FIRST EDITION 1902 Five Children and It by E. Nesbit.

Title: Five Children and It. 
Author: E. Nesbit. 
Publisher: T. Fisher Unwin: London.
Published Date: 1902. FIRST EDITION. 
Pagination: pp. xv; 301
External Size: 20cm x 13.5cm.
 
Five Children and It is a children's novel written by Edith Nesbit, a prolific writer and author or numerous books for children, including her endearing story of The Railway Children. Five Children and It was initially published in serial form in The Strand magazine from April to December 1902, under the title of The Psammead, or the Gifts. (Psammead is Greek for sand fairy!) It was then published in book form the same year. 
 
It is a magical story about five children who dig up a sand fairy whilst playing one day. The sand fairy has the power to grant wishes, and the story follows the comical events that follow as each child makes their wish. As with The Railway Children, it is a beautiful story and a must read for any collector of children's books. 
 
 
Bound in red cloth with gilt pictorial design and lettering to the front cover and spine, the boards are in good overall condition, with some surface soiling, fading and creasing to the spine and rubbing/bumping to the edges, corners and to the head and tail of the spine. Plain endpapers which are free from inscriptions. The front and rear internal joints are cracked and the text block has come away from the spine, making the binding feel loose. Despite this, the contents are very good. The frontispiece is partially detached and the tissue guard is present. Otherwise the pages are lightly age toned with a couple of patches of foxing, but this is very minor. Four plates (p.12, p.100, p122, p.209 have become partialy detached but remain firmly bound from the middle upwards, and the plate at p.234 is missing.