Bodleian Library Books

What's on the Bodleian Library High Jinks Shelves?

On this page: Intro | FAQ | Stationery | List of Books

The Bodleian Library puts out numerous jigsaws, cards, journals and other stationery items that feature a selection of their beautiful late 19th and early 20th century children’s book titles. Richly illustrated covers in bright reds, blues and greens adorn rows of shelves, but sometimes you only see the spine, or the text is too small to read and it leaves you wondering which books is featured, and could you build your very own shelf just like this?

Never fear, I’ve done all the hard work for you, cross-referencing each of these titles agains the books held in the Bodleian Libraries so you can find the exact edition featured below. I will say, several of the specific volumes featured are pretty rare (a few I’ve never seen in person), but it’s a fun game to track them down.

As an aside, many of the titles are frequently repeated across the shelves – in the list below I have included each title the first time it appears, but not when it is duplicated – so if you are looking for a particular title on a shelf and it’s not listed there, just look back at the earlier shelves ’til you find it.

What is the Bodleian Library?
The Bodleian Library (Oxford, UK) is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. During his retirement Sir Thomas Bodley decided to open the library to public use and in 1598 refurnished it to house approximately 2,500 books. The doors first opened to scholars in 1602, and in 1610 Bodley agreed with the Stationers’ Company of London that a copy of every book published in England would be held in the library. Since then many extensions and buildings have been added and together the Bodleian Libraries now house over 12 million printed items.

Which books are included in this list?

This selection is known as the “High Jinks” collection – a selection of “light-hearted tales with brave female characters”. If people are interested, I also have the list of books in the Boys’ Adventure, Hobbies and Pastimes and Once Upon a Christmastime shelves as well that I can put up (just let me know in the comments if anyone else is as ridiculous as I am about needing to know exactly which titles are in these shelves, haha).

Can I buy the actual books on these shelves?

You sure can – these are all real books that were sold to the public at the turn of the century and they are still available 2nd hand today. They are usually pretty cheap too (if you live in England, anyway, the rest of the world has to wear postage which quickly adds to the cost). I’ve added links below to Abes and eBay which is where the titles often pop up, as well as Amazon if it’s available there as well. They are the sort of thing you are likely to find cheaply in a charity store too.