Big Little Books form a fascinating area for collectors, as they are exactly half-way between the traditional books aimed at kids, and the later comic books.

Whitman Publishing Company, of Racine, Wisconsin, actively published these books from 1932 up until World War II, with its restrictions on paper, stopped the series. After the war, Whitman, also known as Western Printing and Lithography, was the largest printer of comic books, and the era of the Big Little Books was over.

Tom Mix, and other western figures, were important when it came to selling books to youngsters, just as they were in getting them to movies in the height of the Depression.

And, just like today, making books out of movies was also done. Here we show Dickie Moore, a popular child actor, in a film from the late 1930's.

Gangster stories were also popular. Here, Radio Patrol was a gangster story, based on radio programs.

Dick Tracy was one of the first characters starring in these books, and one of the biggest early comic book stars as well. By 1938, the books no longer had the logo on the cover, and the impact of comic books was becoming more clear.

When collecting Big Little Books, the single important factor is condition. Most of the books in "near mint" condition cost about $30, while books showing normal wear, and only slight yellowing of the paper, cost about $20. Copies in heavily worn condition, but missing no pages or parts of the cover, are in the $10 range, while poor copies are not generally collected. Some titles are much more expensive, including most of the Disney titles, but enough are available at reasonable prices to make Big Little Books a great area to collect.

-- Mr. Cunningham first read a Big Little Book at the age of five, and hasn't stopped since. ©1996 Dave Cunningham
Back to Cunningham Collectibles Forums