Canadian Paperbacks - Other Editions Part I

One approach to looking at the vintage Canadian paperbacks is comparing them to other paperback editions published in Canada, the US and elsewhere. Here is a good example - The Lost World by Arthur Conan Doyle. Since its publication in 1912 the novel has never been out of print and in 1953 Harlequin published their edition in partnership with England's Pan Books, one of 11 books published under this arrangement. The other editions shown are the third printing of the first Pan edition (1949, this printing 1950) with the same art as the first printing, a later edition from Pan (1977), an American edition from 1958 and a 2008 Oxford University edition.

Aside from typos the texts are identical, no abridgement or revision for The Lost World. Only the Oxford edition has a short forward seen in the 1912 editions. The second Pan edition has a one page biography of Doyle.

The four 1912 versions (serial and book in England and US) were illustrated but, not surprisingly, none of these editions have illustrations. There is a recent edition that does reproduce many of the 1912 illustrations plus others - The Annotated Lost World, Roy Pilot and Alvin Rodin, editors (Indianapolis: Wessex Press, 1996).

The art on the first Pan edition has faintly comical dinosaurs while the Pyramid and later Pan have the classic look of mid century dinosaurs - static and looking like toy models. The Pyramid also has dinosaurs too large relative to the humans in the foreground. The Harlequin has the most effective art of these early editions - it would easily catch my attention on a newsstand. The Oxford's art couldn't be more different with the now expected active, colourful and terrifying dinosaurs. All art is unattributed.

Harlequin 238

Pan 100 (1950)

Pan (1977)

Pyramid PR15

Oxford University Press

Canadian Paperbacks? Part II

Part I began the discussion about paperbacks published in Canada by Canadian arms of American companies. Here we'll look at two more companies. The first is Avon Book Company and its Canadian edition of W. Somerset Maugham's Theatre. The US edition was published in 1944 and was number 56 in the series. The Canadian edition does not mention any Canadian publisher but rather a distributor, The American News Company, Ltd at 474 Wellington St. West in Toronto. The copyright page states that the book is printed in Canada. As was the cover which differs from the American with the addition of a "29 cents in Canada" price tag and, typically with Canadian Avons, no series number.

The two Popular Library Canadian editions are John Erskine's The Private Life of Helen of Troy and Anita Loo's Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, published in 1948 and 1950 respectively. Both are published by Montreal's Better Publications of Canada Ltd. Both books state printed in Canada but in this case the covers are American printed as stated, identical to the US editions.

The two covers are among the most recognizable vintage paperback covers published. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is signed by Earle Bergey. The Private Life of Helen of Troy is not signed and has been attributed to Rudolph Berlarski. 

Popular Library 147

Popular Library 221

Where Did the White Circles Come From? Part I

Wm. Collins Sons & Co. Canada  Ltd. published 429 titles in their White Circle imprint from 1942 to 1952. All but 10 were reprints. Where did Collins find their books to reprint? Some three-quarters were originally published by the Scottish-English parent company Wm. Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. The rest came from over 40 publishers including five reprints of their own books originally published in hard cover:

Thorn-apple Tree by Grace Campbell (first edition 1942), Serpent's Tooth by Isabelle Hughes (1947), Storm Below by Hugh Garner (1949), A Pocketful of Canada by John D. Robins (1948) and Two Solitudes by Hugh MacLennan (1945). A Pocketful of Canada was published twice in paperback - outside of the WC line in 1948 and as a WC in 1952. The WC version is 32 pages shorter and has slightly different contents.

White Circle 310 - 1947

White Circle CD 412 -1949

White Circle CD 451 - 1950

White Circle C.D. 531 - 1952

1948

White Circle C.D. 540 - 1952

Export Canadian Paperback Originals Part I

Paperback Originals (PBOs) were uncommon in the world of mass market publishing until the 1950s. Here we'll start to look at the three largest Canadian publishers and their PBOs. Harlequin Books and Wm. Collins Sons & Co. Canada Ltd. were typical reprint publishers. From 1949 to 1959 after which they published only romances Harlequin issued 481 titles, 19 (4.0%) of which were PBOs. Collins had 429 titles during its 10 year run of the White Circle imprint. Only 10 (2.3%) were PBOs.

Export is a different story. Of Export's 165 titles, 55 (33.3%) were PBOs. There were no PBOs for the first year after Export started the News Stand Library imprint up to #52, then 32 in the next 43 books. I suspect this shift resulted from Export finding it cheaper and perhaps easier to deal with Canadian authors willing/needing to sell a novel for $400 with no royalties than contracting for reprint rights with American publishers. Based on the way they handled the author below Export did not spend a lot of time getting a book out the door.

Here is one PBO from Export - The Pillar of Fire by H. Gordon Green. Green wrote for newspapers and magazines and worked many years at the Family Herald, first as fiction editor then as editor, ending his career as a teacher. In a letter many years later Green complained about his treatment by Export:

"[I] agreed to sell [to Export] the mss’s condensation [sic] rights for $400.00, and I was horrified when the paperback came out to see how the original had been murdered. Only about half of the original was used [and] I look back on my dealings with them with no pleasant memories."

Other than the recent edition of Montreal Confidential this is the only Export PBO to be honoured with a new edition. In 1953 Brunswick Press of Fredericton published an unabridged trade paperback version (some 105% larger) under the even more pretentious title The Praying Mantis. This edition does not mention the Export edition and notes that the book was “An Avery Hopwood Award Winner.” The Export edition also states that The Pillar of Fire is the “Winner of the HOPWOOD MAJOR AWARD for Fiction.” This award is part of The Avery Hopwood and Jule Hopwood Awards Program administered by the University of Michigan. Students at the University are eligible for one of a number of awards. The manuscripts they submit are not necessarily published. Export, by abridging more that half of the book, did not publish the manuscript that won the award, the only award connected with an Export book.

News Stand Library 131 - September, 1950

Export's News Stand Library US Series Part IV

In earlier discussions of the 28 books that Export Publishing Enterprises Ltd. sold in the US I noted that 20 of them were published with and without dust jackets. Export seems to be the only publisher of mass market paperbacks in Canada at the time, either English or French, to have used DJs. Here are three more of the 20 plus an example from France circa 1940s.

The French paperback, La Machine a Assassiner by Gaston Leroux, was part of the "Le Dragon Vert" (Green Dragon) collection from the publisher Raoul Solar. The inside flap lists 26 books in the series but only four appear to have been published.

News Stand Library 21A with DJ

News Stand Library 21A without DJ

News Stand Library 4A with DJ

News Stand Library 4A without DJ

News Stand Library 5A with DJ

News Stand Library 5A without DJ

with DJ

without DJ