Illustration by A. Alexeieff, Russian Fairy Tales, 1945
Etched drawings dabbed
yellow, blue, and red
Prose that speaks
jewel-toned and scarce
Treasure hoards faraway tales
For Pru, Kim, and Diana
On Christmas 1945
Notes: The photo above comes from an actual edition I bought as a gift. The first page had “Xmas 1945,” the name of the three girls written in color pencil, and under them, the names of three more people — perhaps their descendants. Imagining this book, new and gleaming in 1945, bought in a war year, and being read through generations, left me sad that its history had been forgotten; I couldn’t let it end at the bookstore.
RED GLADIOLA 