SilentPhotoplay Blog
This little snippet is from Harvest Home, 1891. I kind of feel like I know these people who wrote this book, like I am one of the children they wrote it for! It gives me immense joy to read these interesting books. ORIGIN OF “YULE.” The ancient name (Yule) for Christmas is still used throughout … Continue reading Origin of “Yule.”
The following story is from one of the first antique books I ever owned. It is from the 1880s, and it is called Merry Doings of Childhood. It has fantastic stories, and has some of the most beautiful pictures that are still vibrant and dark. Some stories are not so sunny. They are there to … Continue reading Christmas
Often, these little story books were not just storybooks, but they taught the child something, too. This would include things I can only describe as ‘articles’, where they talked directly to the reader and taught about other countries, their customs, or just simply talk about a picture on the page. In these ‘articles’, they would … Continue reading Christmas Berries and Flowers
This sweet story is from Our Darlings, a British publication that I acquired in York, England. THE ROBIN’S CHRISTMAS. The Robin was fast asleep in his nest when the bells began to ring. He really could not help waking up, they made such a Ding dong, ding, ding, ding, ding, dong, dong, dong, dong. … Continue reading The Robin’s Christmas
A long time back we talked of Our Darlings, a book I got while I was in England in 2010. It’s hard to tell when it was published, because sometimes they didn’t put years on the copyright page. This is especially true with British publications. I think this is from the 20s. THE FATHER CHRISTMAS. … Continue reading The Father Christmas
This is from my No Cover Bunny Book, 1890s – 1900s. A GRAND SURPRISE Madge and Edith and Helen had plenty of dolls to play with. They had a baby-house, a pair of tame rabbits, and a big dog. They rolled hoop, played at keeping store, and made mud-pies. But better than any thing else … Continue reading A Grand Surprise
Here is a story from Chatterbox, 1912. I really, really loved this story! GILLIAN’S CHRISTMAS – TREE. ‘Mother, can’t we have a Christmas-tree?’ asked Gillian Derwent, one December day, standing by the table, where her widowed mother sat painting Christmas cards, in a shabby sitting-room at Seacombe, a small South-coast watering-place, where they were spending … Continue reading Gillian’s Christmas – Tree
This is from a book called Parables for Little People by J. W. G. Ward. It was published in 1921, consisting of 52 ‘sermonettes’ as they are called. I thought this was going to turn into a sort of ‘A Christmas Carol’ sort of story, but it’s not, really. I thought it was nice. (Not … Continue reading Lessons of the Snow
Songs of Childhood, 1923. Are you tired of winter references? Not when it is a reference from an antique book! IN WINTER Brown are all the trees, and bare; Leaves, we know, are hidden there, Waiting till the bluebirds sing Their song of the spring. This is from Chatterbox, 1912. Perhaps this would be a … Continue reading In Winter
Songs of Childhood, 1923 Most of these are very simple. Sometimes it’s nice to just put yourself into a ‘simple’ thing. That is, put aside all the worries of everyday life, and just imagine yourself as one of these children making snowballs and having a jolly time! SNOWBALLS O-ho! O-ho! The feathery snow is falling. … Continue reading Snowballs
