Helping at Home, 1961 (DJ) (Scruffy)

Helping at Home, series 563, is, for me, one of the more nostalgic and evocative of all Ladybird books.  It was written by child-education expert Margaret Gagg and beautifully illustrated by Harry Wingfield.   It takes the reader through a number of domestic situations – two children helping their parents in the house, in the garden and shopping.  Now I was born in the 1960s and what is most appealing about this is the way Wingfield’s depicts domestic scenes with a perfect blend of accuracy and fantasy – yes, all the details of the book could be from my earliest memories and yet … everything is so shiny and perfect and happy.  Yet, despite this, this book is a helpful way to counteract some of the lazy assumptions that are often made about Ladybird books.   Yes, the little boy (not Peter) helps his dad with the gardening – but so does his little sister.  Yes, the little girl (not Jane) helps her mum in the kitchen – but so does the boy.  Dad goes shopping with the rest of the family and Mum joins in with the garden bonfire.

In common with all the books in seried 563, Helping at Home was originally issued with a dustwrapper.

This copy still has its original dustwrapper, but both book and dj are in worn, tired condition.  The DJ is worn, chipped and frayed with a crayon mark on the back panel and it has been roughly price-clipped (see photos).  The pages show heavy use, rather creased and rumpled and there’s a neat inscription to the front free endpaper.  Despite these faults, it’s a decent copy of an old book with lovely, nostalgic illustrations which will offer a good trip down memory lane.