Golden Guide

The Golden Guides are a series of pocket-sized books that were created by Western Publishing and published under their "Golden Press" line (mostly used for children's books at the time) beginning in 1949. Intended for Grade to High-School level, the series began as field guides with such titles as Birds, Mammals and Flowers, and expanded to a wider range of subjects that weren't strictly identification guides. Titles such as Geology, Photography and Heart taught about these subjects and were not identification oriented so much as educational. Edited at different times by Herbert Zim and Vera Webster, the books were written by experts in their field and illustrated with a simple straightforward style.

Related Topics:
Book - Western Publishing - 1949 - Field guide - Herbert Zim - Vera Webster

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Herbert Zim would also later launch a related series called the Golden Field Guide.

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The series, much reduced but updated, was relaunched in 2001 as "Golden Guides by St. Martin's Press".

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School and community libraries began purchasing hardback versions of these little books and many people recall fondly their first introduction to insects or the seashore with these little guides. They have become quite collectable, and some of the rarer titles (such as Hallucinogenic Plants) can fetch high prices depending on the edition and condition.

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