First Edition Identification
Dr. Seuss Beginner Books B-39
1965 The King, The Mice, and The Cheese
1965 B-39 The King, The Mice, and The Cheese
Nancy Gurney. Eric Gurney (Illustrator). The King, The Mice, and The Cheese. New York. Beginner Books: 1965.
Pages#: 64 pages.
Book Description: Color illustrated boards wrapped in matching dust jacket. An early book in the groundbreaking Beginner Book series, written specifically to help children learn to read while simultaneously engaging and entertaining them. The King gets cats to get rid of the mice, then dogs to get rid of the cats, then lions to get rid of the dogs, and so forth.
Pagination: Front fixed and free endpapers illustrated in color; [i] title and copyright; [ii] dedication; 3-63 story; [64] small color illustration; back free and fixed endpaper illustrated in color.
Collectibility Context
The first edition book in its original first edition DJ is a Very Collectible: Early book in ground breaking Beginner Books series, which changed the way children learned to read in America. Embraced by the public for 59 years with hundreds of thousands of copies sold. The author and illustrator are highly successful in the children's book market with decades of success between them. Little 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 10 |
Scarcity Context
The first edition book in its original first edition DJ is Uncommon: There were 3 first editions found in the March 2024 survey, with an average price of $137, ranging from $250 to $35.
First Edition Book & Dust Jacket Descriptions
Book Front: Bound in glossy red paper covered boards with color illustration. “[Beginner Books logo top left] / THE / KING, / THE / MICE / AND THE / CHEESE / BY NANCY / and ERIC GURNAY”
Note: Click on any of the book's images to see at larger scale.
Book Back: Bound in glossy yellow paper covered boards. Blank with no illustration or text.
Book Spine: “[BB logo] BEGINNER BOOKS [black horizontal text] THE KING, THE MICE AND THE CHEESE NANCY AND / ERIC GURNEY B-39 [black horizontal text]”
Title Page: “THE / KING, / THE / MICE / AND THE / CHEESE / [illustration] / By NANCY and ERIC GURNEY / BEGINNER BOOKS A Division of Random House, Inc. / [three-line copyright statement]”
Copyright: “(c) Copyright 1965 by Eric Gurney. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. / Published in New York by Random House, Inc., and simultaneously in Toronto, Canada, by Random House of / Canada, Limited. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 65-21212. Manufactured in / the United States of America.”
DJ Front: Color illustration matching Book Front. “[Beginner Books logo top left] / THE / KING, / THE / MICE / AND THE / CHEESE / BY NANCY / and ERIC GURNAY”
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 KING, THE MICE AND THE CHEESE NANCY AND / ERIC GURNEY B-39 [black horizontal text]”
DJ Price: 195/195
DJ Flap Front: “195/195 [top right] / THE / KING, / THE / MICE / AND THE / CHEESE / by / Eric and Nancy Gurney / The mice were after the king's best / cheese / SO… / The king brought in cats to chase the … [… paragraph] / SO … / The king brought in dogs to chase the … […paragraph] / SO … / The king brought in lions to chase the / dogs away / AND SO … / Thanks to Eric and Nancy Gurney, here … [… paragraph] / This book comes from / the home of / THE CAT IN THE HAT / Beginner Books / A DIVISION OF RANDOM HOUSE, INC.”
DJ Flap Back: “[Illustration] / About our Mice Experts, / Eric and Nancy Gurney: / [Four paragraph Gurney biography] / Canadian papers please copy: Eric and … […paragraph} / [Five paragraph Gurney biography] / (c)Copyright, 1965, by Eric Gurney”
First Edition Identification
First edition book states “Published in New York by Random House” on the copyright page and has 'B-39' 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). See Beginner Books Dust Jacket Backs from Chapter 52 of the First Edition Identification Guide: Beginner Books.No Beginner Book titles are listed.
It is a bit odd that a book with a 1965 copyright is published with the Beginner Books' DJ from the prior year. One can only surmise that Beginner Books decided to promote the BB Dictionary over the other books in the series.
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 First Fifty Beginner Books for first edition identification of the first 50 Beginner Books.
See Beginner Books Dust Jacket Backs to see the chronological sequence of the Beginner Books dust jackets.
All of this information is sourced from the First Edition Identification Guide: Beginner Books (2024, Flying Moose Books), by Stan Zielinski.