UPDATE: Disappointment

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I had derived a new motivation for posting from a book collection contest at my graduate university. I'm sorry to say that I did not win, despite being one of four eligible entrants. While this is a bit disappointing, the experience of crafting the collection was still quite rewarding and I will continue to post its contents. Thanks for reading.

Giant Treasury of Peter Rabbit - Beatrix Potter

Perhaps more appropriate to my age than Lewis Carroll had been, this book contains Beatrix Potter’s classic illustrations and storytelling. Especially notable is “The Tale of Peter Rabbit,” a story about a rebellious bunny who gets into trouble when he leaves his rabbit-hole and winds up being chased through Mr. McGreggor’s garden. Though Peter eventually returns safely, he has lost his coat with its bright buttons, teaching the little bunny an important lesson. My maternal grandmother’s inscription indicates that this was a 4th birthday present in 1988.

Potter, Beatrix. Giant Treasury of Peter Rabbit. Illus. Beatrix Potter. New York: Derrydale Books, 1980.

The Best of Lewis Carroll

This book is a blue hardcover that contains John Tenniel’s classic illustrations of Lewis Carroll’s Alice. Of course, the narratives within in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass are all concerned with the main character’s departure from a mundane Victorian life through the fascinating and absurd landscapes of Wonderland. This is my very first book and one that perhaps represents my maternal grandmother’s literary ambitions for me from very early on. Her inscription indicates that this book was given to me on my first birthday in 1985, undoubtedly prefacing all of the literary rabbit-holes I would spend the rest of my life exploring.

Cover

Tenniel's Jabberwocky

Alice

Grandma Jane's dedication.

Carroll, Lewis. The Best of Lewis Carroll. Illus. John Tenniel and Henry Holiday. Seacaucus, NJ: Castle, 1983.