The Merchant of Marvels and the Peddlar of Dreams [first edition]

"I surely have a marvelous marvel, a sheer folly, which will tempt you." What do you give to the person who has everything? Frederic Knick-Knack, the Peddler of Dreams, is hunting with wild abandon for the perfect gift for his friend Miss Alice, the Merchant of Marvels. He searches high and low, and comes across a delightful array of possibilities, from a troop of elephants as small as specks of sand to Mona Lisa's beauty spot to the actual pea, perhaps a little squashed, of the Princess and the Pea. Frederic wends his way through the marvelous marvels of bags and boxes, chests and cases, and collections of collections until he reaches the golden key, the key to the perfect present, which opens up the secret world of all dreams...A universal love story, The Merchant of Marvels is also a beguiling object. The wonderfully imaginative and lyrical text is interwoven with the exquisitely crafted surreal illustrations, a combination of collage, line drawings, found objects, and color illustrations. Playful and whimsical, The Merchant of Marvels is a tour de force of the imagination.