The Teddy Bear Story is a great romp through the history of teddy bears and all things of interest to the arctophile, a.k.a. teddy bear enthusiast.
The Teddy Bear Story by Josa Keyes. 1985, first edition. Gallery Books, an imprint of W.H. Smith Publishers.
The thing I most enjoy about this book is the 1970s - 80s Brit pop culture vibe. It's sentimental, as teddy bears are, and still modern and stylish - Josa Keyes worked at Vogue at the time - and the production values are even a bit techie. Reminds me of the UK's best contributions to the era - Princess Di, Vivienne Westwood, George Michael - despite an otherwise difficult decade.
Keyes assembled a fun, eclectic, and entertaining photographic montage into a large 11.5 x 8.5 book for arctophiles - teddy bear lovers - of all ages. Table of contents: Teddy Bears At Large, Literary Bears (Pooh, Paddington, Etc.), Some Famous Bears and Their People, Collecting Bears, Handmade Bears, Teddies and Children.
In the chapter on Teddies and Children:
"There is no denying that teddy bears were originally designed for children. No matter how much affection we retain for our furry friends now, it was only when we were children we really had the ability to give a teddy life. A bonding process takes place between a child and his teddy. They sleep in the same bed, and generally see a great deal of one another, so gradually the bear becomes indispensable. Children are strange, primitive, complicated creatures, full of rituals and beliefs, wild imaginings and ingenious games. And children do see their bears as living, however roughly they might sometimes treat them."
Join Josa Keyes Young at Goodreads:
Goodreads.com/author/show/599563.Josa_Young
Condition*: Near fine/very good. The dust jacket has a small bump to the top right corner, and the inside jacket shows faint discoloration from age.
*Based on guidelines from the Independent Online Booksellers' Association.
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