THE WEEKEND COLLECTOR: Vintage Kids' Books My Kid Loves

Illustration by Mercer Mayer, from the book Liza Lou and the Yeller Belly Swamp

I came across this marvelous blog by Burgin Streetman a few weeks ago.  The long version of her blog title is: Vintage Kids' Books My Kid Loves- Obsessively Seeking Children's Books of Old to Share with my Son. I mean, what could be clearer?  Burgin, who is lives in San Antonio, Texas, is not only always on the lookout for wonderful vintage children's books; but in addition to sharing them and giving us amazing information and details about the books,  she also periodically interviews children's book authors and illustrators. Her most recent interview was with famed author/ illustrator Mercer Mayer, one of my own favorites.

Some of Mercer Mayer's marvelous illustrations

From  Finder's Keepers, by William Lipkind and Nicholas Mordvinoff, 1951

An illustration by Garth Williams (one of my own personal favorites) from Fox Eyes, written by Margaret Wise Brown 1951

The cover of James and the Giant Peach, written by Roald Dahl, illustrated by Nancy Ekholm Burnett

From Farm Friends, 1956

Burgin also has an Etsy shop, where you can find many of her favorite children's books for sale. I hope you stop by her blog and shop, and take advantage of her wealth of knowledge and information about children's books of days gone by!

A Little Silver Book, 1955

This is from Burgin's own archives.... author/ illustrator Joan Walsh Anglund drew these adorable little sketches of Burgin and her sisters inside her book. What a treasure!