When We Were Very Young Presentation Copy: Rare Book of the Week
When We Were Very Young at Bonhams
This week's entry appears in the Fine Books and Manuscripts auction running from this week until November 12 at Bonhams which features an E. H. Shepard presentation copy of When We Were Very Young by A. A. Milne.
The title marks the first book appearance of Winnie-the-Pooh (London, Methuen & Co, 1924) in the poem Teddy Bear under the name 'Edward Bear' and is offered in the publisher's blue cloth, gilt with original dust jacket, and a presentation inscription by Shepard "Evelyn / from E.H.S. / Christmas 1924." Shepard's presentation copies of the first issue are rare. The estimate is $3,000 - $5,000.
The sale also includes other work by Shepard, first editions of Now We are Six and The House at Pooh Corner (London, Methuen & Co, 1927, 1928) illustrated by him with an estimate of $500 - $800, and a preliminary pencil drawing of Winnie-the-Pooh, Piglet, Christopher Robin and Eeyore going for a walk for the 1967 anthology The Pooh Story Book (estimate: £7,000 - £9,000).
