Strip Books
What is a strip book?
Having searched the internet, I don't seem to be able to find an answer so this is how I define a strip book:
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It has to be oblong format
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Nearly always paperback format
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There is more than one picture per page, with just a few words below telling the story.
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They are typically small in size, around 15-20cm across and 7-10cm deep
These books are aimed at the very young, aged 1-5. The idea is that the child looks at the pictures while an adult reads the story to them. The multiple pictures on each page hold the child's interest long enough for the adult to read the few words, as well as helping the child to build their vocabulary of words.
Why would you collect Strip Books – I am sure there are 1001 reasons why you might collect these delightful books but here are my top 3 reasons:
1) They are small so every collector of books should still be able to find space for a collection of them
2) They are a great quick read for when you have five spare minutes and make you smile no matter what your age
3) As with most collectables they have their quirks, so there is always room for improvement and new discoveries
I suppose I should tell you about my favourites – these are the type of strip books published by Brockhampton Press in the 1940s and 50s. These little strip books have always intrigued me as there are so many subtle variations in them. Some examples are:-
A few titles were issued with a hole punched in the spine. Why?
The number of frames (pictures) in a title varies with editions so a first edition may have 124 frames while a reprint has only 92. How does the story still work?
Many copies were not dated so it is always fun working out the date and edition of a title.
Characters in Strip Books – sometimes a character in a strip book is so popular that more than one story was written about them. Some good examples of these are by Enid Blyton, for example Mary Mouse, Noddy, Bom and Clicky.
Some other characters who featured in more than one book included Honk (the car) by Joy K Seddon, Jimmy (a little boy) & Muffin (the mule) both by Neville Main and finally The Twins by H.L Gee.
So if you are a book addict, like me, without any space left in your house for your collections then you no longer have an excuse - start collecting strip books!
Contributed by Adam
(Published on 29th Oct 2014 )
