Nutcracker Week: Pop-Up Books

My love of pop-up books is no secret so today I share three Nutcracker versions.

The first is by one of the masters of pop-ups, David A. Carter, The Nutcracker Limited Edition: A Pop Up Adaptation Of E T A Hoffmanns Original Tale. This one came out almost ten years ago in standard and limited edition versions, the latter of which is still in print. (The standard one is out of print but almost as expensive now to buy used.) Pop-up books have quite a collectibles value growth over the years. The limited edition has a special pop-up on the cover as well as the pop-ups that are found in the inside of both versions, some I've pictured below in very small images, unfortunately. Either version is quite charming though.



I'll admit I've not seen the following--The Nutcracker by Patricia Fry--that came out last year, but it happens to still be in print having been released last year. This one appears to be geared more specifically at the younger set and makes a cheerful introduction to the ballet.


This last book, The Nutcracker by Nick Denchfield and Sue Scullard, is also out-of-print. I have to include it here because I actually own it and have spent warm hours over the past few years sharing it with some of my favorite children, one of whom even received a gift copy. The pop-ups are fairly standard, but elaborately colored and intricate enough to be interesting. They have a much more sophisticated appearance than Fry's version above.


And now I have dreams of Robert Sabuda doing his own version of the tale since he is my favorite pop-up engineer although David A. Carter is so close behind that it's almost a tie for first place. Sabuda's partner, Matthew Reinhart, is also holding his own very well. I've gifted his Star Wars: A Pop-Up Guide to the Galaxy more than any other pop-up book.