Once Upon a Time : Illustrations From Fairytales, Fables, Primers, Pop-ups, and Other Children's Books

The 1905 obituary of John McLoughlin, Jr., in Publisher's Weekly declared,?Every child in the land knows the McLoughlin books. ... In fact, the history in the last decade of colored toy books for youngsters is the history of Mr. McLoughlin and his firm.? McLoughlin Brothers held an important role in the children's book publishing world. In fact, as my husband, the late Arthur Liman, and I discovered in our research, the firm was instrumental in creating it. The publisher's preeminence in the field was the result of its entrepreneurial spirit, creativity, competiti- ness, foresight, and perseverance How was it, then, that Arthur--an intense attorney with character- tics similar to that of McLoughlin Brothers--ended up sitting behind a collectors' convention booth selling children's books and games, all the while reading a brief? Or charging at lightning speed, flashlight in hand, amidst rain and mud in the early morning hours, through a remote co- try antiques fair? Or mysteriouslyvanishing from a critical corporate c- ference to negotiate, instead, with a slightly disheveled dealer waiting in his office, or to aggressively bid by phone at a London auction? And what were all those mail ordercatalogs, letters of offerings, and bills of sale for Aunt Mavor's Present McLoughlin Brothers books doing commingled with court papers? for a Good Little Girl Published by George Routledge & Co., For twenty years, Arthur was this crazy closet collector. His London and NewYork big-deal clients could never have imagined where or how he spent his 1856 weekends

Many of our most cherished childhood memories recall the pleasure of sitting in a big comfy chair while a doting parent reads from a lovingly illustrated picture book. Jack and the Bean Stalk, Little Red Riding Hood, Robinson Crusoe the colorful illustrations that decorated the pages of these stories remain forever captured in the mind s eye.

Once Upon a Time reawakens the joys of childhood reading, of seeing a story come alive in words and pictures on the printed page and in our nascent imaginations. Drawing upon the extraordinary collection of Victorian-era illustrated books amassed by Arthur and Ellen Liman, it presents fairy tales and fables, nursery rhymes, instructional books, juvenile fiction, histories, and manners manuals. Created through a variety of illustration techniques and printing processes, most are beautifully colored. Many are also animated with moveable parts. These striking objects are accompanied by brief texts that place them within their era and illuminate the rise of children's literature in America as a cultural phenomenon related to the growth of literacy, an increase in leisure time, and an understanding of the 'infant mind.' The moral of this story: learning your ABCs can be a visual pleasure.

Library Journal

Weinstein (curator, 20th- and 21st-century collections, New York Historical Soc.) includes both covers of and illustrations from Victorian-era children's books in the private collection of Ellen and Arthur Liman, who focused on titles published by the McLoughlin Brothers. The texture and vibrant colors of the chromolithographs are vividly captured here, to the point where one almost has to pull back from some of the intense orange and red full-plate reproductions. Weinstein's introduction, To Amuse and Instruct, well addresses, among other topics, the influence of the 17th-century educator John Amos Comenius, the 18th-century philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and the 18th-century London publisher John Newbery. The six chapters that follow are each prefaced with two-page informative introductions. Chapter topics include alphabets, Mother Goose, novels, history books, and cautionary tales. No footnotes are present, but the illustration captions contain additional information. This well-constructed book, with its A-to-Z pictorial cover, is recommended for both large and small public libraries.-Anne Marie Lane, American Heritage Ctr. Lib., Univ. of Wyoming, Laramie Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

This volume uses colorful images from Victorian-era illustrated books to provide a survey of their art and the rise of children's literature. Full color plates accent descriptions which include story plot summaries and commentary of the different works. In brief introductions to each of the main genres, the author refers to each genres influences, conventions, and aims of the artists. This book contains a selection of nineteenth-and very early twentieth-century American children's book images from the collection of Ellen and Arthur Linman; the vast majorities are taken from the publications of McLoughlin Brothers in New York, which was active in juvenile publishing from 1850 to 1905. From the Publisher: Many of our most cherished childhood memories recall the pleasure of sitting in a big comfy chair while a doting parent reads from a lovingly illustrated picture book. Jack and the Bean Stalk, Little Red Riding Hood, Robinson Crusoe-the colorful illustrations that decorated the pages of these stories remain forever captured in the mind's eye. Once Upon a Time reawakens the joys of childhood reading, of seeing a story come alive in words and pictures on the printed page-and in our nascent imaginations. Drawing upon the extraordinary collection of Victorian-era illustrated books amassed by Arthur and Ellen Liman, it presents fairy tales and fables, nursery rhymes, instructional books, juvenile fiction, histories, and manners manuals. Created through a variety of illustration techniques and printing processes, most are beautifully colored. Many are also animated with moveable parts. These striking objects are accompanied by brief texts that place them within their era and illuminate the rise of children's literature in America as a cultural phenomenon related to the growth of literacy, an increase in leisure time, and an understanding of the "infant mind." The moral of this story: learning your ABCs can be a visual pleasure. "Once Upon a Time reawakens the joys of childhood reading - of seeing a story come alive in words and pictures, both on the printed page and in our nascent imaginations. Drawing upon the outstanding collection of Victorian-era children's books amassed by Ellen Liman and her late husband, Arthur, this book presents over three hundred irresistible images. In her text Amy Weinstein retells the timeless tales they illustrate and reveals their deep relevance to readers of yesterday and today."--Jacket Amusing and instructive, this illustrated book draws upon a collection of American books amassed by Arthur and Ellen Liman. Written for adults interested in childhood, literature and social history, it touches upon diverse forms of reading material, in brief narrative chapter openers and in extended figure captions. WHO would not give libraries for that dancing buoyancy of attention, and intensity of delight with which the first story-book of childhood is read?"