size, 132 pp., with dust jacket. Fine / Very Good. Item #16022911
Kate Douglas Wiggin (1856-1923), likely best known as the author of "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm", devoted her life to the welfare of children, even establishing the first free kindergarten in San Francisco in 1878.
This charming book in near-mint condition, with four colour plates, an illustrated title page, and numerous black-and-white drawings throughout, and with the publisher's dust jacket.
___DESCRIPTION: Decorated trade binding of blue cloth, the front board with gilt lettering and a border of holly leaves in gilt, paper onlay mounted onto the bottom portion of the board showing a scene of a small house on a snowy night with a blue ribbon tied into a bow on the left-hand side, gilt lettering on the spine, top edge gilt, illustrated endpapers of a snowy scene printed in blue, half-title with an illustrated oval border, illustrated title page, the four colour plates bound in throughout, each chapter with a small illustration serving as chapter head-piece and a chapter tail-piece; octavo size (7 3/4" by 5 3/8"), pagination: [i-vi] 1-124 [1, blank] [1, printer's statement]. The publisher's dust jacket mirrors the design of the front board with blue lettering and decorations on white, with the same illustration, blue lettering and decorations on the spine with the $1.00 price printed, back panel publisher's ad for "New Fiction" with all printing in blue, front flap with a summary of the book and the price of $1.00 printed towards the bottom, rear flap publisher's ad for other titles by Wiggin.
___CONDITION: Volume fine overall, the boards absolutely clean, the gilt bright, and the paper onlay without wear, the gilt top edge bright, straight corners without rubbing, a strong, square text block with solid hinges, the interior is clean and bright, and the sole prior owner marking being a lovely gift inscription "With loving Christmas Greetings..."; a hint of rubbing to the corners, and the head and tail of the spine, else fine. The dust jacket very good, all component parts present and attached, light overall dustiness, sunning to the spine, light overall wear with a few chips, including a larger one (approx. a half-inch square) where the top joint meets the front panel (some loss of the decorative border, no loss of lettering).
___CITATION: BAL no. 22675.
___POSTAGE: International customers, please note that additional postage may apply as the standard does not always cover costs; please inquire for details.
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Price: $100.00