This is one of the rarest 20th century children's books ever published. Author and illustrator intimately involved with the work of L. Frank Baum, author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. This copy is in fine condition and is available for purchase here
Ruth Plumly Thompson (27 July 1891 – 6 April 1976) was an American writer of children's stories, best known for writing many novels placed in Oz, the fictional land of L. Frank Baum's classic children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and its sequels.
An avid reader of Baum's books and a lifelong children's writer, Thompson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and began her writing career in 1914 when she took a job with the Philadelphia Public Ledger; she wrote a weekly children's column for the newspaper. She had already published her first children's book, The Perhappsy Chaps, and her second, The Princess of Cozytown, was pending publication when William Lee, vice president of Baum's publisher Reilly & Lee, solicited Thompson to continue the Oz series. (Rumors among fans that Thompson was Baum's niece were untrue.) Between 1921 and 1939, she wrote one Oz book a year. (Thompson was the primary supporter of her widowed mother and invalid sister, so that the annual income from the Oz books was important for her financial circumstances.)
Thompson's contributions to the Oz series are lively and imaginative,
featuring a wide range of colorful and unusual characters. However, one
particular theme repeats over and over throughout her novels, with
little variation. Typically in each of Thompson's Oz novels, a child
(usually from America) and a supernatural companion (usually a talking
animal), while traveling through Oz or one of the neighboring regions,
find themselves in an obscure community where the inhabitants engage in a
single activity. The inhabitants of this community then capture the
travelers, and force them to participate in this same activity.
Another major theme has elderly characters, most controversially, the Good Witch of the North, being restored to "marriageable" age, possibly because Thompson herself never married. She had a greater tendency toward the use of romantic love stories (which Baum usually avoided in his fairy tales, with about four exceptions). While Baum's child protagonists tended to be little girls, Thompson's were boys. She emphasized humor to a greater extent than Baum did, and always considered her work for children, whereas Baum, while first and foremost considering his child audience, knew that his readership comprised all ages. The Enchanted Island of Oz (1976), was not originally written as an Oz book. (Courtesy wiki)
John Rea Neill (November 12, 1877 - September 19, 1943) was a magazine and children's book illustrator primarily known for illustrating more than forty stories set in the Land of Oz, including L. Frank Baum's, Ruth Plumly Thompson's, and three of his own. His pen-and-ink
drawings have become identified almost exclusively with the Oz series.
He did a great deal of magazine and newspaper illustration work which is
not as well known today.
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
John R. Neill did his first illustration work for the Philadelphia's
Central High School newspaper in 1894-95. Neill dropped out of Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts after one semester because he said, "they have nothing to teach me".
He then turned to advertising art for the Wanamaker department store in Philadelphia. He became a staff artist of the Philadelphia North American newspaper, for which he produced features like the comics strip Toyland, illustrations for the serialization of 'The Fate of a Crown' (a book by L. Frank Children's Stories That Never Grow Old, and the Sunday comics page 'The Little Journeys of Nip and Tuck' with verses by W.R. Bradford (1909–1910). He was first commissioned to illustrate The Marvelous Land of Oz, the second Oz book L. Frank Baum wrote, published in 1904; The Wonderful Wizard of Oz had been illustrated by W. W. Denslow, with whom Baum argued and lost contact afterward.
Originally, Neill's illustrations were slightly reminiscent of
Denslow's to bring continuity and familiarity to the characters,
although Neill's work in this period was far more reminiscent of the
work of his contemporary and friend, illustrator Joseph Clement Coll.
Denslow's illustrations had been quite popular. However, as the series
expanded, Neill brought his own unique flair to the illustrations,
showing more artistic representations of the characters as well as
beautiful paintings of numerous scenes. In fact, he was later named the
Imperial Illustrator of Oz.
Neill's illustrations were published in the leading magazines of the first few decades of the twentieth century, including Collier's, Vanity Fair, The Saturday Evening Post, The Ladies Home Journal, Century, Pictorial Review, The Delineator, Boys' Life, St. Nicholas, The People's Home Journal, Adventure and many others. In 1930 and 1931, he contributed a great deal of artwork to Argosy. (courtesy wiki)
For more views of The Curious Cruise of Captain Santa click read more.
An avid reader of Baum's books and a lifelong children's writer, Thompson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and began her writing career in 1914 when she took a job with the Philadelphia Public Ledger; she wrote a weekly children's column for the newspaper. She had already published her first children's book, The Perhappsy Chaps, and her second, The Princess of Cozytown, was pending publication when William Lee, vice president of Baum's publisher Reilly & Lee, solicited Thompson to continue the Oz series. (Rumors among fans that Thompson was Baum's niece were untrue.) Between 1921 and 1939, she wrote one Oz book a year. (Thompson was the primary supporter of her widowed mother and invalid sister, so that the annual income from the Oz books was important for her financial circumstances.)
Thompson's contributions to the Oz series are lively and imaginative,
featuring a wide range of colorful and unusual characters. However, one
particular theme repeats over and over throughout her novels, with
little variation. Typically in each of Thompson's Oz novels, a child
(usually from America) and a supernatural companion (usually a talking
animal), while traveling through Oz or one of the neighboring regions,
find themselves in an obscure community where the inhabitants engage in a
single activity. The inhabitants of this community then capture the
travelers, and force them to participate in this same activity.Another major theme has elderly characters, most controversially, the Good Witch of the North, being restored to "marriageable" age, possibly because Thompson herself never married. She had a greater tendency toward the use of romantic love stories (which Baum usually avoided in his fairy tales, with about four exceptions). While Baum's child protagonists tended to be little girls, Thompson's were boys. She emphasized humor to a greater extent than Baum did, and always considered her work for children, whereas Baum, while first and foremost considering his child audience, knew that his readership comprised all ages. The Enchanted Island of Oz (1976), was not originally written as an Oz book. (Courtesy wiki)
John Rea Neill (November 12, 1877 - September 19, 1943) was a magazine and children's book illustrator primarily known for illustrating more than forty stories set in the Land of Oz, including L. Frank Baum's, Ruth Plumly Thompson's, and three of his own. His pen-and-ink
drawings have become identified almost exclusively with the Oz series.
He did a great deal of magazine and newspaper illustration work which is
not as well known today. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
John R. Neill did his first illustration work for the Philadelphia's
Central High School newspaper in 1894-95. Neill dropped out of Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts after one semester because he said, "they have nothing to teach me".He then turned to advertising art for the Wanamaker department store in Philadelphia. He became a staff artist of the Philadelphia North American newspaper, for which he produced features like the comics strip Toyland, illustrations for the serialization of 'The Fate of a Crown' (a book by L. Frank Children's Stories That Never Grow Old, and the Sunday comics page 'The Little Journeys of Nip and Tuck' with verses by W.R. Bradford (1909–1910). He was first commissioned to illustrate The Marvelous Land of Oz, the second Oz book L. Frank Baum wrote, published in 1904; The Wonderful Wizard of Oz had been illustrated by W. W. Denslow, with whom Baum argued and lost contact afterward.
Originally, Neill's illustrations were slightly reminiscent of
Denslow's to bring continuity and familiarity to the characters,
although Neill's work in this period was far more reminiscent of the
work of his contemporary and friend, illustrator Joseph Clement Coll.
Denslow's illustrations had been quite popular. However, as the series
expanded, Neill brought his own unique flair to the illustrations,
showing more artistic representations of the characters as well as
beautiful paintings of numerous scenes. In fact, he was later named the
Imperial Illustrator of Oz.Neill's illustrations were published in the leading magazines of the first few decades of the twentieth century, including Collier's, Vanity Fair, The Saturday Evening Post, The Ladies Home Journal, Century, Pictorial Review, The Delineator, Boys' Life, St. Nicholas, The People's Home Journal, Adventure and many others. In 1930 and 1931, he contributed a great deal of artwork to Argosy. (courtesy wiki)
For more views of The Curious Cruise of Captain Santa click read more.
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