Elin's Amerika (1941)

First Edition of Elin's Amerika, Beautifully Written
and Color-Illustrated by Marguerite De Angeli

De Angeli, Marguerite. Elin's Amerika. New York: Junior Books / Doubleday Doran, 1941.

1st Edition. 1st Printing. Hardcover. 4to  11" - 13" tall tall.

First edition of this historical children's novel about a little girl growing up in the American colony of New Sweden, beautifully color-illustrated, in the rare original dust jacket. Written by two-time Newberry Award-winner Marguerite De Angeli, Elin's Amerika is a children's novel set in the colony of New Sweden (along the Delaware River) in 1648. In both the text and the beautiful color illustrations, De Angeli painstakingly records the most minute details of Swedish life and tradition in the early American colonies, from encounters with Native Americans to the complications of everyday manufacture and trade to the celebration of Lucia Day, a Swedish Christmas tradition. This book represents a beautiful depiction of one of the lesser-known parts of the American story. This title is almost never found in collectible condition and certainly not with the very rare dust jacket. Book fine, extremely rare dust jacket near-fine with only light wear and mild toning to extremities. A lovely copy.