The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Value Guide

The Yearling is a Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece of Florida literature, celebrated for its poignant portrayal of rural life and coming-of-age. Collectible editions from 1938 to 1950 are highly prized for their stunning full-color plates by legendary illustrator N.C. Wyeth and their distinctive pictorial cloth covers.

What Is The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Worth?

The typical price range for The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings is $30 - $150 based on recent sales. However, values can vary depending on the item's condition, rarity, and other factors such as:

• The presence and condition of the original dust jacket significantly increases the market value toward the $150 range.
• First edition status, indicated by the 1938 date and publisher markings, commands a premium over later 1940s reprints.
• The physical condition of the N.C. Wyeth color plates, including the absence of foxing or tears, is critical for collectors.
• Overall wear to the cloth binding and any fading of the gilt or cover illustrations affect the final appraisal.

How to Identify The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings?

• Check for the Scribner 'A' and the seal on the copyright page to identify true first editions from 1938.
• Verify the presence of full-page color illustrations specifically credited to N.C. Wyeth.
• Look for the original pictorial cover art printed directly on the cloth or featured on the dust jacket.
• Examine the binding for gilt lettering on the spine, which is characteristic of early deluxe printings.

History of The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

The Yearling is a classic 1938 novel by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings about a boy and his pet deer set in rural Florida. Illustrated editions, notably with plates by N.C. Wyeth, were published in the late 1930s and 1940s and became collectible for their art and status as Pulitzer Prize–winning literature. Over the decades the book has been reprinted in multiple deluxe illustrated editions sought by collectors.