Skip to content

No image available
No image available

The Water Babies Hardcover - 1980

by Ines De Hosson; Susan Rowe; Charles Kingsley


About this book

The Water-Babies, A Fairy Tale for a Land Baby is a children's novel by the Reverend Charles Kingsley. Written in 1862-1863 as a serial for Macmillan's Magazine, it was first published in its entirety in 1863. The book was extremely popular during its day, and was a mainstay of children's literature through the 1920s, but eventually fell out of favor in part due to its prejudices against Irish, Jews, Catholics, blacks, Americans, and the poor.

In the style of Victorian-era novels, The Water-Babies is a didactic moral fable about a young chimney sweep, Tom, who falls into a river and becomes a 'water-baby,' guided by moral teachers through lessons and adventures, eventually earning the right to become human again and being united with an upper-class girl Ellie who had also become a 'water-baby.'


Summary

When Tom, an ill-treated little chimney-sweep, jumps into a clear, cool stream to clean himself something magical happens; he is turned into a tiny water baby by the fairies. He enters a strange, magical underwater world, and travels beyond the world's end to the other end-of-nowhere, getting into all sorts of scrapes and encountering creatures beautiful and frightening along the way. He also learns many important lessons - it is a voyage of discovery that Tom will never forget.

First Edition Identification

First edition (London Macmillan and Company 1863) is usually without the L'Envoi leaf as is almost always encountered as the author had it removed from all but the first 200 or so copies. Illustrations in this edition include two full page plates by J. Noel Paton and with a number of small illustrations used throughout as opening initials.

Details

  • Title The Water Babies
  • Author Ines De Hosson; Susan Rowe; Charles Kingsley
  • Binding Hardcover
  • Edition First Thus
  • Pages 144
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Salem House Publishers, Limpsfield
  • Date February 15, 1980
  • Abridged Yes
  • ISBN 9780905895505 / 0905895509
  • Reading level 1070
  • Dewey Decimal Code FIC
Back to Top

More Copies for Sale

The Water Babies

The Water Babies

by Kingsley, Charles

  • Used
  • very good
  • Hardcover
Condition
Used - Very Good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780905895505 / 0905895509
Quantity Available
1
Seller
GORING BY SEA, West Sussex, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 2 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$2.30
A$16.56 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Hardback. Very Good.
Item Price
A$2.30
A$16.56 shipping to USA
The Water Babies

The Water Babies

by Kingsley, Charles

  • Used
  • good
  • Hardcover
Condition
Used - Good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780905895505 / 0905895509
Quantity Available
2
Seller
GORING BY SEA, West Sussex, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 2 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$2.30
A$16.56 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Hardback. Good.
Item Price
A$2.30
A$16.56 shipping to USA
The Water Babies

The Water Babies

by Kingsley, Charles

  • Used
  • Acceptable
  • Hardcover
Condition
Used - Acceptable
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780905895505 / 0905895509
Quantity Available
1
Seller
GORING BY SEA, West Sussex, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 2 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$2.30
A$16.56 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Hardback. Acceptable.
Item Price
A$2.30
A$16.56 shipping to USA
No image available

The Water Babies

by Kingsley, Charles

  • Used
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Used - VG+/VG/VG
Edition
First Thus, Abridged.
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780905895505 / 0905895509
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Salisbury, Wiltshire, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$19.23
A$28.89 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
HARDBACK SHIPPED FROM THE UK* Edition: 1st. Thus, Abridged.* Imp: 1st.* Date of Publication: 1980* Publisher: Paper Tiger.* Binding and cover condition: Dark blue cloth, silver title to spine & face. Lower corners lightly bumped, minor edge rubs, minimal shelf wear. VG* Jacket condition: Colour-illustrated dust wrapper showing water baby and the dragon fly. PRICE CLIPPED and showing no shelf price. Light shelf wear to top & bottom edges and to head & tail of spine. Very slight creases. VG* Contents condition: PRIVATE COPY NOT EX-LIBRARY. Light blue coloured end-papers. Clean, crisp, tight and bright with no reading wear, no marks to text, top edge dusty, minimal age to page edges and margins. VG+.* Illustrations: Numerous full-page beautiful colour illustrations by Susan Rowe.* Pages: 142 pp. text. iii pp. blank pages at rear.* Description: A young chimney sweep enters a magical water-world where he meets creatures that teach him the difference between right and wrong. Delightful characters such as… Read More
Item Price
A$19.23
A$28.89 shipping to USA
The Water Babies
More Photos

The Water Babies

by Kingsley, Charles (abridged by Ines de Hosson)

  • Used
  • very good
  • Hardcover
Condition
Used - Very Good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780905895505 / 0905895509
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Llanwrda, Carmarthenshire, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$19.33
A$32.76 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Paper Tiger (Dragon's World Ltd), 1981. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. hardback, a very good tightly bound copy with a clean and unmarked text and in a well preserved pictorial dust jacket which is now protected in a non-adhesive clear film sleeve. Illustrated in colour by Susan Rowe, 142pp.
Item Price
A$19.33
A$32.76 shipping to USA
The Water Babies
More Photos

The Water Babies

by Kingsley, Charles; de Hosson, Ines

  • Used
  • very good
  • Hardcover
Condition
Used - Very Good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780905895505 / 0905895509
Quantity Available
1
Seller
nr Canterbury, Kent, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 4 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$21.26
A$28.99 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Limpsfield, UK: Paper Tiger, 1980. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Rowe, Susan. 142pp. Richly illustrated with 32 colour full page illustrations (of which four are double page spreads). Black cloth-covered boards with silver lettering to front and spine. Coloured endpapers. 8vo. Boards very slightly bumped at head and heel of spine. Gift inscription on front free endpaper. Price-clipped dust jacket with gentle edge-wear has a small closed tear running from upper leading corner and a one inch scratch along leading edge. Neat, clean, bright and tight throughout with crisp, unmarked pages.
Item Price
A$21.26
A$28.99 shipping to USA
No image available

The Water Babies

by Charles Kingsley; Adapter-Ines De Hosson; Illustrator-Susan Rowe

  • Used
  • good
  • Hardcover
Condition
Used - Good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780905895505 / 0905895509
Quantity Available
1
Seller
HOUSTON, Texas, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 4 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$17.89
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Paper Tiger / A Dragon's World Ltd, 1980-02-15. Hardcover. Good.
Item Price
A$17.89
FREE shipping to USA
No image available

The Water-Babies

by Kingsley, Charles; De Hosson, Ines (Abridged by)

  • Used
  • near fine
  • Hardcover
Condition
Used - near fine
Edition
no additional printings listed
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780905895505 / 0905895509
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Batavia, Illinois, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$23.09
A$10.00 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Paper Tiger; Dragon's World, 1980. no additional printings listed . hardcover. near fine/near fine. 9x6x0. Rowe, Susan. NOT an ex library book. 142 pages with color illustrations. Dust jacket has 1/2" tear, no chips. Price is not clipped.
Item Price
A$23.09
A$10.00 shipping to USA
No image available

THE WATER-BABIES.

by KINGSLEY**, CHARLES:

  • Used
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Used - FINE.
Edition
UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780905895505 / 0905895509
Quantity Available
1
Seller
PLYMOUTH., Devon, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$34.79
A$51.21 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.[Abridged by Ines de Hosson.] FINE+/VG.No owner inscrptn per se,but colour pictorial illustrated adhesive owner bookplate with handwritten owner's name,pasted to front free endpaper and no price-clip to dw/dj.Bright,crisp,clean,glossy laminated,colour pictorial artwork by Susan Rowe,illustrated front panel of dw/dj with black+white lettering; with negligible shelf-wear or creasing to edges and corners - no major nicks or tears present.A vertically oblique,angled accidental crease to front panel along with some minimal scoring and other indents but without penetration or affecting the boards beneath,rear panel and board similar.Top edges with light toning,fore-edges bright and clean; contents bright,tight, clean,solid and sound - pristine - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corners,appears unread - apart from my own collation.Bright, crisp,clean,sharp-cornered,publisher's original plain dark blue cloth boards with bright,crisp,blocked silver gilt letters to… Read More
Item Price
A$34.79
A$51.21 shipping to USA
The Water-Babies

The Water-Babies

by Kingsley, Charles

  • Used
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Used
Edition
1st ed
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780905895505 / 0905895509
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Cedar Ridge, California, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$46.18
A$7.68 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Limpsfield: Paper Tiger, 1980. 1st ed. Rowe, Susan. 1st ptg., tall 8vo, navy paper-covered boards stamped in silver, 142 pp. Abridged and updated from the classic tale by Ines de Hosson, illustrated with 26 full page color plates, 2 full page black and white plates and 2 two-page full color spreads by Susan Rowe. Fine in fine, unclipped dj with US price sticker overlaid on front flap and US distributor's label affixed to back dj panel.
Item Price
A$46.18
A$7.68 shipping to USA