The Sea Fairy
The Sea Fairy is a bimonthly newsletter for the collector, dealer, curator and enthusiast of antique illustrated books for children and young adults. The subject books date mostly from 1800 to the 1930s, with an emphasis on rare and unusual works.
The 28-page newsletter has been in circulation for more than 7 years. It is filled with biographies, bibliographies, research articles, notes on collections, many scans of illustrations (some in color), text excerpts, trip reports, reader contributions and other interesting information for the fan of vivid, imaginative stories and illustrations of yesteryear. Both artists and authors are included.
A sampling of past subjects include: L. Frank Baum, Lewis Carroll, Chapbooks, Laura Ingalls Wilder, The History of Fairy Tales, N.C. Wyeth, Maxfield Parrish, Edward Lear, Dare Wright, Pirates in Literature, George Cruikshank, Ludwig Bemelmans, the Stratemeyer Syndicate, Beatrix Potter, W.W. Denslow, Science Fiction Authors, Wilderness Heroes, Christina Rossetti, St. N
icholas Magazine, Hans Christian Andersen, ABC Books from the 1700s, Illuminated Books, Edgar Alan Poe, Mary Shelley, Caldecott and Newbery Awards, Rudyard Kipling, Florence Upton, the Grimm Brothers, Kate Greenaway, Tasha Tudor, Bram Stoker, Dolls in Literature, J.R.R. Tolkien and many, many others.
icholas Magazine, Hans Christian Andersen, ABC Books from the 1700s, Illuminated Books, Edgar Alan Poe, Mary Shelley, Caldecott and Newbery Awards, Rudyard Kipling, Florence Upton, the Grimm Brothers, Kate Greenaway, Tasha Tudor, Bram Stoker, Dolls in Literature, J.R.R. Tolkien and many, many others. The newsletter is mailed six times a year and is edited by Liz Holderman, who is an antiques dealer and collector of Victorian games and toys, antique children’s books and classics. Liz occasionally lectures on vintage illustrated children's books and also provides articles and appraisals for the online antiques website, WorthPoint.
Yearly Sea Fairy subscriptions cost $24, which only covers expenses for publishing and mailing. Subscribers include many libraries, colleges and antiquarian societies. For mailing address and more information, please use "Sea Fairy" in the subject line and contact LHolderman@aol.com. PayPal and personal checks are accepted.
Vintage Illustrative Art:
Top: It was something like a saloon railway carriage – it seemed to be all lined and carpeted with rich, mossy red velvet. "Are you comfortable?" inquired the cuckoo. 1917 illustration by Maria L. Kirk for The Cuckoo Clock by Mrs. Molesworth, which was first published in 1877.
Middle: Iris in a country garden / Politely said, "I beg your pardon, / But I’m from sunny France you see, / And my real name is Fleur-de-Lis". 1910 illustration by M.T. Ross for Flower Children by Elizabeth Gordon.
Bottom: The bird turned and flew quickly away, but the boy never let go, not even when they soared high into the air. 1901 illustration by H.J. Ford for "The Nunda, Eater of People" in The Violet Fairy Book by Andrew Lang.
Library of Congress ISSN 1932-801X.
