Mele and the Fire-Woman (true first edition of 1940)
Honolulu, HI: Tongg Publishing, 1940. First edition. Hardcover. True first edition of 1940 from original Hawaiian publisher (the 1952 reissue is often mistakenly identified as the first). Oversized hardcover in tan paper covered boards with tipped on color illustration front cover. Illustrated endpaper drawing "Hawaii National Park". 47 pp. Illustrated with drawings by Cornelia MacIntyre Foley. Very good, 1944 Christmas gift inscription "..to my darling Judy with love Nana..." on the blank verso of the front free endpaper and Judy's childish ownership notation on the facing blank. A little Hawaiian girl explores the crater of Kilauea in search of the legendary Madame Pele the Fire Goddess; she meets a mysterious old woman living in The Green Cottage (Madame Pele herself??) who gives her a basket of flowers. The girl makes a county fair prize winning lei from them. Helen Lamar Berkly authored charming Hawaiian themed children's books the true first editions of which are quite scarce. WorldCat locates only 18 copies of this 1940 edition. Very Good. Item #E24342
Price: $125.00