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October 5, 2010 by Travis Jonker

The 10 Most Valuable Picture Books of All Time

October 5, 2010 by Travis Jonker   6 comments

I spent a good portion of my formative years reading price guides.

I collected comic books and sports cards and, aside from enjoying them, I was convinced they were going to make me rich. My highest hopes were riding on the following comics and cards:

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Hmm – not too impressive a collection these days.

I was fond of prematurely and obsessively counting my riches, checking price guides for the current going rate of my most valuable assets. These memories of my collecting past came flooding back to me when I stumbled upon a list of the most valuable picture books of all time. Let’s build the suspense a bit and count them down.

Note: Prices are based on estimates of first editions by the website Children’s Picturebook Collecting (click here to visit the site and view the entire list). There may be other, differing estimations out there.

#10: Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel (1939)

VG+ Price: $4,200

#9: Green Eggs and Ham (1960)

VG+ Price: $4,800

#7 (Tie): The Little House (1942)

VG+ Price: $5,000

#7 (Tie): The Story of Ferdinand (1936)

VG+ Price: $5,000

#6: The King’s Stilts (1939)

VG+ Price: $5,200

#5: The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins (1938)

VG+ Price: $6,200

#3 (Tie): Make Way For Ducklings (1941)

VG+ Price: $7,400

#3 (Tie): Horton Hatches the Egg (1940)

VG+ Price: $7,400

#2: And To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937)

VG+ Price: $8,400

#1: Where the Wild Things Are (1963)

VG+ Price: $10,200

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About Travis Jonker

Travis Jonker is an elementary school librarian in Michigan. He writes reviews (and the occasional article or two) for School Library Journal and is a member of the 2014 Caldecott committee. You can email Travis at scopenotes@gmail.com, or follow him on Twitter: @100scopenotes.

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Comments

  1. Irene says

    January 25, 2015 at 6:08 pm

    25th Anniversary edition….First Harper Trophy Edition 1984….Where The Wild Things Are. What is it’s worth?

    • Barbara Schleiff says

      November 11, 2015 at 4:30 pm

      I have Where the Wild Things Are which says copyright 1963. Then 1 st Edition 1969. What is it worth?

  2. maggie woodard says

    March 4, 2015 at 7:45 am

    I have a Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. SEUSS. COPYRIGHT 1960 M.N. 789

  3. Jenece Conley says

    April 19, 2016 at 4:05 pm

    I have I think I saw it on Mulberry Street. 1937. I have the 500 hats 1938. The cat and the hat. 1957

Trackbacks

  1. Picks & Tweets: the week in books says:
    October 8, 2010 at 4:08 am

    […] 100 Scope Notes: The 10 Most Valuable Picture Books … of All Time!  https://100scopenotes.com/2010/10/05/the-10-most-valuable-picture-books/ Heyyy. ..my first edition copy of Karline’s Duck, which I stole from the Winnipeg Public […]

  2. I Thought I Would Be Queen | So Many Books says:
    October 11, 2010 at 8:14 pm

    […] something someday if you hadn’t drooled, chewed and colored on them? Here is a list of the 10 most valuable picture books of all time. While I had many of the books on the list when I was a kid, I’m pretty sure none of them […]

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