REILLY & LEE CO., CHICAGO
The Story of Peter Rabbit (Fold-A-Way Book, Cut-Out Toy Edition)
Chicago: Reilly & Lee Co., 1917. First edition. 8vo (approx. 10 × 7 inches). Original stapled pictorial wrappers; 16 pp. printed on heavy stock paper with text and figures printed on facing pages—text on the left, figures to be cut out on the right; chromolithographed die-cut figures; detachable tri-fold scenic back cover.
Scarce early American cut-out toy book in the patented Fold-A-Way format designed by Will Pente and illustrated by P. McLaughlin. Published by Reilly & Lee shortly after the U.S. copyright filing (July 10, 1917), this edition transforms Beatrix Potter’s beloved tale into an interactive theatrical experience. Children are invited to cut out and assemble double-sided stand-up figures to enact the story on a removable scenic backdrop—an innovation promoted as both “educational” and “entertaining.”
Collation and Interior Description:
16 numbered pages printed on thick cardstock, each pairing one text page with a corresponding figure plate. Of these, 6 figure pages remain uncut; 10 have been cut, and 13 of the original stand-up figures survive loose (folded double-sided, designed to stand unaided). The original scenic tri-fold backdrop, printed on the inside of the rear cover, is present but detached. The reverse of the front cover bears a printed letter to children from designer Will Pente, encouraging careful assembly and imaginative use. Final pages include printed cutting instructions and figure assembly tips.
Condition:
Very good. Covers lightly toned and with mild handling wear. Rear tri-fold background scene present but loose as issued; moderate edgewear. Interior pages clean and bright, with six uncut figure pages intact. Of the 10 cut pages, 13 loose stand-up figures survive, each double-sided and functional; completeness undetermined due to lack of documented figure list. Binding secure; no repairs. A remarkably well-preserved example of this fragile and highly ephemeral production.
Collector's Corner:
This early American movable book is part of the Fold-A-Way Toy series created and patented by Will Pente. The format was marketed in 1917 by Reilly & Lee Co. (previously known as Reilly & Britton Co.), the same Chicago publishing house best known for issuing L. Frank Baum's Oz books. Fold-A-Way books were promoted as an "absolutely new idea" that allowed children to act out stories using reusable stand-up figures rather than discarding pages after cutting.
According to Publishers Weekly (Vol. 92, 1917), the books were praised for their educational and entertainment value: "Neither paste nor easel is required... all of the book is put to use, even the covers, which form trunks, houses, tablecloths, or scene backgrounds." Similarly, Bookseller & Stationer (1918) described them as a clever and inexpensive amusement: "The toys can be handled and played with after they are made."
Peter Rabbit and Little Black Sambo were the first two books issued in the Fold-A-Way Toy series. The officially advertised Fold-A-Way titles in 1917 were:
"Dolly Blossom’s Bungalow"
"Dolly’s Breakfast"
"Little Black Sambo" ( see it here https://www.vintagepopupbooks.com/Little-Black-Sambo-FOLD-A-WAY-movable-book-1933-p/m-133.htm )
"Dolly Blossom and Her Wardrobe"
"The Story of Peter Rabbit"
Note: Pente would later create and copyright a boxed paper theater set in the 1930s titled Fold-A-Way Miniature Theatre (copyrighted Nov. 15, 1932). The present work predates that version and was not sold as part of a boxed collection.
References:
U.S. Copyright Office. Catalogue of Copyright Entries: Pamphlets, Leaflets, Etc., Vol. 14, Part 1 (1917), p. 11716.
Pente’s toy patents and theatrical playbooks are discussed in trade journals such as Bookseller & Stationer (1918).
No institutional holdings for this exact edition recorded in OCLC or WorldCat as of 2025.