The Sleeping Beauty Picture Book - Containing the Sleeping Beauty, Blue Beard, the Baby's Own Alphabet - Illustrated by Walter Crane

By Walter Crane

This wonderfully illustrated collection of fairy tales and rhymes, The Sleeping Beauty Picture Book is one of the celebrated 'Toy Books' produced by Walter Crane and Edmund Evans. Through a series of colour illustrations and integrated text, it will delight readers both young and old with such tales as 'Sleeping Beauty', 'Baby's Own Alphabet' and 'Bluebeard'.

Walter Crane (1845 - 1915), was an English artist and book illustrator. He is considered to be the most influential, and among the most prolific, children's book creator of his generation. Alongside such names as Randolph Caldecott and Kate Greenaway, he was also one of the strongest contributors to the child's nursery theme. Crane's work is characteristically colourful and delightfully detailed, taking its inspiration from the Arts and Crafts movement (of which he was a member), as well as the iconic child-in-the-garden motif. The Sleeping Beauty Picture Book is a fantastic example of his art. Appearing alongside the text, Walter Crane's illustrations further refine and elucidate Hawthorne's enchanting storytelling.

Pook Press celebrates the great ‘Golden Age of Illustration‘ in children’s literature – a period of unparalleled excellence in book illustration. We publish rare and vintage Golden Age illustrated books, in high-quality colour editions, so that the masterful artwork and story-telling can continue to delight both young and old.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Read Books Ltd.
• Release date: Jan 27, 2016
• ISBN: 9781473365131

Walter Crane

Walter Crane (1845–1915) was an English artist, book illustrator, and one of the most influential children’s book creators of his generation. Crane produced not only paintings and illustrations for children's books, but also ceramic tiles and other decorative arts. From 1859 to 1862, Crane was apprenticed to wood-engraver William James Linton and had the opportunity to study works by many contemporary artists, including Sir John Tenniel, the illustrator of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass.

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Walter Crane

Walter Crane was born in Liverpool, England in 1845. The son of a successful artist, he obtained an apprenticeship at William Linton’s engraving shop after his family moved to London. Impressed by his apprentice’s work, Linton began to help Crane earn commissions, including one to provide the illustrations for J. R. Wise’s book The New Forest: Its History and its Scenery (1862). During this time, Wise – a political and religious radical – introduced Crane to the work of John Stuart Mill and John Ruskin.

During the 1860s, Crane began to take an active role in politics as a supporter of the Liberal Party, and campaigned for the 1867 Reform Act. At the same time, his reputation as an illustrator continued to grow. Crane’s first children’s books,