RARE 1939 TRUE FIRST EDITION, FIRST PRINTING OF "MADELINE" BY LUDWIG BEMELMANS For Sale

This is an exceptional, authentic copy of the 1939 children's classic "Madeline," written and illustrated by Ludwig Bemelmans, published by Simon & Schuster, New York.This volume features all verified bibliographical points required for the true first printing, first state.CRITICAL COLLECTOR POINTS VERIFIED:Title Page: Explicitly dated 1939 at the bottom of the title page.Copyright Page Address: Lists the true first-printing publisher address: 386 Fourth Avenue, New York.The "12 Girls" Illustration Error: Features the famous first-state printing error on the right-hand text block page: "In two straight lines they broke their bread" accompanies an illustration clearly showing 12 girls at the dining table instead of 11 (corrected in later iterations).CONDITION REPORT:Exterior / Binding:Missing the original dust jacket.Original yellow paper-covered boards are clean with strong color preservation.Shows typical vintage shelf wear, including rubbing to the edges and minor bumping/fraying to the corners.The original cloth spine is fully intact with legible text, displaying minor softening and light chipping at the top and bottom tips.Internal binding and hinges are structurally sound and secure.Interior Pages:The pages are exceptionally clean, crisp, and bright.Illustrated endpapers (Place de la Concorde) are completely intact.Text blocks and color artwork remain highly saturated and free from sun-fading.No internal writing, library stamps, foxing, or finger smudging.