A Look Inside the December issue of Kovels Antique Trader

In 1942, Little Golden Books offered high-quality, spectacularly illustrated books at affordable prices to millions of children and their parents. The more than 80-year-old love affair continues today for readers and collectors alike.

Featuring original artwork from vintage titles, writer Sierra Holt shares a magical story of how Little Golden Books has served as a literary mainstay for generations of children. “Children’s books encapsulate the hopes and dreams of each generation,” children’s literature historian and author Leonard S. Marcus tells Holt. Little Golden Books has certainly done that. You can read all about it in the December issue of Kovels Antique Trader.

Artist Leslie Ragan (1897-1972) is best known for his exceptional poster design work for the New York Central Lines railroad. For them, he designed one of the most highly regarded and recognized American train posters, a glorious Art Deco, Machine Age image of The New 20th Century Limited, the Henry Dreyfuss-designed streamlined train, which was the pride of the New York Central fleet. Ragan’s glorious illustrations are widely known to collectors and students of railroad history and American art. Hop onboard as we take you on a tour of some of the most prominent American Art Deco posters ever designed.

Contributing editor Kris Manty had a crush on the cute guy who sat behind her in high school algebra. Equipped with a compact, she could sneak peeks at him under the guise of reapplying her makeup. Years later, the crush on the boy may be long gone, but vintage compacts, with their charming aesthetics, high quality, and variety of designs, remain a beloved treasure for our writer and collectors. Read more about these small wonders in the December issue of Kovels Antique Trader.

Elsewhere in the magazine, vintage costume jewelry expert Pamela Wiggins Siegel explores the partnership between William de Lillo and Robert F. Clark and how it led to the creation of gorgeous jewelry. In Sales Reports, we look at the natural beauty of woodworking fine art, contemporary art, and the “Adventures of Bob Hope,” a series from DC Comics that ran for nearly 20 years, ending in 1968. In Collector’s Gallery, a mysterious crock discovered in a reader’s great aunt’s basement could be a rare and valuable find. In contrast, another reader discovers an unknown mark has a mob connection.

Finally, editorial director Paul Kennedy reminds readers of the story of Hans and Margret Rey, the husband-and-wife team who gave us Curious George. And while the story of a little monkey who can’t stay out of trouble is a classic, it’s the true adventure of Hans and Margret Rey, German Jews running to escape a fast-approaching Nazi army in Paris, that offers the best story.