End Papers

Do you have books on your shelves or your children’s shelves with lovely, artful end papers?  I have interests in bookbinding and children’s book illustrations and story writing, so I thought I would focus this post on the part of a book called the end papers.  These are usually found just inside the front and back covers with one side glued down and the other loose.   End papers range from plain white to solid colors to patterns to artwork.  Fancy end papers are usually found in picture books, gift books, and The Classics.

I invite you to take a tour of your house to see what treasures you already own.  Here’s a few of mine.  I’ll give a guess at the art medium used.

First, the above page is from the children’s book Gaspard and Lisa at the Museum by Anne Gutman and George Hallensleben (1999 France/2001 USA); Borzoi Book by Aldred A. Knopf.  (Paint:  oil or acrylic)

This delightful drawing, in colored pencil and maybe Conte crayon,  is from 1935, Little Ones by Dorothy Kunhardt with lithographs by Kurt Wiese; The Viking Press.

My Symphony by Wm. Henry Channing, illustrated by Mary Engelbreit, 1997;  Andrews McMeel Publishing.  Mr. Channing wrote this poem of timeless wisdom in the 19th century.   I think Mary uses watercolor with colored pencils or inks to enhance.

This oil painting pulls the reader into the action as soon as the cover is opened.  From 1949, King of the Wind, by Marguerite Henry and illustrated by Wesley Dennis, published by Rand McNally & Co.

This lovely end paper is from The Day We Danced in Underpants, 2008, written by Sarah Wilson, illustrated by Catherine Stock, edited by Abigail Samoun, and published by Tricycle Press, an imprint of Ten Speed Press. (The medium reminds me of watercolor but it may be colored markers and there are collage elements of vibrant patterns inside the book.)

Here’s another lovely pattern!  This is from Charlotte and the White Horse written by Ruth Krauss and illustrated by Maurice Sendak.  This book first came out in 1955 with a reprint in 1983; HarperCollins Children’s Books.  (I want to say that Sendak used watercolors on tinted paper).  All the text in this small and intimate book was hand lettered.

 Here’s a book with the name plate added to the design.  From 1999, A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket, Harper Collins Publishers.  (I’ll guess this design is computer generated graphics)

 

Splatter painting  with acrylic or maybe poster paints gives a modern flair to this very colorful and playful book titled Paris in the Spring with Picasso written by Joan Yolleck with pictures by Marjorie Priceman, 2010, Schwartz & Wade Books, an imprint of Random House.

From the inside cover of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Arthur Rackham. (Line drawing, ink) 

 

 

I’ve saved the best for last.  My scanner is not big enough, so this is only half of the front cover to Balloons Over Broadway, The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade written and illustrated by Melissa Sweet, 2011, Houghton Mifflin Books for Children.  Melissa Sweet incorporates all types of medium into her elaborate collages.  Here she used pages from Tony Sarg’s book on marionettes, along with fabric, paper, string and wood scraps.

And from the back, end paper of the same book:   Here Melissa Sweet has incorporated newspaper headlines and one of the tiger puppet models that she constructed for this book project. Creative, delightful, I can’t say enough about this book.

From single line drawings to elaborate and brilliant mixed-media collage illustrations, the end papers invite readers to open and read.

Please leave a comment and share what you find on your book shelves.  Enjoy!