Willy and Hugh

Julia MacRae Books. London: Julia MacRae Books, 1991 4to., illustrative yellow boards featuring a drawing of a Gorilla and a Chimpanzee walking; decorative banana endpapers; unpaginated [pp. xxv]; with full-colour, half and full-page illustrations throughout; mild creasing along spine; faint discolouration to page edges; small stain to title and facing page; a bright, fresh and near-fine copy, otherwise.  First edition, signed and doodled by the author, with the drawing representing one of the characters (Willy). Loosely inserted is a printout from the Illustrationcupboard Gallery, featuring a write-up of the illustrator from a 2014 exhibition.  Winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal, the Emil/Kurt Maschler Award and the New York Times Best Illustrated Book Award, UK Children's laureate Anthony Browne began writing his Willy stories in 1984 with Willy the Wimp, the story of a chimpanzee picked on by a group of suburban gorillas. Browne found an affinity with the character, and quickly followed the story in 1985 with Willy the Champ. Willy and Hugh was the third book in the series, and follows the title character as he meets and befriends Hugh Jape in the park.  Five further books have since been published.  . Near Fine. Hardcover. 1st Edition. 1st Printing. 1991.