Henry, The Green Engine (Railway series, No. 6)

First edition, first impression.  62pp, with full colour illustrations on other page.  Beige cloth-covered boards with teal lettering and teal vignette (of a train) on the upper panel.  32mo.  Boards are soiled and rubbed at edges, a little rounded on corners and spine ends.  Gift inscription inked on the front free endpaper (dated 1951); endpapers a little spotted; also the front endpapers have some faint pencil doodles.  Front hinge cracked and rear hinge partially so, with binding fragile and text block a little wobbly.  Some wear to page edges but else generally internally neat, clean and bright.  Requires careful handling in current state but with a little careful restoration would make a very good copy. A first edition copy of sixth book in the Rev Awtry's ever popular railway series featuring Thomas the Tank Engine and his friends.  The first book in the series where the engines all have numbers (previously it was only Thomas to have a number) and the only one in the series to feature five separate stories.  Early editions of this book (including this first edition) describe the boys as being 'as black as [the N word] after Henry sneezed at them.  The Rev Awtry apologised for this after it drew criticism in the national press and in later editions the line as changed to 'as black as soot',   Very hard to find.  We would not usually offer a book in this condition but it is hard to find and this copy may fill a gap in a collection until a better copy can be sourced and afforded.