Collins Books

[Katharine]

Does anyone know of a website with information on old children's books published by Collins? I have just finished reading a book called The Treasure Book for Boys and Girls and want to identify the year it was published. I've narrowed it down a bit, as the back cover lists various Disney books published by Collins, such as Bambi and Mickey and the Beanstalk. So I'm assuming the book wasn't published until after the release of the films of those names. That puts it somewhere around the late 1940s or possibly the early 1950s. There's a Jane Shaw story inside, but her website hasn't got a year for that particular story. Talk about looking for a needle in a haystack, makes me appreciate just how much information is available here!!

Anyway, if anyone knows anything that could help me, I'd be very grateful.

[John Pickup]

If you google " Collins seagull library-the childrens press" this brings up a link where you can access covers of books published under their Childrens Press imprint. I'm not sure if this is what you want though.

[Katharine]

Thanks for the suggestion John. Unfortunately it didn't seem to help in my search, but I did find a copy of my book on a bookshop's web-site, and they dated it 1951. I find it incredible how little information I've managed to come up with. The book says it is the second of the 'Happy Hour' books, so it's not even as if it were a stand alone book. The only author I could find anything about was Jane Shaw who contributed 2 of the stories. Two of the illustrators are Cicely Steed and Hilda McGavin, but again, there's very little information about either of them, other than their connection with Enid Blyton. I find it so sad that those two ladies drew such marvellous pictures and yet they seem to have disappeared into oblivion.

[deepeabee]

If you take a picture of the book cover and open google images you can search that way. There is a camera to the right of the search box, just click on it and that will ask for the image you are looking for. You simply put in your picture and press find. It will come up with all the links available.

[Eddie Muir]

Thank you for that most useful information, Dot. I hadn't realised what the camera icon was for and so I'm pleased to have learnt something new today.

[Katharine]

Thanks for that Dot, that will probably prove very useful.

[deepeabee]

Thank you for that most useful information, Dot. I hadn't realised what the camera icon was for and so I'm pleased to have learnt something new today.

Glad to have been of assistance Eddie ... I hope you get somewhere with your research Katharine.

[Fiona1986]

I didn't know that either. I can imagine it would be very useful though, I will have to try it out at some point. Thanks!

[Tony Summerfield]

According to Whitaker's Cumulative Book List, The Treasure Book was published by Collins in October 1952. I don't know if this is the book that you are talking about, but I do know that Collins books are often very difficult to date as they are not always in the main reference books. I remember that I was unable to find one of the Barney books when I was putting my Bibliography together and undated books with the same titles like Collins' Children's Annuals can be very difficult to get in the right order.

[Katharine]

Thanks Tony, that sounds about right.

[John Pickup]

None of my hardback copies of Barney books published by Collins have the date inside which, as Tony said, makes it very difficult to know which edition you possess.