"Little Pitchers" (Flaxie Frizzle Stories), by Sophie May, illustrated; published by Lee & Shepard, Boston, undated, copyright 1878 by the publisher.

Hard boards, original red cloth with embossed black decorations on front board and spine; gold Sophie on front board; gold & black decorated spine [some cloth wear: see photos]; 4.1/2" x 6.1/4"; 196 pages + 2 woodcut plates on glossy paper + 2 pages of publisher's ads; heavy paper, some soiling, very good condition.

Provenance: "Bessie Neuhall from Dr. Hanson, Xmas 1891" is ink written on the first blank page.

"I read these books when I was a child and enjoyed them. But rereading them now was a very interesting and enlightening experience. These books reveal what girls were like more than a century ago better than almost any other method." [private review]

Rebecca Sophia Clarke (1833-1906), an American children's author of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, wrote forty-five books under the pseudonym Sophie May; chief among them were her immensely popular Little Prudy and Dotty Dimple series. Clarke lived most of her life in her hometown of Norridgewock, Maine, save for ten years spent as a teacher in Evansville, Indiana. After suffering a severe hearing loss in 1861, she went to live with her sister, Sarah Jones Clarke, another children's author, who published under the name Penn Shirley.

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