Original pen and ink drawing by Maurice Sendak on the verso of the first leaf, of Pierre holding a balloon ‘For Julia’, inscribed by Sendak: ‘From Maurice + Pierre - June, ‘67’. Printed illustrations from The Griffin and the Minor Canon cut out and pasted in to the card, with Sendak’s annotations ‘We hope the Griffin will make you feel better too. Annie Hilda Toni Amy Carol Jay’.
Julia MacRae (1934-2023) was an important figure in the world of children’s publishing, some of her significant contributions include Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and Raymond Briggs’ Father Christmas. During her career she worked as an editor for Constable, Collins and Hamish Hamilton where she became the first female board member and one of the first women in any publisher’s boardroom. In an interview with ‘Women in Publishing: An Oral History’ MacRae speaks about her experiences as the first female member of the board, and how hard she had to work to get there.
In 1979 she left Hamish Hamilton having become not only the managing director of the children’s book division, but also the director of both Hamilton and its parent company Thomson Books. She established her own imprint Julia MacRae Books, initially part of Franklin Watts, then Walker Books, and finally Random Century.
In very good condition, some creasing to the card, and a little soiling to the back of the card and a little to the front and internally, short tear along the top of the card joint.
