The Poetic Gift: or Alphabet in Rhyme
New Haven: Published by S[idney] Babcock, 1842. An early printing of this small alphabet book for children. OCLC records the date of the present work, but lists no copies. It also lists editions with publication dates of 1838, 1840, copies that are noted to be circa the “1840s,” and 1844. All editions are scarce. Illustrated with twenty-five woodcuts, including frontispiece. Rear wrapper printed with ads. Very minor soiling to wrappers, light wear to upper corners. Slight foxing, else a fine copy of this fragile work. Publisher’s printed paper wrappers. Sixteenmo (3 ” x 2 ”). 16 pp. Item #16522
We were unable to find any biographical information about the author of The Poetic Gift, including his or her name and dates. The present work contains three pages that are printed with various cases of the alphabet followed by italicized letters and graphemes (such as “œ,” “æ,” etc.) Rhyming verses accompany the letters of the alphabet (“A is for Ann who had a Lamb / On which she doated quite; B stands for Bull, who ran at Sam, And made him scream with fright”), each of which is illustrated with an engraving. The illustrations depict children engaged in various activities, including playing a game that appears to be baseball, digging in a garden, jumping rope, and feeding chicks.
Price: $350.00