The valentine, as a graphic token to be exchanged by lovers on February 14, became very popular in the middle of the 19th century, and continued to increase in popularity and variety as the century advanced. In the first years of the 20th century there was an explosion in popularity of the picture postcard, and it was natural that postcards would be created to send on every holiday. Tens of thousands of valentine designs were printed as postcards. We have selected thirty favorites from our collection, and reproduced them here in such a way that they can either be removed and mailed or kept intact and the book given entire.

This volume features many adorable cupids, pretty ladies and charming children, and we hope our selections will enhance our customers’ Valentines Day.

As much as adults enjoy Christmas, children enjoy it even more. The young are not nearly as burdened with the financial and social obligations of the holiday, and are more open to the magic and wonder of the season. Thus children and Christmas are natural partners, and this fact is reflected in the prevalence of children in Christmas art. This is especially so in the area of the picture postcard, which enjoyed amazing popularity from approximately 1880 to 1910, the era from which these postcards come.

For this postcard book we have selected thirty images of adorable children engaged in a variety of Yuletide activities. Presents are given and received, trees trimmed, letters to Santa sent, carols sung and sleigh-bells rung in this delightful assortment.

We have more than fifty versions of this wonderful poem in our library; this is one of our favorites. Margaret Evans Price has a gentle talent. The Santa Claus on the cover, and throughout, is one of the kindest Santas ever imagined. This is a Santa who is appealingly earth bound.

This is a facsimile of the 1917 edition. We have die-cut it, as in the original, and the shaped / rounded top makes it especially appealing. This is an ideal first "Night Before Christmas" for a young child.

"The Green Tiger’s Illustrated Book of Fairy Tales" is the fourth publication in Laughing Elephant’s heralded series of illustrated anthologies. From the folk and fairytale tradition the editors have chosen a selection of the most beloved and well-known fairytales. From amongst the many hundreds of illustrated editions the editors have chosen illustrators who best embody the tale; a veritable all-star team of illustrators.

"The Green Tiger’s Illustrated Book of Fairy Tales" will be a desirable addition to libraries, both public and private. Librarians will prize it for its historical significance. Parents and grandparents will recognize its timeless excellence, and children will enjoy wonderful fairytales richly illustrated. Included are Hans Christian Andersen’s "The Ugly Duckling" illustrated by the Caldecott Medal winning husband and wife team of Berta and Elmer Hader, as well as the Charles Perrault version of Sleeping Beauty illustrated, appropriately, by the great French illustrator, Edmund Dulac.

This book joins "The Green Tiger’s Illustrated Mother Goose" (2005), "The Green Tiger’s Illustrated ABC" (2006) and "The Green Tiger’s Illustrated Book of Children’s Poetry" (2007).

This book explores the golden rule – ‘do unto others…’ – which occurs in some form in most of the world’s religions, and which reached its most perfect formulation in the words of Jesus, ‘Do unto others what you want others to do to you.’ Included are many of the different ways in which the rule is expressed by both religious and secular thinkers. This book also features succinct summaries of arguments for and against the golden rule as a guide to behavior.

The Golden Rule book is unique in its form – being in shape and size similar to a ruler – and is printed in golden ink so that it is both a book on the golden rule and a golden rule itself.

Each age leaves an impact of its character in its greeting cards and other paper ephemera. We see in the beautiful postcards of the late Victorians that era’s predilections in both love and design.

The imagery in ‘Victorian Valentines Postcard Book’ is largely formal because, to the Victorians, love was a serious business. We see beautiful women, well-groomed children, and the classical February 14th icons of cherubs, ornate hearts and many beautiful flowers. This is a thoroughly decorated universe, featuring baroque typography, bows and ribbons everywhere, and the occasional touch of lace. So felicitously do Valentine’s Day and Victoriana mesh that much of what we think of as traditional Valentine’s Day imagery is Victorian in origin.

We have selected 30 favorites from our collection for this gathering.

For obvious reasons, we have a special place for elephants, not only in our hearts but in our collections as well. Many brilliant illustrators have expressed their affection and awe for this wonderful animal through the decades. Illustrators include: Johnny Gruelle, F.Y. Cory, Charles Robinson, Maude and Mishka Petersham and Tony Sarg.

The period between 1880 and World War I was the great era of the picture postcard. Inexpensive postal rates and high-quality, high-speed printing methods encouraged the growth of this craze, which swept the world and brought countless thousands of postcards into existence.

Christmas was naturally a popular postcard subject, and where we reproduce thirty very different and interesting antique postcards from our large collection in which jolly Santas and adorable children abound.

Dogs are our oldest friends. When a wolf first came to crouch by our fire, cats were wild beasts searching out their own prey, and horses still ran at the first sniff of our approach. Welleran Poltarnees has a lifelong love for dogs, and here in this book he distills his love for them into words. He praises them for their unwavering love, their ready sympathy, their fresh delight in simple pleasures, and their sometimes unconscious humor. He has made each statement more resonant by the addition of pictures, frequently from obscure sources.

This book was inspired by the great era of the American magazine-roughly 1910 to 1960-a time when most homes subscribed to at least several magazines.

The December/Christmas issue was often the bestseller of the year; holiday covers demanded a publisher’s best efforts and the results are evident. December was not a month for experimentation or weak execution, or a less than stellar artist. The covers collected here are both visually excellent and a précis of American Christmas custom.

The 95 covers included are gathered in nine thematic sections:

Looking Forward to Christmas
Christmas Shopping
Decorating the Home
The Christmas Tree
Santa Claus
Gift Giving
Gift Receiving
The Joy Of Christmas
The Birthday of the Christ Child
Miscellaneous Themes

During the great era of postcard publishing (which dated from the 1890′s until World War I) a great many different designs for postcards were produced. Holidays were a favorite time to send postcards, and as Halloween was second only to Christmas as a card sending occasion, Halloween themed cards abounded. The imagery of these cards is varied, appealing, and dramatic. Our selections use the familiar imagery of Halloween – pumpkins, ghosts, witches, and black cats – but the mood is generally light hearted rather than frightening. We hope this assortment of favorites encourages a renewal of the happy custom of Halloween correspondence.

When we first published Jasper Tomkins’ whimsical picture book in 1981, Publisher’s Weekly said in its review: “Three mountains just sit, day and night, until a catalog arrives in their remote desert location. Studying the offerings, one mountain decides to order 43 giraffes; the second sends for 61 turtles; and the third decides on 52 bears. The animals arrive in due time, kicking off blithe happenings that grow out of the hosts’ ideas for making the company feel at home and the guests’ generous reciprocations of favors. The mountains order refrigerators full of food, decks of playing cards, records for dancing and (of course) a record player … Their gifts to the mountains are depicted in the last pages of Tomkins exhilarating flight of fancy, a love of a book with pictures so cleverly drawn that the author makes one eager to believe his tale.”

One of the most frequent occasions for gift giving is a token of thanks for hospitality received. While flowers or a bottle of wine are frequent choices, this book offers a splendid alternative. It was written and designed with this specific intention, and speaks of various aspects of hospitality—the atmosphere, conversation, refreshments, shared laughter, and so on.

Welleran Poltarnees has the gift for finding the words and images for universal situations, and that gift has never been more fully present than in this volume.

The illustrations for every page are by the French painter Henri Le Sidaner. His talent is to show homes that radiate warmth and beauty. People are never shown’ which gives the images a timeless applicability.

We think this is the ideal hospitality gift, being both ideally pertinent and visually attractive.

This volume is intended as a birthday gift. Poltarnees, as he has demonstrated in our other Blessing Books, has a talent for discovering the universal truths underlying each situation. His good thoughts fit people of all ages, and in all conditions of life. He also has a gift for expressing the things which we all think, but cannot find the words to say.

In the front of this book there is a page intended for a personal inscription.

A Birthday Blessing begins "To mark the Anniversary of your birth, I send you this blessing…" and continues blessing the friendship between giver and receiver, celebrating the continuing life journey of the recipient.

Welleran Poltarnees believes in the old adage "Count your blessings." His books help people to affirm the blessings of life, to share a loving thought with their friends and family. Poltarnees envisions his books as being like pebbles dropped in a still pond, their rings emanating ever outward, those blessed, in turn, blessing others, who bless yet again.

"The Truth About Easter Rabbits", which we published in 2005, was so attractive and so popular that we follow it up with this survey of snow men, snow women, snow children and snow animals. Like the Easter Rabbit book it uses a great variety of illustrative sources to provide a comprehensive view of how snow people are created, how they vary in personality and appearance, their recreational preferences, their family lives, and what happens to them after they melt. Most of us love snow people already, but after looking at this book one will enjoy them in a more profound way.

Sources drawn upon for this project include: old postcards, Victorian scraps, children’s readers, antique picture books, and magazine covers and illustrations.

For many years customers have requested smaller, less expensive editions of our most popular gift titles, and we are happy to announce that we have obliged. A small book has a special charm; it may be slipped into a pocket or a purse with ease. Small Blessings will make welcome gifts for those occasions when a small but lovely token is appropriate.

In this book a baby is blessed in its coming, its blind infancy, its awakening sight and its growth toward laughter, mobility and speech. It uses old paintings and illustrations to make vivid each statement. Poltarnees speaks eloquently the sweet hopes we have for every baby. This blessing in book form makes a superb gift to any new parents and their baby.

A baby blessing is one of the rightest of all blessings – for a child comes fresh into our realm, all possibilities spread before it, and so our hopes and wishes have fullest opportunity for scope and effect. oltarnees believes that the more specific a blessing, the better it is. Further, he thinks that writing it down, setting it in type and printing it increases the power. Finally, he asserts that the addition of images adds the force of manifestation to the thoughts. This volume is the result of these insights.

"The Cats’ Pajamas" is another title from Frances Brundage, the illustrator of our popular shaped-book "The Three Bears". "The Cats’ Pajamas" is a truly delightful tale of a fashion-conscious cat and her two kittens. After receiving brand-new stylish pajamas, the small kittens promptly ruin them with reckless play but, as they discover, a mother’s love surpasses even beautiful pajamas.

This would make a wonderful gift for new parents building their classics collection or an avid young reader. The Cats’ Pajamas is die-cut around the cover image, an additional title in our shaped book series.

Those of us who share our lives with animals whose time on earth is shorter than ours must at sometime cope with the pain of losing these friends to death.

From her own experience and from the accounts of other animal owners, Alexandra Day has come to feel that animals who have departed this world want to send a message of reassurance, comfort and sympathy to their beloved human friends.

Alexandra Day, the author and artist of the Good Dog, Carl series has paired her message of love and remembrance with an array of images featuring animals and their human companions.

"Our lives are profoundly enriched by animals. Our pets unselfishly give us their unconditional love and trust. But all too soon, we must face the death of our short-lived companions. As a specialist in treating pet dogs with life-threatening cancers, I have many times witnessed the enduring bond between owner and beloved pet and the grieving that accompanies the loss of an animal friend. In this book, Alexandra Day skillfully combines words and images to send us an important message from our dearly departed animal companions. Even though we cannot cure our animal friends of their every ill, we can keep them alive in our hearts. It is a comforting proposition that, even in death, their perfect love still surrounds us as we continue on our journey. Most of us have difficulty articulating our feeing to those who are grieving for a lost loved one. This book very eloquently speaks to anyone who has been moved by the loss of an animal friend. The reader cannot escape being affected by this wonderful book which evokes a sense of peaceful reflection that is therapeutic for the soul."
-From the back cover note by David J. Waters, DVM, PhD, Director, PATH to Progress

Alexandra Day’s bestselling ‘Good Dog, Carl’ series features a dog who takes his family’s child on various adventures, always managing to conceal this from the parents. Carl is an emblem of mischievous but responsible caretaking. Now with "The Fairy Dogfather" Alexandra Day has created another character that has a special relationship with a child, one that is outside of the parental realm. And this dog talks!

A young boy, Hector, has trouble differentiating the letters D and G. Thus when he writes a request to the universe that he needs a fairy godfather, well, the Fairy Dogfather arrives instead. The Fairy Dogfather is a big black, white and brown dog who wears a fedora and beautiful brown jacket, smokes a cigar, and isn’t at all what Hector had in mind. He uses a lot of big words, and instead of simply granting Hector’s wishes, like a regular fairy godmother, he is a rather demanding visitor. It’s understandable that a Fairy Dogfather would arrive hungry and need to check the weather report, but Hector needs a present for his Mom’s birthday right away. It looks like his benefactor isn’t going to be of much help. But in Day’s capable and witty hands the Fairy Dogfather turns out to be a forceful and enigmatic figure who manages, with subtle wit, to grant all of Hector’s wishes.

The tale of Aladdin, a poor boy who finds a magic lamp containing a genie and eventually marries a princess, is one of Scheherezade’s from One Thousand and One Nights, and one of the best known. It has been told many times, in many forms and settings including opera, film, and of course many children’s picture books. This one – from 1934 and illustrated by C.H. Lawrence – is a fine example.

The vivid imagery of Aladdin’s story is one reason it is so beloved over such a long period of time. The cave with its jeweled walls, the all powerful lamp, the genie’s sudden appearances, the Sultan’s court and the beautiful Princess – all these are wonderfully rendered by the artist C.H. Lawrence. Paired with a text that keeps the story’s potency, but simplifies it for younger readers – this is a wonderful Aladdin for parents and children to share.

This is a book created to be given. At its center is a poem by Charles Snell which was written for, and published in, 1914 as a small gift book. In it the giver, in a series of concrete images, extends the recipient many good wishes.

"This Is My Wish for You" is in the tradition of ancient blessings, in which one tries, through the power of language, to throw a mantle of protection and beneficence over the receiver.

In our volume, the text is presented within borders made by Daniel Maclise for a book entitled "Moore’s Irish Melodies", published in 1846. We have selected images to accompany each wish. These are made by a great variety of painters and illustrators, and range over more than 150 years.

We assert, without exaggeration, that this is the nearly perfect gift book.

Hansel and Gretel is one of the Grimm Brothers’ best-loved fairy tales. This shaped book tells the story of two siblings who brave a night in the dark woods and cleverly defeat a witch who lives in an appealing gingerbread house. Margaret Evans Price (1888-1973) was a prolific American illustrator of fairy tales and children’s stories. Her gentle and archetypal style achieves the right balance between the sweetness of the children and the scariness of the witch.

This is our sixth reproduction of a shaped children’s book, and our fourth illustrated by Margaret Evans Price. Price has certainly proven popular with our customers, and for good reason. Her illustrations are pretty and fanciful. She is especially gifted at depicting children in a stylized yet not cartoonish manner. In The Betty Fairy Book (1915) a little girl – Betty – inadvertently angers the fairies by wearing a fairy crown that she finds and dancing “on fairy ground.” The fairies decide to banish her to a boat, on which Betty bravely faces several hardships. Betty’s courage endears her to the fairies, who relent and take Betty to fairyland where she is cared for and given gifts. Betty comes away from her adventure with fairy souvenirs and new friends. This charming tale is richly illustrated and will appeal to both children and sentimental adults.

The images in "We Wish You A Crazy Christmas" were chosen from our vast collection of Victorian and Edwardian Christmas cards and postcards. Those eras produced millions of cards, for this a strong time for both mailed correspondence and Yuletide greetings. Most had traditional or religious imagery, but a substantial minority were – to our minds – malapropos, such as cow in a field, a tree blossoming in spring, a sandy beach. A smaller number goes beyond irrelevancy to weirdness, and these we have decided to share with our adventurous customers. They offer the opportunity to ponder, laugh, or to simply wonder "Why?"

Only when darkness comes does Halloween truly begin. Night is the time for mystery, for devilry, and for fright. All manner of mysterious and sometimes frightening creatures emerge from the shadows, including the two featured in our "Wicked Witches and Creepy Cats: A Halloween Postcard Book." Along with the pumpkin, the witch and her feline familiar are the most enduring symbols of All Hallows’ Eve, and thus are richly represented in the many Halloween postcards that were printed in the picture postcard’s Golden Age (1890 to World War 1). Our selection of 30 witch and black cat images include the mildly frightening witch, the adorable child witch, the pretty lady witch, one rather odd witch driving a roadster, and many very fine black cats.

Originally published in 1945, this beautiful book is really three titles in one – a counting book, an alphabet book, and an object book. It is rendered in a naive style and primary colors, and the illustrator’s Scandinavian heritage shines through in the deceptively simple and charming illustrations. Inside the front cover is a little house under a rising sun, and inside the back cover the same house sits under a crescent moon. Within we find an enchanting world of a red-haired little boy in blue overalls named Peter, princesses with pigs ( for P of course) and a very fine tiger, among many other delights. The reader is taken through Peter’s day, and the frequent appearance of old-fashioned clocks will puzzle but delight the modern child.

Swedish illustrator Einar Nerman (1888 – 1983) had long career in both Europe and the United States. In the 1920′s and 1930′s he worked for fashionable magazines in London such as The Tatler and Eve. World War II brought him to New York and The Journal-American, as well as book illustration.

Edward Ernest was active from the 1940′s through the 1960′s as both an author and editor of children’s literature. His titles aside from "A Child’s First Book" include "Peter’s Birthday Party," "Among the Daisies," "The Animated Circus Book," "Hector the Old Clothes Collector," and "The Kate Greenaway Treasury."

This reproduction of an 1890 book features cats and kittens in an alphabetic parade of charming adventures. It tells the eccentric tale of a beautiful "A for Angora" cat who overcomes jealousy and buckets of water to find love and happiness and is beautifully illustrated with cats playing banjoes, getting married, singing in a choir, and many other whimsical activities. This tender love story is highlighted with verses such as: "T stands for Trouble now over and past, and The Triumph of True Tender hearts at The Last," and "V is the Vanity Fluffy display When on a Visit her kittens you praise." The Victorians’ love of cats is on full display in this fine addition to our popular series of shaped books

We’ve left cookies for Santa and made things easy as pie – and now the third in our popular series of vintage recipe books "I Scream for Ice Cream" is ready for the icebox. Including both recipes for ice cream and creative things to do with ready- made ice cream, "I Scream for Ice Cream" is richly illustrated with many charming illustrations from our treasure trove of ice cream imagery. We hope our customers have as much fun using this book as we had putting it together.

"I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream." Truer words were never spoken. Author, Benjamin Darling, has once again delved into his storied collection of vintage recipe pamphlets to give readers a fine celebration of frozen confections, quiescent and otherwise. In addition to recipes for making ice cream using traditional, modern and novel methods, author Darling, has filled "I Scream for Ice Cream" with a rich offering of recipes for ice cream sundaes, milk shakes, splits, and many more of the multitude of wonderful things that can be done with ice cream. Finally Mr. Darling has interleaved his work with a rich selection of facts about ice cream and ice cream eating as well as beautiful ice cream illustrations on every page. "I Scream for Ice Scream" is the book for ice cream lovers everywhere, whether they want to make ice cream from scratch, make great ice cream dishes, or simply revel in the beauty of ice cream facts, figures and illustrations.

In this book a baby is blessed in its coming, its blind infancy, its awakening sight and its growth toward laughter, mobility and speech. It uses old paintings and illustrations to make vivid each statement. Poltarnees speaks eloquently the sweet hopes we have for every baby. This blessing in book form makes a superb gift to any new parents and their baby.

A baby blessing is one of the rightest of all blessings – for a child comes fresh into our realm, all possibilities spread before it, and so our hopes and wishes have fullest opportunity for scope and effect. Poltarnees believes that the more specific a blessing, the better it is. Further, he thinks that writing it down, setting it in type and printing it increases the power. Finally, he asserts that the addition of images adds the force of manifestation to the thoughts. This volume is the result of these insights.

After taking her children to visit Shakespeare’s house, E. Nesbit – one of the greatest of children’s novelists – was faced with a conundrum:

“I can’t understand a word of it,” said Iris.

“And you said it was so beautiful,” Rosamund added, reproachfully. “What does it all mean?”

“Yes,” Iris went on, “you said it was a fairy tale, and we’ve read three pages, and there’s nothing
about fairies, not even a dwarf, or a fairy god mother.”

“And what does ‘misgraffed’ mean?”

“and ‘vantage,’ and ‘austerity,’ and ‘belike,’ and ‘edict,’ and—“

“stop, stop,” I cried; I will tell you the story.”

And she did, eventually publishing her retellings of 20 of Shakespeare’s plays.

The plays we include are:

As You Like It, Hamlet, Comedy of Errors, Twelfth Nigh, The Tempest, Taming of the Shrew, Romeo and Juliet, Much Ado About Nothing, Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Merchant of Venice.

We have selected for each play images from such great illustrators as Walter Crane, Charles Folkard, May Mulliner, Arthur Rackham, Lewis Rhead, Charles Robinson W. Heath Robinson, and Hugh Thomson.

"Good Dog, Carl" creator Alexandra Day’s dynamic duo Frank, a bear, and Ernest an elephant, are back, and this time must master the language of baseball during their stint as managers of the Elmville Mudcats- a minor league team.

The animal pals have their work cut our for them; the team is in the cellar (in last place in the league) and Frank and Ernest have to do everything- sell tickets, run batting practice, announce the game to the fans, and more! But once they learn the right language, it all seems easy…

Soon expressions like “fly hawk”- a skillful outfielder; “smoke artist”- a pitcher who throws lots of fastballs; and “can of corn”- a ball that’s been hit so high it can easily be caught- no longer sound strange to the animal friends. Readers will cheer for Frank and Ernest whose skill with the lingo makes for a great day at the ballpark!

First published in 1990, we welcome the opportunity to re-present this Alexandra Day book full of the secret language children love, as well as a story of cooperation, and friendship.

Nimby is a special cloud. Unable to quell his creative spirit and fit in with his
cloud family, he drifts away and meets a magical island. Together they have
wonderful adventures and form an artistic alliance. This charming and gentle tale
of two free spirits will enchant readers with its message of friendship and
acceptance. Tomkins’ witty visuals and delightful story are as fresh as they were
when this book was originally published in 1982.

We are pleased to present our delightful shaped and whimsically illustrated version of "A Child’s Garden of Verses" by Robert Louis Stevenson with illustrations by Fern Bisel Peat. The collection first appeared in 1885 and has proven popular with children and their parents over the past 100 + years. We were drawn to reprint this version especially, for the appeal and high quality of the illustrations and how well they fit with the poems chosen. The charming art is from the 1930’s.

This version is designed specifically with the very young reader in mind, hence the bold and colorful artwork and selective offering of poems. It includes: The Lamplighter, The Land of Counterpane, Bed in Summer, My Shadow, The Swing and more.

This book is a celebration in words and pictures of hugs and kisses. Drawing up on a vast library of images, the editor has woven a kind of poem; one that fuses what we read and what we see into an homage to the beauty of love and physical affection. We see couples kissing at masquerade balls, on the beach, on a hill above Paris, in a car, in the mountains, at a cafe, at a dance, etc.; tableaux that
confirm the need of lovers to kiss anywhere, at any time.

"Hugs and Kisses"’ images are drawn from vintage postcards, magazine illustrations, posters fine art, antiquarian children’s books and more, and paired with apropos words to form a montage on these simple physical manifestations of love.

This will make a fine gift for someone you love.

This, unlike most books of quotations, is not culled from other anthologies, but is the product of thousands of books read and remembered over a lifetime. Some of the unusual categories are: Ambiguity, Confusion, Detachment, In-Between, The Innocent Eye, Invisibility, Locks and Keys, Mirrors, Naming, The Third Alternative, and Zero.

Kehl, a professor of art at the University of Washington, is concerned with cultivating, in himself and others, fresh insight and unhackneyed response. The quotations here collected are those he has found most useful in cultivating independent thinking. He shares the educational goal defined by Sidney Jourard: "The task is to break the hypnotic spell, so that we become undeaf, unblind and multilingual, thereby letting the world speak to us in new voices and write all its possible meanings in the new book of our existence."

All, everything that I understand, I understand only because of love.
– Leo Tolstoy

This gathering focuses on the wonderful and baffling alchemy by which two beings can reach
across the seemingly unbridgeable gulf between them, and achieve unity. All of these quotations
were gathered over decades of reading rather than culled from collections of famous sayings. As
before, many of Kehl’s favorite authors are represented, including Neruda, Rilke, Colette, Rumi,
Yeats, Apollinaire and Merwin. This is a book unlike any other on the subject of love.

"What do they call it … the primordial soup? The glop? That heartbreaking second when it all got together, the sugars and the acids and the ultraviolets, and the next thing you knew there were tangerines and string quartets."
– Edward Albee

The mystery of creation is the underlying theme of this gathering of quotations. They were collected in a lifetime of reading. Richard Kehl says that when he happened on words which quickened his breath or caused the hair to stand up on the back of his neck he knew that these were words which he wanted to remember. He has assembled this book in the hope that it will offer to others a similar excitement.

“The Happiest Who’s Who Ever Written”

-Original advertising slogan for book in 1954.

"Who’s Who in Oz", originally published in the 1950’s, is an illustrated index of nearly every
character that ever appeared in the first 39 Oz books.

"Who’s Who in Oz" is wonderful in its scope and reach; author, Jack Snow, did a remarkable job
gathering these characters together and his descriptions or as he calls them “ informal
introductions to over six hundred and thirty Oz characters- people, animals, and creatures- with
hints on the parts they play in the thirty-nine Oz books” show a foremost Oz scholar, and
excellent writer himself, at work. Each character description also has a reference telling you the
first page on which this character appeared, and in which Oz book.

There are many black and white illustrations, by John R. Neill, Frank Kramer and “Dirk”, that
give us a delightful glimpse into the truly amazing, imaginative world of Oz.

Our shaped book of The Three Bears has been so popular, we think, not only because it is beautifully illustrated, but also because it retells one of the handful of fairy tales which is an essential part of every child”s growing up. We wanted another shaped book of an equally elemental tale, and we think we have found it in this gentle version of the cautionary tale of Red Riding Hood, illustrated by Gladys Hall. It, like The Three Bears, dates from about 1910.

Originally published in 1972, "2011: Living in the Future" wondered how we would live in the 2000′s. This optimistic book is both whimsical and nostalgic, inspiring and disappointing. Where are those jet-packs?

In Geoffrey Hoyle’s book "2011: Living in the Future" in the far-off year 2011, we’ll all do our work, attend school and read library books on ingenious video screens that can connect to each other from anywhere around the globe. Hoyle calls these miraculous devices “Vision Phones," (much more lyrical than i-Phone.)

Of course, in author Geoffrey Hoyle’s 1972 vision of the 2000′s, those screens are telephone-based, the size of a large dishwasher—and we use them while wearing practical and ingeniously designed jumpsuits made of “a material so light you can hardly feel it”. We eat using an amazing device into which we simply type our culinary desires on a screen, and voila, a fresh cooked meal to our exact specifications! Better yet no more rush hour, no more gas fueled vehicles, and no houses larger than any family’s needs (if only we’d heeded the warnings!)

Some of Mr. Hoyle’s nearly forty year old predictions are remarkably accurate, some are delightfully wrong, all of them are thought provoking in a very entertaining, pull it out at a party, kind of way. Accompanied by it’s original ultra seventies illustrations "2011: Living in the Future" is a near facsimile of the original with very slight modifications. Mr. Hoyle’s book makes a wonderful gift to both children and adults, or to anyone who has ever speculated on what the future holds, lamented the lack of modern day jet packs, or just likes to laugh at how different the future turns out to be from anything we could have, or can predict!

Animals are an important, but often overlooked, part of Christmas. From the nativity onwards they have ben part of the family celebration. From our extensive collection of children’s picture books the Laughing Elephant has selected thirty illustrations featuring a wide variety of animals at Christmas. The detachable postcards are suitable for short Christmas correspondence, party invites, thank you notes, or as a small art book to be kept intact and enjoyed every Chirstmas season.

Ever since we published our happily received "Santa’s ABC Coloring Book" a few years back we have been watching for a fine old coloring book to add to our publications. Finally, in a Paris flea market, we found what we sought – "Album à Colorier." It brings French style to the coloring book, and now we bring it to you.

Originally published in 1942, "Album à Colorier" boasts excellent design, and is wonderfully evocative of a French child’s life in the mid-20th century. There are beautiful color pictures of children at home, at school and at play. We visit homes, parks and the seaside, and see the children cook, play storekeeper, ski and have a picnic. Black and white versions of most of these images allow the user to recreate the loveliness, while at the same time journeying to another place and time.

Here are 30 favorites from the beauties Detroit produced in her heyday, with swivel
seats, vogue interiors, Torsion-Aire suspension and Ultramatic drive. This was
fashion on the highway. The 1950s were the last stand of the painted, rather than
photographed, advertisement, and many of the images here show the skills of the artist
as well as the sculptural gifts of the car designers.

First published in 1988 and now back by popular demand, "Good Dog, Carl" illustrator Alexandra Day’s "Frank and Ernest" is the entertaining tale of a bear and an elephant who learn to run a diner. The charming illustrations of the Deco-era diner and the novelty of its animal employees are very appealing, but the diner slang that Frank and Ernest learn adds a further layer of interest to this title. "Frank and Ernest" will reveal the meaning of “burn one, take it through the garden and pin a rose on it,” “a stack with Vermont and a blonde with sand,” as well as “guess water,” “balloon juice,” and “million on a platter.”

As in her popular Carl books Day excels at visual jokes and loving detail, but in "Frank and Ernest" the text is as delightful as the pictures.

This wonderful, anonymous work was first published in the 1940′s. In 26 happy pictures a group of young cats celebrate Christmas, alphabetically. For a "C" a cat eats Candy, in "H" a holly wreath is carried and for "K" the kiss beneath the mistletoe is most charming. The Naive style and vintage appeal, paired with the small size and price point, adds up to a delicious holiday treat, suitable for all manner of gift giving needs.

First published in 1916, this beautifully illustrated and attractively shaped book tells the
story of a boy named Teddy who flies to the North Pole to see Santa. He gets to feed
the reindeer, help Santa in his workshop and also to help him pack his sleigh. After all
of Teddy’s adventures he is delivered safely home just in time for Christmas morning.
The illustrations are by Margaret Evans Price, whose charming work graces some of our
most popular publications. She was married to one of the founders of the Fisher Price
toy company, and her illustrations served as the basis for some of their early products.

Our most popular author, Welleran Poltarnees, is the father of 7 children and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren and considers himself an expert on the subject of babies. "Hooray for Babies" consists of many small sections, each dedicated to one of the many admirable infant qualities, including smiles, playfulness, curiosity, love of simple things and more. Poltarnees, our master of finding the right image for every thought, has reached in many directions for the illustrations, including children’s books, classic painting, and vintage calendars and advertisements. The result is adorable, but not cloying, and would make a delightful shower or new baby gift.

Entertaining anthology of weird and wonderful scenes from old children’s books.

This volume has seen many years in the making.  The author has kept track, as he collected and cataloged the huge Blue Lantern library old children’s picture books, of particularly unusual images and situations.  Here are some of the best, and rarest of these discoveries.  The world of children’s books is one where imagination is given free rein, and the results are both stimulating and delightful.  Artists and authors include Frank Baum, Edward Lear, Gelett Burgess, Peter Newell, John R. Neill and Charles Doyle.

Welleran Poltarnees, who together with his wife Alexandra Day founded the legendary Green Tiger Press, authored the popular series of Good Dog Carl children’s books, and head the various publishing enterprises of The Laughing Elephant, has been collecting weird and wonderful moments from children’s literature for over three decades.  It is his collection of over 15000 children’s books that fuels the Laughing Elephant’s creative spirit, and it is from this world class collection that he has drawn the selections that appear in Weird and Wonderful. 

Storybook Frogs contains 30 oversized postcards, all featuring frogs; fairy tale frogs, walking frogs, talking frogs, pretty frogs and warty frogs, toady frogs and froggy frogs. In short, frogs of all kinds. This collection shows how many brilliant illustrators have expressed their affection for this wonderful creature through the years.

Why frogs, you may ask? It is a good question, yet one that is not easy to answer. Like many of our most enduring passions its origins are so deep any adequate explanation would be too lengthy for our present form. Put simply, mankind has always been drawn to frogs; from the ancient Egyptian frog goddess to the Roman frog kings, and in every culture all the way through history to Kermit the Frog, we have involved frogs in our mythology and entertainments. We appreciate the frog’s place in the evolutionary continuum, standing athwart the distinction between the primordial slime and dry land as they do. We also take note of their buggy eyes and super greenness, their remarkable jumping ability, and their long tongues and deep ribbits; frogs are very unique and so attract attention.

The editors of this volume, after looking at thousands of frog pictures, believe the answer its quite simple; frogs are funny looking, they make us laugh. Frogs are characters, somehow serious and comical at the same time (Mr. Toad comes to mind) they have personality. Finally, it is nearly impossible to draw a picture of a frog that is not funny to look at, we suggest you try.
As to our assertions about the value of frog appreciation we feel certain that the organizers of The Rayne Louisiana Frog Festival agree with us, as do the sponsors of the Toad Suck Daze in Conway Arkansas and the Frogfest in Cedarville Michigan. Any doubts you may have about the veracity of our statements can probably be alleviated by the venerable Calaveras County Fair and Frog Jumping Jubilee or the august Frog Museum in Berne Switzerland.

No frogs legs were eaten in the production of this book.

My Resolutions is a reprint of a 1908 title by comic pioneer R.F. Outcault.  The comic strip featuring Buster Brown ran from 1902 until 1921 and inspired books and other products, including, of course, Buster Brown shoes.  Buster Brown is preternaturally modern in his style and outlook.  A beautifully dressed child of angelic mien he sailed through the first two decades of the twentieth century with his faithful dog Tige (the first talking pet in American comics).  Buster misbehaved constantly and was generally caught and punished, but like a modern sitcom child responds not with tears or remorse but a snappy comeback.  In Buster’s case this took the form of the resolutions that ended every Buster Brown strip.  The resolutions are little gems of comic writing, skewering parental piety at every opportunity. 
 
“RESOLVED: That if you are going to insist on being truthful, learn to hold your tongue.  The truth is a dangerous thing and must be handled by a master.  ‘Truth is mighty and will prevail’ it doesn’t need your assistance.  Just let it alone.  Tact will help you a great deal & extreme kindness will help you to keep unwelcome truths to yourself.  Don’t let anyone know you are honest.  They will think you are a ‘come on’ and will take advantage of you.”