WILLIAMS, Margery (1881-1944). The Velveteen Rabbit, London, 1922, 4to, 7 coloured plates by William Nicholson, original boards. FIRST EDITION, IMPORTANT PRESENTATION COPY, inscribed, "1922. For Ada Squires on her birthday, from William Nicholson."

WILLIAMS, Margery [or] Margery Williams BIANCO (1881-1944) & William NICHOLSON (1872-1949, illustrator).  The Velveteen Rabbit Or How Toys Become Real ... With Illustrations by William Nicholson. London: Heinemann, 1922. 4to (240 x 185mm). Half title, 7 coloured lithographed plates by William Nicholson, 3 of which double-page, initial (caption to "Summer days" plate shaved, caption to "At last! At last!" plate cropped almost completely, as usual, some very faint mainly marginal spotting and staining, a few darker spots). Original coloured pictorial paper boards by William Nicholson (some light staining, 6cm. of the spine remaining attached, 11cm. of the spine detached, but present, the remaining 7cm. of the spine lacking, without the very scarce dust-jacket). Provenance: very faint child's pencil drawing [?by Liza Nicholson] on the blank recto of the final plate, possibly representing Humpty Dumpty. FIRST EDITION, IMPORTANT ILLUSTRATOR'S PRESENTATION COPY, the half title inscribed, "1922. For Ada Squires on her birthday, from William Nicholson." Ada Squires (1895-1972), the nanny to William Nicholson's daughter Elizabeth (or Liza) from his second marriage, was born in 1920. All of Nicholson's books for children date from the 1920s, and the gift of this book to the twenty-seven year old nanny of his two-year-old daughter must surely have been with the tacit understanding that she would read it to her, and show her her father's illustrations. Ada was the vendor's great grandmother. "The Velveteen Rabbit" has achieved the rare status of being a modern but timeless children's classic; it has never been out of print and its many reprints have sold over a million copies in the U.S. alone. There have been countless adaptations in different media, including film, theatre, dance and musicals, and a copy of the first edition even featured in an episode of the American sitcom "Friends" ("The One With The Halloween Party", Season 8, Episode 6, which first aired in the U.S. in November 2001). "'Real isn't how you are made,' said the Skin Horse. 'It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real'" (from page 3). Copies of the first edition signed or inscribed by either the author or the illustrator are very scarce, although one copy has been recorded with the words "presentation copy" blindstamped onto the title. cf. Bader American Picture Books (1976) 25; Mahoney (and others) Illustrators of Children's Books 1744-1945 (1947) p.234: "... one of the first modern picture books, a perfect combination of story and pictures ..."; Silvey Children's Books and their Creators (1996) 487. RARE.