First Edition The Bike Lesson
First Edition Identification
1964 B-36 The Bike Lesson
Stan & Jan Berenstain. The Bike Lesson. New York. Beginner Books: 1964.
Pages#: 64 pages.
Book Description: Color illustrated boards wrapped in matching dust jacket. The second book in the Berenstain Bears franchise one of the most successful children's book franchises ever. An astounding 39 Berenstain Bears paperback books made the 'All-Time Bestselling Children's Books' according to Publisher's Weekly.
Also an early book in the groundbreaking Beginner Book series, written specifically to help children learn to read while simultaneously engaging and entertaining them.
Pagination: Front fixed and free endpapers illustrated in color; [i] title; [ii] copyright; [iii] half-title; 2-61 story; [64] small illustration; back free and fixed endpaper illustrated in color.
Collectibility Context
The first edition book in its original first edition DJ is a Highly Collectible: Early book in ground breaking Beginner Books series, which changed the way children learned to read in America. Embraced by the public for 60 years with hundreds of thousands of copies sold. The Berenstain's created the Berenstain Bear franchise, monstrously successful within the children's book publishing industry. Early Berenstain Bear so some pop culture appeal.
The Collectibility of a first edition American picturebook is comprised of specific factors, as explained in detail at Factors Affecting Collectibility.
| Scarcity | Collect ibility | Illust. | 1st Early Late | Author | Awards | Pop Culture | Copies Sold | Fran chise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 10 |
Scarcity Context
The first edition book in its original first edition DJ is Scarce to Uncommon: There was only 1 first edition found in the March 2024 survey offered at $45. This first edition is not scarce, just that the market price is too low for copies to surface.
First Edition Book & Dust Jacket Descriptions
Book Front: Bound in glossy paper covered boards with color illustration. "The / [Beginner Books logo top right] / Bike Lesson / ANOTHER / ADVENTURE / OF THE / BERENSTAIN / BEARS [red letters in white box] / By Stan & Jan Berenstain"
Note: Click on any of the book's images to see at larger scale.
Book Back: Bound in glossy red paper covered boards. Blank with no illustration or text.
Book Spine: "[BB logo] BEGINNER BOOKS [black horizontal text] The Bike Lesson Berenstain B-36 [black horizontal text]"
Title Page: "The /Bike Lesson / [illustration] / By Stanley and Janice Berenstain / Illustrated by Stan & Jan Berenstain / BEGINNER BOOKS A Division of Random House, Inc. "
Copyright: "(c) Copyright 1964 by Stanley and Janice Berenstain. All rights reserved under International and / Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Published in New York by Beginner Books, a division of / Random House, Inc., and simultaneously in Toronto, Canada, by Random House of Canada, Limited. / Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 64-11460. Manufactured in / the United States of America."
DJ Front: Color illustration matching Book Front. "The / [Beginner Books logo top right] / Bike Lesson / ANOTHER / ADVENTURE / OF THE / BERENSTAIN / BEARS [red letters in white box] / By Stan & Jan Berenstain"
DJ Back: Beginner Books DJ Back 'M': 1964 No BB Titles
"[The Cat In The Hat Beginner Book Dictionary (1964) front cover] / Here is where / BEGINNING/ READERS / really begin / to read! / [four-lines starting with 'This amazing Dictionary by the Cat in the Hat' / These words are introduced to your ... [... paragraph] / The beginner starts in by "read- ... [... paragraph] / [two paragraphs in orange slanted box as follows: ] The dictionary will help prepare ... [... paragraph] / Beginner Books are a delight to ... [... paragraph]"
DJ Spine: "[BB logo] BEGINNER BOOKS [black horizontal text] The Bike Lesson Berenstain B-36 [black horizontal text]"
DJ Price: 195/195
DJ Flap Front: "195/195 [top right] / The Bike Lesson / [Illustration] / Stan / & / Jan / by Berenstain / This is another / Beginner Book featuring / the Berenstain Bears / This time Papa Bear tries to teach ... [... paragraph] / Papa Bear makes a terrible mess of it ... [...paragraph] / STAN & JAN BERENSTAIN / have written this book in Beginner Book ... [... paragraph]"
DJ Flap Back: "[illustration} / The author-illustrator team is widely ... [... paragraph] / In The Bike Lesson, the tables are ... [... paragraph] / This extraordinary couple work togeth- ... [... paragraph] / Their hobby we like best is writing and... [... paragraph] / (c)1964 by S. & J. Berenstain"
First Edition Identification
First edition book states "Published in New York by Beginner Books, a division of Random House" on the copyright page and has 'B-36' on the spine.
First edition dust jacket is Beginner Books 1964 DJ 'M' with an advertisement for The Cat In The Hat Beginner Book Dictionary (1964).
BB DJ 'M' (advertising the 1964 Beginner Book Dictionary) is the first edition DJ for five Beginner Books, spanning 1964 & 1965 publications: B-35, B-36, B-37, B-39, & B-40.
The outlier is 1965's B-38 Fox In Socks which uses BB DJ 'N'. While BB DJ 'N' lists all 37 Beginner Books published from 1957-to-1964 inclusive, and does not list any 1965 titles, I still consider it the 1965 Beginner Books dust jacket since it was first used on 1965's Fox In Socks.
Second Printings and Later
Second printing book is identical to first printing.
Second printing DJ is Beginner Books 1965 DJ 'N' with 37 titles listed.
See Beginner Book Fronts for first edition identification of the first 50 Beginner Books.
This information is from the First Edition Identification Guide: Beginner Books (2024, Flying Moose Books), by Stan Zielinski.
© Stan Zielinski
A serious collector having fun with fun books.
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© Stan Zielinski. Author of the Children's Picturebook Price Guide
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