Fast Fact Friday: Who Was "Mrs. Seuss"?

I haven't posted for Fast Fact Friday in a long time, but while researching the origins of these antique cartes de visite this week, I learned about a fascinating early photographer and had to share! Cartes de visite are small photographs mounted on heavy card stock that were used in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century as calling cards -- comparable to the business cards of today but for social purposes. The backs often featured the name and address of the photographer. I'm always curious about the items I buy for my vintage shop and try to learn as much about them as I can before I post them on Etsy. I noticed the photographer's name at the bottom of the photos. So I turned over the portrait of the couple. Nothing but the name of the woman in the photo, an ancestor of the person from whom I bought the photos. I checked the back of the portrait of the girl. Nothing. Then I turned over the photo in the center and found the most gorgeous business card for Maria Tesch's portrait studio. Don't you love the typography?

Save money with these quick and easy ways to tell when a book isn’t really a first edition without having to do any research.

Library catalog cards have really made a comeback. Banished from libraries in the 1990s in favor of digital catalogs, the cards have recently made a resurgence, especially at weddings. But what does that code in the top left corner mean?

When I was a tween, I devoured mystery novels. Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, the Bobbsey Twins, Cherry Ames, the Happy Hollisters, Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Tommy and Tuppence, and Miss Marple were part of my daily life. And so was the distinctive and sometimes confusing vocabulary found in old detective books — words like henchmen, confederates, inquest, and most baffling of all, red herring.

This Jersey shore town saw the founding of a prestigious book award

From Peter Pan to Curious George to Nancy Drew, some of the most beloved characters in children’s literature are notably motherless. So for Mother’s Day, let’s salute that most elusive of all fictional characters — the children’s book mom — with this quiz.

On this National Hairstyle Appreciation Day, we may be feeling not-so-appreciative of our current styles given the closure of hair salons in many places. Here are seven characters from vintage children's books who remind us to love the hair we're in.

When I became an adult, I was shocked to realize how non-kid-friendly the nursery rhymes I had loved as a child actually were. I know many of them have deeper meanings — more on that in a future post — but why on earth would people read these poems about violence and death to children? I still can’t answer that, but surprisingly, when the world gets turned upside down by a pandemic, nursery rhymes seem like they just might contain a lesson after all.

The children’s book world lost one of its most prolific author/illustrators today with the passing of Tomie dePaola, 85. You love his books, but how much do you know about him? Let’s review a few facts, starting with how to say his name.