This 1863 first edition "The Circus" Story Book for Boys by a Mrs. A.S. Anthony (published in Boston, found in Haverhill, MA, and the boy who drew in it lived in Newbury, which he spells as Newburay) is a rare one, which begins with two boys discovering a giant painting of marching elephants on the wall of a local barn announcing the (pre-Barnum & Bailey) circus coming to town. Published by the American Tract Society, an evangelical organization founded in 1825 for the purpose of publishing and disseminating tracts of Christian literature, it's got a lot of that embedded in the stories. I of course though bought it for the kid drawings animating its end papers and a few more pages inside (where a blank space was found!), which are of just the sort that I really love. I'd be inclined to remove and frame at least a few, which would not be hard, though also nice to enjoy like a secret surprise in their original context.

Most were done in graphite, a few in sanguine, all documented. I believe the end paper drawings by one boy, and the very primitive ones perhaps by another. All in overall good condition, with wear to the book but holding together fine. Drawings are actually clearer/brighter than my photos.

6" x 3 15/16" x 1/2"; 112 pages. Full page engravings sprinkled throughout the book too.