Little Golden Books: A Treasure Trove

Last night I went up to my little vintage toy bedroom at the top of the steps and went through my big collection of Little Golden Books.  I want to take some to Jamie for her two babies next time I go.  I remember letting the kids choose a book each if they were good in the grocery store.  They loved it!

One of my favorite "pairs".

It was a little nostalgic, a trip down memory lane, because Little Golden Books go back to my childhood.  I spent many "naptimes" reading these to a little brother or sister or a nephew or niece.  It seems their revolving racks of stories are no longer seen in drugstores and department stores as they once were.  They are still available on Amazon.com.  But somehow, it's not the same when you can't spin that rack.

Some of the "mini" sized Little Golden Books from the 1980's.
Little hands could easily hold these and they were really "portable" for kids.

Today's kids will most likely read most of their "books" on Kindle or an iPad....and really, that's a shame.  Those electronic books cannot be snuggled up with at nap time, passed along, carried anywhere and everywhere, and last for generations, cannot be sold at garage sales for a quarter.

You never met anyone happier than I am, when I see a stack of Little Golden Books at a garage sale--it's so much fun to go through them.  They are absolute little gems and I mean to have as many as I can.  There are lots of us Golden Book collectors out here.

As a kid, I and my siblings would spend a lot of time studying the pictures in great detail--even the back cover was a treat to study, I loved them all.  

As kids, the nine of us spent our little quarters (our allowance) at the dime store, and would take great care choosing our titles--building up our own little libraries at home.  I still remember what aisle the book rack was in, and how much I loved that book selection.

We had no television growing up, so we spent much time with our books.  Reading them--to ourselves and each other, sharing them, playing library with them.  (Us girls had an elaborate setup for when we played library in the upstairs hallway, and our play would last for several days before we took the whole thing down, what fun that was!)

I could still spend hours with my Little Golden Books.  




Eloise Wilkin and Garth Williams are my favorite illustrators chosen by Little Golden Books, hands down.  


Garth also illustrated Charlotte's Web, Stuart Little, and of course, the Little House on the Prairie series, and I loved his style, I loved his realism, and the attention he paid to all the little details.  I thought he was especially good at drawing animals.


Eloise Wilkin captured the simple beauty of the era she lived in, and the sweet innocence of the little children at all ages, her baby pictures are my favorite...she is a very special illustrator.  

Seeing Jamie's carefully printed name in her own Little Golden Books 

gave me just a little lump in my throat.

I can't wait to see her reading these books to her little toddlers.

I have several collections within my collection:  Disney (my least favorite) and farm, and Christmas, and The Classics (like Tootles and Saggy Baggy Elephant, Poky Little Puppy), and Sesame Street, and many more.  


Eventually, I will share more of this collection with you.  But today, it's "BABY FARM ANIMALS" with pictures by Garth Williams. (I have several versions of the same book, just released different dates each with minor changes.)  Here you see the adorable way he had of drawing all sorts of animals...soft and sweet.

Click any photo to enlarge

Cute, huh?

So, do you have Little Golden Books?

Do you have a favorite?