Twenty-one of Dr. Seuss s first books for children, spanning 1937-1963, each inscribed identically for a young mother in 1963 at a bookshop one mile from Dr. Seuss s La Jolla, California home And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street; The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins; The King s Stilts; Horton Hatches The Egg; McElligot s Pool; Thidwick The Big-Hearted Moose; Bartholomew And The Oobleck; If I Ran The Zoo; Scrambled Eggs Super; Horton Hears A Who; On Beyond Zebra; If I Ran The Circus; The Cat In The Hat; How The Grinch Stole Christmas; The Cat In The Hat Comes Back; Yertle The Turtle And Other Stories; Happy Birthday To You; One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish; The Sneetches And Other Stories; Dr. Seuss s Sleep Book; Hop On Pop

Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel)

Published by The Vanguard Press (2 books) and Random House (19 books) 1937-1963, 1937

About this Item

We are privileged to offer a collection of 21 Dr. Seuss titles, each inscribed identically for the same young mother in 1963 at a bookshop one mile from Dr. Seuss s home in La Jolla, California. "Fill your house with stacks of books, in all the crannies and all the nooks."First, the story. In 1959, Jill s family moved from Los Angeles to Point Loma in San Diego. In July 1963, Jill had her first child a boy, Jeff. For Jill s birthday that November, her mom decided to give her a gift that she could share with her new baby. Jill s mom was friends with Barbara Cole, proprietor of John Cole s Books in La Jolla, and Barbara was friends with Dr. Seuss, who lived exactly one mile away from the shop. So, with Barbara s help, Jill s mom got Dr. Seuss to inscribe all 21 books we offer today to Jill in the fall of 1963. Jill read and reread these books to Jeff and his little sister, Lauren, born in 1966, throughout their childhood. In fact, the only writing in any of these books other than Dr. Seuss s inscriptions are "LAUREN YOUNG" and "JEFF YOUNG" written in The Sneetches and Other Stories on the day they took this favorite to school to share with teachers and friends. Jill and her husband raised Jeff and Lauren in Point Loma, in the same house where, eventually, they read and reread these same Dr. Seuss books to their granddaughters, just as they had once read them to their children. "My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?"Now, with both children and grandchildren grown, the books are offered to a new family for the first time since they were purchased for Jill by her mom and inscribed by Dr. Seuss in 1963. We offer these books together, as they have been for more than sixty years and three generations. "I do not like green eggs and ham."What s included? Dr. Seuss published 22 books for children between his first in 1937 and 1963 s Hop on Pop. Of these 22, only Green Eggs and Ham is missing from this collection. As might be expected from their all being acquired, new, in 1963, only five are first printings (per Younger & Hirsch), three of these in the dust jackets: Hop on Pop (1963), Dr. Seuss s Sleep Book (1962, in DJ), The Sneetches and Other Stories (1961, in DJ), Yertle the Turtle (1958, in DJ), and How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1957). The balance of the titles, thirteen of them jacketed, are: One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish (1960, DJ), Happy Birthday to You (1959, DJ), The Cat in the Hat Comes Back (1958, DJ), The Cat in the Hat (1957, DJ), If I Ran the Circus (1956), On Beyond Zebra! (1955, DJ), Horton Hears a Who! (1954), Scrambled Eggs Super! (1953), If I Ran the Zoo (1950, DJ), Bartholomew and the Oobleck (1949, DJ), Thidwick the Big Hearted Moose (1948, DJ), McElligot s Pool (1947, DJ), Horton Hatches the Egg (1940, DJ), The King s Stilts (1939, DJ), The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins (1938, DJ), And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937, DJ)Each of the books is inscribed on the lower left corner of the front free endpaper verso in four lines "for | JiLL | with Best Wishes | Dr. Seuss" with a characteristic Dr. Seuss squiggle between the valediction and signature. Affixed to each lower left rear pastedown is/was the illustrated bookseller s ticket of "John Cole s | Book & Craft Shop | 7871 Ivanhoe Avenue | La Jolla California". The Hop on Pop ticket was apparently peeled by a child, the residue remaining. The One Fish Two Fish and Scrambled Eggs Super! stickers were partially removed, with some of the printed sticker still intact."Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple."Regarding condition, these books have been read, a lot, and then some more. If you seek pristine, "trophy" copies, these are not for you. Instead, they are imbued with provenance and story. All of the bindings are intact, all of the contents complete. We find various amounts of wear, soiling, and spotting. An itemized, book-by-book condition report is available upon request. First edi.

Seller Inventory # 008088

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Twenty-one of Dr. Seuss s first books for children, spanning 1937-1963, each inscribed identically for a young mother in 1963 at a bookshop one mile from Dr. Seuss s La Jolla, California home And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street; The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins; The King s Stilts; Horton Hatches The Egg; McElligot s Pool; Thidwick The Big-Hearted Moose; Bartholomew And The Oobleck; If I Ran The Zoo; Scrambled Eggs Super; Horton Hears A Who; On Beyond Zebra; If I Ran The Circus; The...
• Publisher: The Vanguard Press (2 books) and Random House (19 books) 1937-1963
• Publication Date: 1937
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Dust Jacket Included
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)