The Dream Keeper and Other Poems
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1946. With illustrations by Helen Sewell. Seventh printing. Light blue cloth, stamped in red, lacking dust jacket. Spine sunned a shade, faint offsetting upper front board, overall a near fine copy. Item #232272
ASSOCIATION COPY. Inscribed especially for Gladys English. English was the Chairperson for the Newberry Selection Committee and Head of the Children's Department at the Los Angeles Central Library. As Hughes' only book written expressly for children, this association is a special one.
Interestingly, Hughes dated his inscription "March 31, 1948." On this day, Hughes was scheduled to deliver a lecture at Occidental College's Thorne Hall in Los Angeles, organized by the Eagle Rock Council for Civic Unity. The event was intended to raise funds for a local Black high school student, Janet Stafford, in her aspiration to attend Occidental College. However, just days before the event, the college's board of trustees canceled his appearance. This decision was influenced by the rising tide of anti-Communist sentiment during the early Cold War period, where Hughes, like many other prominent Black intellectuals and artists, was targeted by red-baiting campaigns that sought to suppress voices advocating for civil rights and social justice. Following the cancellation, the event was moved, with great success, to Scott United Methodist church in Pasadena. Notably, the event was able to raise enough money to cover all of Stafford's upcoming college expenses.
Price: $1,250.00