HarperCollins Publishers

The Carrot Seed

An early classic in children’s literature about perseverance; never out of print. More

Publishing Firsts: Collins Illustrated Pocket Classics

An illustration from the Collins Illustrated Pocket Classics edition of A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.

At the turn of the century, William Collins III combined innovative packaging and distribution with innovative aesthetics by creating shilling-priced illustrated paperbacks. More

Little Bear

The very first I Can Read! book has sold more than one million copies. More

The New Kid on the Block

Prelutsky was named America’s first Children’s Poet Laureate by the Poetry Foundation. More

Letter from Garth Williams regarding illustrations for the Little House series

When acclaimed illustrator Garth Williams was commissioned to create new illustrations for Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House series, he traveled west to see the actual sites Wilder referred to in her writings and to meet Laura herself. More

The Boy in the Dress

The sharp and funny first novel for children from bestselling publishing phenomenon David Walliams. More

Letter from Katharine White (E. B. White’s wife) regarding Stuart Little’s illustrations

Letter from Katherine White (E. B. White’s wife) regarding Stuart Little’s illustrations

This letter from E. B. White’s wife, Katharine White, to Ursula Nordstrom, head of the U.S. Harper Children’s division, expresses her husband’s excitement... More

The Look of Stuart Little

In early 1945, Ursula Nordstrom, head of Harper’s Department of Books for Boys and Girls was awaiting completion of E. B. White’s manuscript for a children’s story about a talking mouse, titled Stuart Little. More

The Beginner’s Bible

Revolutionized the way children are introduced to the stories of the Bible. More

1836: Harper & Brothers begins publishing books for children

Harper & Brothers begins publishing books for children with the Fairy Book Collection. More

Canada’s White Circle Pocket Editions

Canadian White Circle Pocket Editions of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (1946) and Two Solitudes by Hugh MacLennan (circa late 1940s).

In response to global paper shortages during World War II, Canada began manufacturing books for international markets in 1941. More

The Diary of a Wombat

Genesis of a picture book franchise that has sold more than half a million copies globally. More

Garth Williams, Illustrator

Marketing flyer promoting the 1946 publication of Little Fur Family, written by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Garth Williams.

Garth Williams was a little-known but talented young illustrator when he was commissioned by Ursula Nordstrom, head of Harper’s Department of Books for Boys and Girls, to illustrate the classic Stuart Little by E. B. White. More

Harold and the Purple Crayon

Classic children’s story about imagination that has never been out of print. More

1963: Maurice Sendak receives the Caldecott Medal for Where the Wild Things Are…

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak is published. It is awarded the 1964 Caldecott Medal. More

The Muddleheaded Wombat

First introduced on ABC Radio, Muddleheaded Wombat is one of Australia’s most adored children’s book characters. More

Flat Stanley

This series celebrated its fiftieth anniversary in 2014 and has sold more than one million copies. More

Social Change: Thomas Nast, Illustrator

Illustrator Thomas Nast first made his name documenting the Civil War in all its gruesome reality, but he is best known for developing the political cartoon form and our modern depictions of Santa Claus. More

Publishing Firsts: Producing Books Electronically

The Long Short Cut by Andrew Garve (1968).

Although word-processing programs and electronic typewriters had been around since the late 1960s, Harper & Row was the first to help pioneer electronic publishing with Andrew Garve’s The Long Short Cut in 1968, which was, according to the New York Times, “the first book set into type completely by electronic composition.” More

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