May Massee Collection – Hilda van Stockum entries, #854-866

Comments by JTM: These items are stored at the May Massee Collection in Emporia, KS. The listing below is from the May Massee Collection catalog. One error (re King Oberon’s Forest) is corrected below.

A first-rate article on May Massee by Lydia Reynolds of Bethlehem Books appears in In Review, 2:1 (Winter 1995), pp. 13-17. It tells how May Massee in 1921 was the Booklist editor for the American Library Association in Chicago. She was invited by Doubleday to create a children’s book department, emulating what Louise Seaman was doing at Macmillan. When the Depression hit, Doubleday had to close its children’s department and May Massee moved to Viking. After HvS married Spike in 1932, he moved back to New York City to get a job and find a place for HvS and him to live. He took HvS’s first book manuscript, A Day on Skates, to show to May Massee, but she was not in when he arrived and he would not leave the manuscript and drawings. The book was instead published by Harper Brothers. HvS said to Lydia Reynolds in an interview: “May Massee told me afterwards that she would have jumped at it.”

854. Andries. Viking. 1942. 192 p. Illustrated by the author.

Andries of Holland lives in a large house and finds friendship in the shoemaker's cottage. Junior Literary Guild selection, 1943.

One letter from May Massee to Mrs. E. R. Marlin (Hilda [van Stockum]).

855. The Angel's Alphabet. Viking, 1948, 64 p. Illustrated by the author. Verse for each letter of the alphabet illustrated with saints, angels, and children.

Original Art Work: 1 item (pen-and-ink on the Ross board).

Three letters from May Massee to Mrs. E. R. Marlin (Hilda [van Stockum]).

856. Canadian Summer. Viking, 1948, 190 p. Illustrated by the author.

When the Mitchell's move from Washington to Montreal, they are surprised taht they can enjoy life in a hut in the Canadian woods. Junior Literary Guild selection, 1948.

857. The Cottage at Bantry Bay. Viking, 1938, 252 p. Illustrated by the author.

On their way to sell their donkey to Farmer Flynn, Brigid and Michael rescue a dog that digs up a treasure.

One copy of an English edition.

One letter from May Massee to Mrs. E. R. Marlin (Hilda [van Stockum]).

858. Francie on the Run. Viking, 1939, 303 p. Illustrated by the author.

Francie's lame foot is nearly healed when he runs away from the Dublin hospital, takes the wrong train, and makes a pilgrimage over Ireland before returning home.

One copy of an English edition.

859. Friendly Gables. Viking, 1960, 186 p. Illustrated by the author.

When twins arrive in the large Mitchell family, the other children search for a haven of privacy.

Phonotape: Carnival of Books, 1 reel. 5".

Two letters from May Massee to Mrs. E. R. Marlin (Hilda [van Stockum]).

One letter from May Massee to Mrs. E. R. Marlin (Hilda [van Stockum]).

860. Gerrit and the Organ. Viking, 1943, 178 p. Illustrated by the author.

In Amsterdam, Gerrit and the organ grinder change each other's lives.

One copy of an English edition.

Seven letters from May Massee to Mrs. E. R. Marlin (Hilda [van Stockum]).

861. Kersti and Saint Nicholas. Viking, 1940, 70 p. Illustrated by the author.

Kersti, youngest of seven Dutch children, persuades St. Nicholas to give presents to naughty children. Junior Literary Guild selection, 1940.

862. King Oberon's Forest. Viking, 1957, 151 p. Listed as illustrated by the author [incorrect – illustrated by the author’s daughter, Brigid Marlin].

Felix, a young fairy abandoned in the king's forest, is given a home by three dwarves, and eventually leaves them to become a knight. Junior Literary Guild selection, 1958.

863. Little Old Bear. Viking, 1962, 32 p. Illustrated by the author.

Benjamin prefers his grandmother's nameless teddy bear to a new toy.

864. The Mitchells. Viking, 1945, 246 p. Illustrated by the author.

Mother, Grandmother, and five children manage without Father during wartime. Junior Literary Guild selection, 1945.

Original Art Work: 55 items (pen-and-ink)

Two letters from May Massee to Mrs. E. R. Marlin (Hilda [van Stockum]).

865. Patsy and the Pup. Viking, 1950, 82 p. Illustrated by the author.

Four-year-old Patsy finds and returns Mrs. Murphy's puppy and is given the dog as a reward.

866. Pegeen. Viking, 1941, 268 p. Illustrated by the author.

The O'Sullivans of Bantry Bay cannot bear to part with Pegeen when it is time for her to go to her uncle in America. Junior Literary Guild selection, 1941.

Two letters from May Massee to Mrs. E. R. Marlin (Hilda [van Stockum]).

Two letters from May Massee to Helen Ferris.