The Story of Babar by Brunhoff, published by Smith & Haas 1933, American 1st/1st

by Jean De Brunhoff

$199 · Offered by eBay · No longer available

The Story of Babar the Little Elephant by Jean de Brunhoff. Large format hardcover with no dust jacket as issued; blue-grey cloth on spine. 48 pages with color illustrations on nearly every page. Translated from the French by Merle Haas, published by Harrison Smith and Robert Haas, New York, 1933. On the back of the title page is this: "Copyright 1933 by Harrison Smith and Robert Haas, Inc.", with no other dates listed. This Smith and Haas printing predates all Randon House publications of Babar, which began on September 12, 1937 (source: Penguin Random House Website). The book we are offering is the 1st printing of the 1st American edition of The Story of Babar. It is also the first edition of Babar in English, as the U.K. Methuen publication was printed in 1934. Most of the following came from the Barnes and Noble website: "The classic story of literature’s most beloved elephant, The Story of Babar originated from a bedtime story that Jean de Brunhoff's wife, Cécile, told their children, Mathieu and Laurent. After his mother is killed by a hunter, Babar avoids capture by escaping to the city, where he is befriended by the kindly Old Lady. Later, with cousins Celeste and Arthur, he returns to the great forest to be crowned King of the Elephants...This first Babar story has enchanted generations." Overall condition is good+. The interior is very good: pages are clean with no chips, tears or odor, and no writing except for a previous owner's name and date (1936) on first free

• Publisher: Harrison Smith and Robert Haas, New York
• Year: 1933
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Good

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