Flower Fairies of the Wayside Illustrated Cicely M. Barker c.1950s with Jacket
 
Flower Fairies of the Wayside by Cicely M. Barker – Circa 1950s Edition, Blackie & Son Ltd
 
Bibliographic Details
Title: Flower Fairies of the Wayside
Author & Illustrator: Cicely Mary Barker (1895–1973)
Publisher: Blackie & Son Ltd, London and Glasgow
Printer: Blackie & Son Ltd, Glasgow
Date: Circa 1950s (undated; address 16/18 William IV Street, Charing Cross, London W.C. – used from early 1950s)
Format: Illustrated edition with 24 full-colour plates
Dimensions: Approx. 14.2 × 11 × 0.9 cm
Pagination: Unpaginated – complete
Weight: Approx. 102 g
 
Edition & Publishing History
This particular edition, printed by Blackie & Son Ltd. at their Glasgow works and bearing the 16/18 William IV Street, Charing Cross address, dates from the early-to-mid 1950s.
Blackie & Son became a public limited company in 1890 and operated from various London addresses until 1941, when wartime bombing destroyed their Old Bailey offices. They relocated to William IV Street post-war, confirming this volume’s production in that later period.
 
Physical Description
Bound in illustrated paper boards with matching spine decoration and original clipped dust jacket. The jacket retains its vivid colour and design, showing only light age-related wear – tiny edge rips, light rubbing, and minor marks — remarkably well-preserved for seventy years.
Internally, the book features illustrated fairy endpapers, a black-and-white illustrated title page, and 24 full-colour plates – all present and beautifully reproduced.
 
Condition Report
Exterior:
Original dust jacket present and clipped, lightly rubbed and with very small edge nicks.
Paper-covered boards clean and bright with minimal age wear.
Spine sound and lettering clear.
Interior:
Illustrated endpapers clean and intact.
Pages lightly tanned with age, overall neat, clean, and uncreased.
Occasional faint foxing only.
Pen inscription on front free endpaper reads: “For Dorothy. With best wishes from Wendy. Dec. 1955.”
Tight binding, no loose or missing pages.
A well-preserved vintage copy retaining its full suite of plates and its original dust jacket – a rarity for mid-century printings.
 
Literary & Historical Context
Cicely Mary Barker (1895–1973) was an English artist and poet best known for her Flower Fairies books, which paired delicate botanical watercolours with gentle verse. The series captured the spirit of childhood imagination and remains beloved among collectors and illustrators. Barker’s work was influenced by the Arts and Crafts Movement and Pre-Raphaelite art, blending botanical precision with whimsical fantasy.
Flower Fairies of the Wayside celebrates the wildflowers found along hedgerows and lanes, each accompanied by an original poem and fairy illustration,  a timeless representation of mid-century children’s illustration and English natural lore.
 
Provenance
Includes a dated inscription (1955) confirming contemporary ownership within a decade of publication; useful for verifying its mid-century printing period.