Big Little Book of Whispers by Robert S. Cosmar

Not all big little books adhered to the original format of text on the left side and a large graphic on the right of each page spread, and the earlier, more heavily illustrated books are more valuable as a result. Whitman was also the last to abandon the form, publishing big little books about boomer characters like Major Matt Mason into the mid-1960s. While the format was pioneered by Whitman Publishing, other firms produced big little books between 19: Dell Comics (Cartoon Story Books e Fast-Action Stories) Engel van Wiseman (Five-Star Library Books) Fawcett (Dime Action Books) Goldsmith (Radio Star Series) Lynn (A Lynn Book) Ottenheimer Saalfield (Little Big Books e Jumbo Books) Waldman (Moby Books) e World Syndicate (High Lights of History Series).

Variations such as Dime Action Books were produced by other publishers, as noted by the Collecting Channel's Andy Hooper:

With a name change to Better Little Books during 1938, the series continued into the 1960s. Later books of the series had interior color illustrations.Īfter the first Big Little Book, The Adventures of Dick Tracy, was published (December 1932), numerous titles were sold through Woolworth's and other retail store systems during the 1930s. Stories were often related to radio programs ( The Shadow), comic strips ( The Gumps), children's books ( Uncle Wiggily), novels ( John Carter of Mars) and movies ( Bambi). The interior book design usually displayed full-page black-and-white illustrations on the right side, facing the pages of text on the left. Other publishers, notably Saalfield, adopted this format after Whitman achieved success with its early titles, priced initially at 10¢ each, later rising to 15¢.Ī Big Little Book was typically 3 + 5⁄ 8 in (92 mm) wide and 4 + 1⁄ 2 in (110 mm) high, with 212 to 432 pages making an approximate thickness of 1 + 1⁄ 2 in (38 mm). The Big Little Books, first published during 1932 by the Whitman Publishing Company of Racine, Wisconsin, were small, compact books designed with a captioned illustration opposite each page of text. Darrell McClure's Little Annie Rooney on the Highway to Adventure (Whitman, 1935)

Big Little Book of Whispers by Robert S. Cosmar