I just found another Dana Girls picture cover with blue ink on the top edge of the text block.
The ink is partially faded, but it is definitely blue instead of green. This book is an early picture cover printing. It lists to Sierra Gold on the back cover and lists Nancy Drew to Moonstone Castle and Dana Girls to Lost Lake on the inside.
I am curious as to whether anyone else has any Dana Girls picture covers with blue ink on the top page edges. Since we do not have a Dana Girls guide, we have far less knowledge of these types of variations than we do for the Nancy Drew series.
The same rules that apply to the Nancy Drew series also apply to the other Grosset and Dunlap series, and people who collect and sell series books tend to overlook that fact. I often see collectors classify Dana Girls picture covers that list to Stone Tiger on the back cover as first picture cover editions. Unless the book is Stone Tiger, then one listing to Stone Tiger is not a first PC.
The Sierra Gold Mystery was the last Dana Girls book printed with a dust jacket, just as The Mystery of the Fire Dragon was the last Nancy Drew book printed with a dust jacket. For Nancy Drew, Fire Dragon is the last title listed on the back cover for first picture cover editions. For the Dana Girls, Sierra Gold is the last title listed on the back cover for first picture cover editions.
Furthermore, when Nancy Drew first picture cover editions have an interior list, the last title listed is usually The Clue of the Dancing Puppet, which is the first Nancy Drew book that never had a dust jacket. Some Nancy Drew first PCs list only to Fire Dragon on the inside. Nancy Drew picture covers that list to Moonstone Castle on the inside are not first PCs.
Likewise, the first Dana Girls picture covers list Nancy Drew to Dancing Puppet. I do not know whether any Dana Girls picture covers list only to Fire Dragon; the ones that I have all list to Dancing Puppet. The Dana Girls PCs that list to Moonstone Castle are early PCs. With this in mind, the listings in Farah's Guide can help collectors figure out the characteristics of the first PCs of the Dana Girls series without having to have a detailed Dana Girls guide.
5 comments:
Of those particular Dana Girls matte picture cover editions I own, 6 are green on top and only 1, Mystery at the Crossroads, has blue ink along the top. On the back cover, it lists to #23 The Sierra Gold Mystery. Inside, it lists to Nancy Drew - The Moonstone Castle Mystery, and Dana Girls - The Secret of Lost Lake.
I have a Stone Tiger that is blue on top, but since I bought the book from you, you could be referring to that one! :) Interestingly enough, I started looking through my collection of the books I intend to keep, and I also have quite a few extras that I intend to put in an auction some day. I discoverd a Sierra Gold Mystery that lists to itself on the back, Moonstone Castle and Lost Lake on the inside. It is blue on top also. Everyone is may think I'm crazy when I write this, but if I could post a picture here, I would. I have a copy of Clue of the Rusty Key and it has almost a redish mauvish greyish tint. It is certainly not green OR blue. It also lists to Sierra Gold on the back, Lost Lake and Moonstone Castle inside. It doesn't look faded, in my opinion. Also, the book is in VERY good shape. Therefore I doubt that it has been mistreated enough to fade and discolor...
I have a Stone Tiger that is blue on top, but since I bought the book from you, you could be referring to that one! :)
Both it and the one I kept. :) It was when I found an extra which I was going to sell that I realized the color difference of the blue ink on the two books versus the green ink on the rest of my books.
So, we have a Mystery at the Crossroads, Mysterious Fireplace, Sierra Gold, and Stone Tiger that have blue ink on the top edges. If four titles have books with the blue ink, I'm sure some others do as well.
It would help if we had a Dana Girls guide. A Dana Girls guide has been written, but the author lost interest before publishing it. At this point, it sounds like it will never be published. :( He probably made note of things like some books with blue on top. Without his compiled data, we are on our own.
I have a copy of Clue of the Rusty Key and it has almost a redish mauvish greyish tint. It is certainly not green OR blue.
Do you have any of the Judy Bolton tweed or picture cover books? It is possible that the reddish-brown ink used on those books could have been used on your Dana Girls book.
Try emailing Tony Carpentieri; he mentioned on a message board some time ago that he had a draft of Woodcock's, and was willing to look at it to answer individual questions.
Unfortunately I do not have a tweed Judy Bolton book to compare the book too. However, if in the near future I do get one, I'll surely let you know!
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