"Meet the Pilgrim Fathers" by Elizabeth Payne, illustrated by H.B. Vestal, Step-Up Books published by Random House, 1966. The Step-Up Book Club series were published by Random House in the 1960s and 1970s as a follow-on series for students who had surpassed the reading level of the I Can Read books.

Hard boards, illustrated front cover [some wear, especially edges, spine ends and corners]; 6.3/4" x 8.1/2"; endpapers are maps, "Gangas Library / Room 121" is written on front endpaper, 86 pages, a little soiling, there is a broad clear tape inside back board and back ep supporting the binding; good condition.

Explains why the Pilgrims came to America and describes their difficult voyage and the hardships of their first year in New England.

Herman Beeson Vestal (1916-2007) was American artist and illustrator. Serving in the Navy during the WWII he became interested in art. His sketches and watercolors were included in exhibitions of Coast Guard Combat Art, which received press attention. After the war he returned to NYC and attended the Art Students League.

In 1947 his pen and ink story illustrations began to appear in pulp magazines produced by Fiction House Publications, such as Action Stories, All-America Football, Baseball Stories, Fight Stories, Frontier Stories, Jungle Stories, Lariat, Planet Stories, Two Complete Science-Fiction Adventure Books, Two Western Books, and Wings. He also painted a few covers, such as the cover for the September 1952 issue of Planet Stories.

He joined the Salmagundi Club, where his work was included in the 1954 annual art exhibition. His watercolors were singled out for exceptional praise by the editors of American Artist Magazine, which reproduced one of his paintings on their May 1954 cover. During the 1960s he illustrated several young adult books published by Grosset & Dunlap and Companion Library.

US: Priority (c.2-4 days) ------------- $12.50
Canada: 1st Class (c.2-7 weeks) ----- $28.50
World: 1st Class (c.2-10 weeks) ----- $42.50