Title: The Periwinkle Steamboat
Author & Illustrator: Clay Lancaster (1917 – 2000) — Landmark American Architectural Historian
Genre: Children’s Soft Fantasy / Architectural Surrealism / Mid-Century Dream Literature
Edition: True First Edition, First Printing (1961)
Publisher: The Viking Press, New York
Aesthetics: Vibrant yellow linen cloth cover boards with crisp, blue stamped line-art iconography of a whimsical airship. Black-and-white architectural and landscape cross-hatch illustrations.
"Nothing ever happens on Pennypacker Square, thought Timmy, as he slid between the sheets and pulled up the soft, warm counterpane. A chilly wind blew in through the open window. Then a flash of lightning lit up the whole room... The lightning flashed again, and Timmy caught a glimpse of trees and the iron fence around the square. In the center stood the statue of old Mr. Pennypacker, who wore a long cape and a tall stovepipe hat. One hand in his pocket, and in the other he held an umbrella. It was an odd thing; whenever it rained the umbrella was open and held over his head. ..."
The Periwinkle Steamboat stands as a landmark of mid-century children's fantasy, capturing the gauzy, shifting logic of a child's dreamscape. The narrative follows young Timmy as he slips away from Pennypacker Square to embark on a midnight voyage aboard a flying steamboat manned by Captain Bill and an array of articulate animals. The journey winds through a succession of stunning utopian spaces—from a sprawling, multi-tiered botanical treehouse to the spectacular, elephant-shaped palace of the Potentate of Poonlay Poo, and the blossom-formed pavilions of Sunflower Lodge.
The book’s allure lies in its visual layout, drafted with mathematical precision and surrealist charm by the author himself. Clay Lancaster does not merely illustrate a fairytale; he constructs it. Every destination in Timmy's journey features historically informed structural detailing—blending elements of Victorian, East Asian, and organic architecture into whimsical monuments.
Clay Lancaster (1917 – 2000) was an American author, architectural historian, and advocate for historic preservation. His areas of interest were the architecture of Brooklyn Heights, the Antebellum houses of the Bluegrass region, the Japanese influence in America. In addition to The Periwinkle Steamboat, his children's books include Michiko, The Runaway Prince, and The Blue Plaid Riders.
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Condition: Very Good. Missing dust jacket. Yellow cloth cover boards with blue decoration: Light soiling from handling; faint dampstain on back cover, lower right. Small stains on pages 17 - 19, 24 - 27, 30 - 35, 42 - 43, else pages are undamaged and complete.
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