(Gift of Clara Noyes, 1989)

Randolph Caldecott: R. Caldecott's Picture Book No. 2 (19??)

The namesake of the annual Caldecott Medal, awarded since 1938 for the "most distinguished American picture book for children in the United States," Randolph Caldecott published sixteen books of nursery rhymes and poems for children between 1876 and 1885. These volumes are considered to be the progenitor of the modern picture book. Caldecott attempted to interpret the stories he was telling instead of simply reciting them, using his illustrations as windows into the characters. Picture Book No. 2 weaves themes of emotional growth and children's perceptual processes into the stories of Sing a Song for Sixpence and The Queen of Hearts.

The Caldecott Medal; image courtesy Association of Library Service to Children, a unit of the American Library Association.

Cover and two illustrations from Randolph Caldecott: R. Caldecott's Picture Book No. 2, 19??