Helen Pepperdine Collection of Children’s Books

In honor of Helen Pepperdine, wife of Pepperdine University founder George Pepperdine, Boone Special Collections and Archives is pleased to feature The Helen Pepperdine Collection of Children’s Books in an exhibition in the Special Collections wing on the second floor of Payson. The collection comprises more than 400 children’s books, most collected and donated by Helen Pepperdine. Many of the books in the vibrant and engaging collection are works of fiction, including several first editions. The display features examples of school books used in early literacy instruction in the mid-19th and early 20th centuries. The display also features gilt embossed and brightly colored cloth covers indicating mechanical advances and middle class tastes in 19th century Britain and the United States.