McElligot's Pool

New York: Random House, 1947 Illustrated by Dr. Seuss with alternating full-page color and black and white illustrations. First edition, first printing, with open-mouthed fish to front board; in its first issue dust jacket, with "250/250" to front flap. Publisher's green boards, with fish illustration in blind to front board, lettered in blind, and color pictorial endpapers; in its original wraparound pictorial dust jacket, with a fish eyeing a worm on a hook to front panel, lettered in red. Near fine book, with light fading to spine, a touch of rubbing to spine ends, and a tiny bit of staining to fore-edge of textblock; very good unclipped dust jacket, with light wear to spine ends, and some edgewear, most notably a couple of closed tears and some crease-marks to top edge of rear panel. Overall, an excellent copy of this early Dr. Seuss title. In this Dr. Seuss book, a farmer tells a boy named Marco, who's fishing at McElligot's Pool, that he'll have no luck catching fish there. In response, Marco fantasizes about all of the fantastical fish that he might catch there if he's patient enough. McElligot's Pool was the first book by Dr. Seuss to feature watercolors, though only half of the pages were published in color to save money. The book - Seuss's first in seven years - was a success and earned him his first Caldecott Honor. Interestingly, the book's main character, Marco, also stars in Seuss's first book, And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street (1937). . First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Fine. Illus. by Dr. Seuss.