Now is the Time (American Tract Society no. 4)

Wraps, 4 x 2.75 inches, 8pp. Small engraving on first page. Mild soil and foxing, “Emma Bown” pencil signature inside cover. Very Good. Society name in an unusual type on the rear wrap. No prices listed. OCLC: 1 copy (AAS). One of the candy-wrappered American Tract Society publications reflecting the increased capacity and output after their operations expanded in 1848 to new premises where they could print books with engravings in-house. Experiments with typography were known to follow and the books, still morally rigorous, became aesthetic objects competing for space in an increasingly crowded market of children’s picture books. The rear cover of Take the Right Timing announces, “A large variety of the best and prettiest books for children of every age,” which sounds more like the copy from McLoughlin Bros, Prang and other commercial publishers.