The First Day of the Holidays, 1940, Series 401 (lam)

The First Day of the Holidays, 1900, Series 401

This was one of the first books in the Animal Rhyming stories of series of 401.  The 401 series is significant in the Ladybird story because these books were the first ones published in the format that was to become the classic Ladybird format: small size, with text on the left and a full-page illustration on the right. After the early 1940s, all the books in this series were written in jaunty rhyme by Walter Perring and were illustrated by Angusine Macgregor.  The effect of this rhyme was to lodge in the memory of the young child.  Ask anyone who enjoyed this book as a child and the chances are they can still quote parts of the rhyme decads later.

The First Day of the Holidays tells the odd day of Pen and Gwen, two Penguins who get tired of their chore (picking peas) and go joy-riding on a motor bike.

This copy:

Laminated boards – very good condition.  A few small knocks and bumps and a name on the title page but generally nice, clean pages. This books dates from the 1980s and has an original price of 70p stamped on the back.