Over the last 45 years that these books have been in print there have been a few changes to the covers and the artwork.  The next few image galleries document these changes through the years.

Click on a thumbnail picture above to view a larger image.  From there you can follow a slideshow if you wish.  (Clicking again on this larger image will open a still larger one).

The next gallery will show you the 11 titles which were revised in the early 1970s

In 1964 Ladybird Books first ventured into the realm of structured reading schemes and Peter and Jane were introduced to their young public.  Although Ladybird and learning to read are now almost synomymous to generations of Britons, at the time it was perceived by the Ladybird board of directors to be a very risky venture.  There were 36 books in the series and 36 books needed to be commissioned and produced before the company (then called 'Wills and Hepworth') could be sure that venturing this deeply into the realms of educational publishing was the right move for Ladybird.

Douglas Keen, a rising star at Wills and Hepworth, was the man with the vision to see that it was.  He convinced both the board directors and William Murray - educationalist and  co-author of 'Key Words to Reading', a 'new' and systematic approach to the teaching of early literacy - that Ladybird Books were the right vehicle to put into practice the Murray/McNally method of teaching reading.

Ladybird made the leap of faith, the books were published and the 'Peter and Jane' reading scheme was to become Ladybird's best-seller.  The reading scheme has been in print since 1964 andattracts sales world-wide.

Over the next 4 decades there have been a few changes to the covers and the artwork.  The next few image galleries document these changes through the years.