1940 Scarce 1stED Book - A Fairy's Garland of B. C. Flowers by Dorothea Allison
Author: Dorothea Allison.
Illustrator: Janet Middleton.
Title: A Fairy’s Garland of B.C. Flowers.
Publisher: Vernon, B.C.: Printed in Canada by The Vernon News Ltd., no date. (1940). First Edition.
Language: Text in English.
Size: 9 x 6 inches.
Pages: Unpaginated.
Binding: Near fine. Original illustrated yellow paper-covered boards with green cloth spine. The front cover is decorated with a charming fairy-and-flower design printed in green, yellow, lavender, and pink. Binding is solid, bright, and very well preserved.
Content: Near fine. Clean and fresh throughout, with only very minor signs of age. Original printed errata slip present.
Illustrations: Beautifully illustrated throughout by Janet Middleton with fairy-and-flower designs, including full-page colour-block floral alphabet plates and charming fairy vignettes in various colours. Each letter is paired with a British Columbia flower, accompanied by verse and botanical information where applicable.
The book: A Fairy’s Garland of B.C. Flowers is a scarce and delightful British Columbia flower fairy alphabet, combining children’s verse, botanical charm, and locally inspired illustration. Dedicated “to the happy children of our B.C. fairyland,” the book presents the flowers of British Columbia through a whimsical fairy lens, blending natural history with gentle fantasy. Its coloured alphabet plates, printed in vivid single-colour blocks, give the work a distinctive mid-century decorative quality, while the local B.C. subject matter makes it especially appealing as a Canadian botanical and children’s book.
The author and illustrator: Dorothea Allison’s text celebrates the flowers of British Columbia in a simple, lyrical form intended for children and flower lovers alike. Janet Middleton’s illustrations, signed simply “janet” in the book, bring the subject to life with playful fairy figures, floral forms, and a graceful decorative style. A scarce and very attractive First Edition.