The Acquisitions Table: Lessons for Children

Barbauld, Anna Letitia. Lessons for Children, from Two to Three Years Old. Boston: S. Hall, 1800. This is an unrecorded title, drawn from English writer Anna Letitia Barbauld’s series of Lessons for Children written for youngsters between the ages of two and six. They are written as a series of dialogs between a child (frequently a ...

The Acquisitions Table: Children’s Book with Paper Dolls

The History and Adventures of Little Eliza. Philadelphia: William Charles, 1811. This imprint is among the earliest American editions of a book first printed in London accompanied by a set of paper dolls. The celebrated Philadelphia engraver and publisher William Charles integrated the images with the text as a picture book, complete with his subtle background ...

The Acquisitions Table: Quagga and Rhinoceros

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The quagga illustrated in this children's book caught my eye because, possibly like you, dear reader, I had never heard of this animal.  And so I went to Wikipedia where I read an interesting article about the quagga's relationship to the plains zebra and about efforts to breed them back into existence.  Curator of Children's ...

The Children’s Henry Box Brown

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Henry Box Brown (b. 1816) escaped lifelong slavery in Virginia by shipping himself in a box (with the help of white and African-American abolitionists) to Philadelphia in 1849.  One of the few primary sources detailing his breathtaking escape to freedom is the children’s book Cousin Ann’s Stories for Children.  Written in 1849 by Quaker abolitionist ...

The Acquisitions Table: Scripture Scenes

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If the holiday leftovers are still lurking in our refrigerators, we figure there's still time for one more Christmas-themed post, courtesy of Curator of Children's Literature Laura Wasowicz.   The charming engraving below raises two interesting questions you might want to mull over as you finish off the pecan pie.  First, where would Anderson have ...