The two books I address this month may not seem to have much in common at first glance. “100 Years of Railroad Art” is aimed at adults, railroad aficionados in particular. “The Dinosaur at the Grocery Store” is children’s fiction, written by a grandmother. I am lumping them together for a couple of reasons.
First, they both have strong visual appeal. “100 Years of Railroad Art,” by Brad Peters of Erving, reproduces historical engravings (mostly stock certificates and bonds) from railroads. The engravings, some in black and white and many in color, are stunning.
“The Dinosaur at the Grocery Store” features bright watercolor images that author Cyndi Roy of New Salem created for her grandson Kellan, who also inspired the rhymed story that accompanies his grandmother’s pictures.
I also address these two books together because they were both published by Haley’s in Athol. Formally named “Haley’s Antiques and Publishing,” this business has been putting out limited print runs of a wide variety of books since 1989.
As far as I can tell from these books and those of Haley’s other products I have read, the major criterion for publication at Haley’s is passion. Both the authors and publisher-cum-antique-dealer Marcia Gagliardi have to feel deeply about a project for it to make the cut there.
I can’t imagine a better reason to publish books, and the passion shows in the two books I talk about here.
Brad Peters spent years working at Maine Central Railroad, both as a public affairs official and as corporate vice president of the railroad. In the 1980s, he discovered a cache of old railroad stock certificates in the company’s vaults.
He arranged to sell these collectibles to raise money for the railroad. He acquired quite a few himself, and his collection provides the bulk of the book’s images.
Peters clearly loves railroads and their history, and his love is apparently not only in the gorgeous images but in his description of the railroad business in Maine, which overlapped into tourist resorts and steamships. I learned a lot from this book and hope to pass it on to a railroad fan in my life.
“The Dinosaur at the Grocery Store” whimsically recreates trips Cyndi Roy has taken with her grandson to the supermarket, where apparently a spotted yellow dinosaur lurks amid the produce.
The story is narrated by Kellan, who — true to the ability of children to live simultaneously in reality and fantasy — is reasonably sure the dinosaur exists, even though he has never seen it. Roy’s imagination manages to make a mundane trip to the store seem like an awful lot of fun.
Tinky Weisblat is the author of “The Pudding Hollow Cookbook,” “Pulling Taffy,” and the forthcoming “Love, Laughter, and Rhubarb.” Visit her website, www.TinkyCooks.com.