SKETCHES OF LITTLE BOYS. Containing the well behaved, the covetous, the dilatory, the attentive, the inatentive [sic], the exact, and the good little boy.

8vo, pp. 33, [16] advertisements; hand coloured wood-engraved title, frontispiece and four plates; engraved head and tail pieces and initial letters; bound in the publisher's yellow boards, printed in red, rebacked, back cover with a list of 'New Juvenile Works for Presents or Prize Books', rear endpapers with further advertisements, lacking front free endpaper, gilt edges, corners worn and surface rubbed, with some old marks.


The title was first published in 1839 under the imprint of Dean & Munday but here revised together with new illustrations.

The work reinforces through a series of short stories examples of both good and bad behaviour of 'Little Boys'. The author, Julia Corner, is quite clear that a good boy 'is dutiful, kind, and affectionate; diligent at school, attentive at church, and gentle and humane to all living things. He is careful with his books and clothes; and he knows they cost money, and that money is not obtained without labour.' Of the less than good boys the examples given are of 'The Inattentive Boy' Frank who is lent, by the studious James, a jigsaw map of England, alas when the puzzle is returned James discovers it has lost the counties of Middlesex and Durham. Likewise 'The Covetous Little Boy', Charles, becomes jealous when an Ark toy is given to his younger brothers Tom and George. Charles persuades his younger brothers to part with the Ark, for some old toys of his own. A parent on discovering this is rather incredulous and takes time to explain how wrong Charles has been. One feels that Charles was not altogether convinced that the exchange should be rescinded. On balance one would not like to be in the company of such excruciatingly good boys for too long as described here!

Julia Corner (1798-1875), also known as Miss Corner, was a British children's educational writer who created Miss Corner's Historical Library. Corner was born in London in 1798. Her father, John Corner, was an engraver. She initially wrote novels which she continued after she became associated with a series of history books. In 1840 she published "The History of Spain and Portugal" and the "History of France". The former was criticised by the Church of England Quarterly Review as an "apologist for the Jesuits" although "Miss Julia Corner's" good intentions and the low price of her books was appreciated. These history books eventually covered many countries and built up into what was known as Miss Corner's Historical Library. 'Corner wrote simple stories for children and books for their instruction as well as history books about the ancient Britons, Saxons, and Normans. She was published by low cost publishers like Henry George Bohn for whom she created books about India and China in the 1850s. Her books about countries, Miss Corner's Historical Library, would be illustrated and they would include anecdotes, tables of historical events, maps, different aspects of history and questions were raised that related to the text in the style of Richmal Mangnall… Corner also created revised editions of other writer's books including Anne Rodwell's A Child's First Step to the History of England. Her usually conservative books also included plays for children in Dean & Son's series, Little Plays for Little People, which she advocated for their educational value' (see ODNB).

The illustrations are by Benjamin Clayton, (1809-1883), an Irish artist and engraver who settled in London and probably produced a tremendous amount of unsigned work for juvenile works, prints and advertising material, and who is better remembered as the father of the writer, Ellen Creathorne Clayton. The illustrations are simple and direct and show the boys on the whole trying to be good rather than bad.

OCLC records copies at UCLA and Princeton.