Canadian Quick Readers Part II

Here I introduced an odd imprint that was printed and sold in Canada from 1944 to 1945. The American parent, based in Chicago, published these books from 1943 to 1945 but the Canadian subsidiary wasn't incorporated until July 26, 1944.

Here are three more Canadian Quick Reader editions. None have a publication date but state on the title page that they are copyrighted in the "Dominon [sic for first two] of Canada".

119 A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. First published 1859. Gone is the famous opening.

122 The Curve of the Catenary by Mary Roberts Rinehart. First published in Pictorial Review, June 1916 (first part of three), then in The Mystery Book (Farrar and Rinehart, 1939).

128 Cat and Mouse by Hugh Pentecost. Pseudonym of Judson Phillips. First published in Cosmopolitan, November 1941.

Quick Reader 119

Quick Reader 121

Quick Reader 128

Quick Reader 128

Export Publishing US Series Dust Jackets

In my last post I discussed the new edition of Sugar-Puss on Dorchester Street which has a new cover showcasing the original art from the 1950 dust jacket. See here for more on this and other editions.

Over the years I've done posts on the 20 dustjackets Export Publishing used on their US books. Here I'll show all of them. They are an impressive group. None are signed.

News Stand Library 4A - June 1949

News Stand Library 5A - June 1949

News Stand Library 6A - June 1949

News Stand Library 7A - August 1949

News Stand Library 8A - August 1949

News Stand Library 9A - November 1949

News Stand Library 10A - November 1949

News Stand Library 12A -November 1949

News Stand Library - November 1949

News Stand Library 14A - November 1949

News Stand Library 20A - February 1950

News Stand Library 19A - February 1950

News Stand Library 18A - January 1950

News Stand Library 17A - January 1950

News Stand Library 16A - January 1950

News Stand Library 15A - January 1950

News Stand Library 21A - February 1950

News Stand Library 22A - February 1950

News Stand Library 23A - April 1950

News Stand Library 24A - April 1950

A Rare Publishing Event

This month, thanks to Montreal publisher Vehicule Press, Canadians will see in bookstores, for the first time in nearly 75 years, a paperback cover with a very unusual history.

Toronto paperback publisher Export Publishing Enterprises was in business from mid 1948 to early 1951. In addition to books sold in Canada, Export published 28 titles for the US market. Here is my first post on these books. Twenty of the books were published with a dust jacket, including Sugar-Puss on Dorchester Street by Al Palmer. Vehicule has just published its second edition of the title reproducing the US dust jacket cover. The first edition has the original cover seen in Canada.

None of the other nineteen covers have been seen since their original publication. And likely never will. Sadly the dust jacket artists are unknown.

Vehicule Press - November 2024

Vehicule Press - back

News Stand Library 20A - February 1950

News Stand Library 20A  - cover under dust jacket

Harlequin's 75th Anniversary

This past May Harlequin celebrated its 75th anniversary.

In May 1949 Harlequin published two books - The Manatee and Lost House. Over 40,000 titles and 6.7 billion copies later (see Harlequin press release), in May 2024, four Harlequin Romance titles were published. The Harlequin Romance series is the direct descendent of the earliest Harlequins. We know this because Harlequin has maintained the numbering for over 75 years, a record unmatched by any other publisher.

The first title published in May 2024 is Secretly Married to a Prince, number 4899 in the series. Next up, in June 2026, is #5000.

Harlequin 1 May 1949

Harlequin 2 May 1949

Harlequin Romance 4899 May 2024 

Retitled Harlequins Part IV

In my last post in this series I noted that 17 of the 88 retitled Harlequins from 1949 to 1959 were first published by British romance publisher Mills & Boon. The original titles are clearly not specific enough for the Harlequin's editor. Nearly all give no hint, at least to a Canadian audience, that the story is about nurses and doctors. The books were published in 1958 and 1959 when Harlequin realized how well romance sold compared to the non-romance Harlequins. 

• 423 Arbor, Jane Nurse Greve [City Nurse]
• 427 Norway, Kate  Nurse Brookes [Sister Brookes of Byng's]
• 439 Vinton, Anne Hospital In Sudan [Doctor Immacula]
• 443 Gilzean, Elizabeth Nurse On Call [On Call, Sister!]
• 446 Moore, Marjorie To Please the Doctor [Borne on the Wind]
• 449 Hoy, Elizabeth Nurse in Training [Come Back My Dream]
• 454 Arbor, Jane Nurse In Love [Such Frail Armour]
• 459 Moore, Marjorie Ring for the Nurse [Second Love]
• 463 Norway, Kate  Nurse Brodie [The Morning Star]
• 469 Seale, Sara Maggy [House of Glass]
• 477 Vinton, Anne Hospital Blue [Caprice in Hospital Blue]
• 482 Arbor, Jane Nurse Harlowe [Folly of the Heart]
• 485 Houghton, Elizabeth Island Hospital [A Sister in the Backwoods]
• 489 Arbor, Jane Consulting Surgeon [Flower of the Nettle]
• 491 Hoy, Elizabeth Nurse Tennant [Sally in the Sunshine]
• 492 Moore, Marjorie Hospital Pro [Follow a Dream]
• 497 Hoy, Elizabeth Doctor Garth [You Took My Heart]

Harlequin 439 - October 1958

Harlequin 443 - November 1958

Harlequin 423 - May 1958

Harlequin 427 - June 1958