Publishers of Short Story Reprints

Publishers who reprinted Savery stories

While all of these publishers purchased new works, it happens that they did not publish any original short stories by Savery. BOOKS FOR PLEASURE, below, did buy two original works, but I can find no evidence that they were printed. T. Nelson published a Savery book, but no stories.

The publishers are listed alphabetically. For each publisher, the stories are chronological.

[PAUL HAMLYN'S] BOOKS FOR PLEASURE LTD.

NOTE: Paul Hamlyn published Books for Pleasure, and some books bear the imprint Paul Hamlyn's Books for Pleasure. He also published Spring Books, below.

Fairy Cousins. London: Spring House, Spring Place, London NW5. 1961.

I have not seen Fairy Cousins in print, but the letter of acceptance from Books for Pleasure was in Savery's correspondence file. "Fairy Cousins" is actually four separate stories about the 'little elf man, Mink' and his cousins, Puffball and Spoon. The first of the stories, Mink, Puffball, and Spoon, is in rhymed couplets, and neither the story nor the verse is inspired. Mink gets into mischief and is forgiven. Although Savery received a guinea for it, it would not surprise me if the other three stories were printed and it was not. Nor would it surprise me if "Fairy Cousins" never made it into print, because an editor read Mink, Puffball, and Spoon, and read no further. A second story, The Magic Cupboard, was published by Allied Newspapers in 1934 or 1935 under the title Puffball and Spoon. The other two stories, Mink and his House and The Fairy Shoe Shop, were published in 1942 by the Methodist Publishing House in PICTURES AND STORIES.

Lindy Lou and the Moon Children. London: Spring House, Spring Place, London NW5. 1961.

I have not seen the published story. My manuscript copy, entitled simply "The Moon Children," says that the story was "Accepted by Paul Hamlyn," who had previously reprinted, under the Spring Books label, below, four Savery stories originally published by the Oxford University Press. A 1961 letter from Editorial Manager Michael Gibson offered four guineas for this story and a guinea apiece for the four others listed above, an offer that was accepted.

Although it takes up 26 pages, the story contains only 1798 words, so it may have been intended for a picture book with many illustrations.

Lindy Lou is unhappy, because she would like a brother or sister. "Don't wish for the moon," she is told. She persists:

I should like to have some other children to live in the house with me. I want two of them, a boy and a girl. May I have two children to stop?

Daddy and Mother did not laugh. They said, "Once in a blue moon, one does hear of children who want a home...."

After many days Lindy Lou overhears her mother telling a neighbor that the two Moon children are coming next week. Lindy Lou is not happy. Moon children "would be round like big balls and they would roll and bounce." All ends happily.

D. C. HEATH & COMPANY

The Sun, Moon, and Stars Clock. Illus. by Decie Merwin. In "Luck and Pluck". Boston: D.C. Heath & Company. 1942. Revised 1950, reprinted 1955 and 1965 with story on pp 116-128 in all editions.

"Luck and Pluck" is one of thirteen titles in the publisher's "Reading for Interest" series. The 1955 and 1965 editions have a pictorial cover and wider margins, but the text, pagination, and acknowledgments are identical with the 1942 and 1950 editions. The glossary of the 1952 edition is a little different from that of the 1942 edition. See AMERICAN JUNIOR RED CROSS NEWS for annotation of the story.

GROLIER INC.

Adventure in Candle Street. Illus. by Decie Merwin. New York: Grolier Inc. 1953, pp 179-226 in "The Children's Hour: Stories of Long Ago," vol. 12, Marjorie Barrow (ed.).

"The Children's Hour," in no way related to the BBC's "Children's Hour," is an excellent collection of children's poems and stories, long and short. The editor of "The Children's Hour" also edited CHILD LIFE, and she incorporated many stories from the magazine into the books. This particular story is an extended excerpt from a CHILD LIFE serial and the Longmans, Green & Co. edition of Moonshine in Candle Street. Too much has been excised, and the reader is advised to seek the book.

The Little Dragon. Illus. by Robert Lawson. New York: Grolier Inc. 1953, pp 142-148 in "The Children's Hour: Favorite Fairy Tales," vol. 2, Marjorie Barrow (ed.).

The little dragon, Augustus, appeared first on the BBC, was reincarnated in the pages of CHILD LIFE, and reappeared both here and in a Rand McNally anthology, below. Rand McNally was the publisher of CHILD LIFE. See CHILD LIFE for the annotation.

Spindleberries and Pam. Illus. by Florence and Margaret Hoopes. New York: Grolier Inc. 1953, pp 78-88 in "The Children's Hour: Stories of Today," vol. 6, Marjorie Barrow (ed.).

The editor took a bit of a chance in printing this relatively long, very British story. On the other hand, it is an excellent tale and was worth retelling. See CHILD LIFE for the annotation.

The Wastwych Secret. Illus. by Marguerite De Angeli. New York: Grolier Inc. 1953, pp 49-60 in "The Children's Hour: Favorite Mystery Stories," vol. 7, Marjorie Barrow (ed.).

Published originally as The Secret of Grandmamma Wastwych in CHILD LIFE, it took on new life when it was picked up for inclusion in a Random House collection by Alfred Hitchcock, below. The annotation is still under CHILD LIFE.

THOMAS NELSON & SONS

The Little Gypsy. Illus. by Dorothy Bayley Morse. In "The Child Life Book of Adventure." New York : Edinburg : Toronto: Thomas Nelson & Sons. 1948, pp 54-59.

The Little Gypsy also started life in the pages of CHILD LIFE, where you will find the annotation. The gypsy was to be reprinted one more time, in TREASURE TRAILS, where Savery saw her first copy in May of 1955.

NOTE: For PAUL HAMBLYN BOOKS FOR PLEASURE, see BOOKS FOR PLEASURE LTD.

RAND McNALLY & COMPANY

The Little Dragon. Illus. Robert Lawson. In "Just for Fun". New York : Chicago : San Francisco: Rand McNally & Company. 1940.

See the entry for The Little Dragon under Grolier, Inc., above.

RANDOM HOUSE

The Wastwych Secret. Illus. Fred Banbery. In "Alfred Hitchcock's Haunted Houseful". New York: Random House. 1961, pp 13-24.

The CHILD LIFE annotation of this book, under its original title of The Secret of Grandmamma Wastwych, lists the many reprints and the two translations, Italian and German, of this popular Alfred Hitchcock edition.

SPRING BOOKS

Hobby by Proxy. Illus. unsigned. London: Spring Books, Spring House, Spring Place, London NW 5. 1959, pp 254-262. In "The New Parade for Girls".

The four Savery stories in this annual were all published originally by the Oxford University Press. Hobby by Proxy was in the 1937 "Oxford Annual for Women." See the Oxford annotation.

One Crowded Hour. Ibid. pp 288-295.

One Crowded Hour appeared first in the 1934 "Oxford Annual for Women."

One Leaf on the Track. Ibid. pp 27-34.

This rather original story was first printed in the 1933 "Big Book for Guides," another Oxford annual.

The Scotch Society. Ibid. pp 44-51.

The Scotch Society, like One Crowded Hour, was in the 1934 "Oxford Annual for Women."