This past year, my mother celebrated her 100th birthday and in the parties that followed, the term “antique” was thrown around a lot (but only in the most loving way!). It got me thinking…when I was young and just starting to be interested in collecting, I remember someone telling me that an “antique” item was one that was more than one-hundred years old. At the time, that made sense: one hundred years before was smack dab in the middle of the 19th century, predating even the Civil War. Heck, there were still Civil War soldiers (though probably drummer boys) alive.

When I think of one-hundred years now, it gets a little confusing. A century ago, children were reading books that don’t seem so very old: the Oz books, Thornton Burgess, The Little Engine That Could, and Doctor Dolittle. They were just on the cusp of experiencing the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew.

Maybe it’s my age. Maybe it’s my overarching interest in virtually all of children’s literature. I know that there are various reasons that individuals are drawn to collecting kid’s books. Some are interested in only one subject (mysteries or cookbooks or series books or award-winners). Others are drawn to a specific title that resonates strongly with a childhood experience (every example of A Child’s Garden of Verses, for instance). There are folks who collect for love and others for monetary gain and yet more because they HAVE to collect something (and children’s books are plentiful and relatively inexpensive). And there are completists: collectors who need to have every title that Margaret Wise Brown ever issued. I know of at least one person who collects first editions of children’s books by adult authors who have only written one kid’s book (and if a second title is issued, the first is removed from the collection). Collecting is a highly personal activity and the best collections are fiercely focused and reflect an individual’s passions.

I have the misfortune…the result, I suspect, of having been a combined History and English major in college…of lacking any such specificity in my own collection. I’m interested in virtually all aspects of the field and that has resulted, first, in a large collection of pop-up, movable, and novelty books (my primary interest) and, secondarily, an inventory of over 13,000 volumes. At 75 years of age, I’m re-thinking my earlier inclinations, but have little recourse other than to live with their consequences. I started dealing in old and rare children’s books over thirty years ago in order to get rid of excess inventory and gain some cash to purchase more pop-ups, but instead of seeing the number of volumes dwindle (isn’t that the reason to start a business?), they’ve grown exponentially.

If I didn’t love it all so much I’d probably be clinically depressed. If I’ve inherited my mother’s genes I probably have another twenty-five years to dispose of my extra stock (at ten volumes per week if my math is correct and if I never buy another book). Otherwise, it’s my kids’ problem.