ZOZO Written By H. A. Rey Associative Features New Recipes & A Chapter On Make-Overs ______________________________________________________ Overview Background of the Title:  The first edition called Curious George, was written and illustrated by H.A. Rey. In the United Kingdom, H.A. Rey's mischievous character Curious George was published under the name Zozo to avoid using the reigning monarch's name (King George VI) for a monkey, with British editions active into the 1950s. In British vernacular at the time, "curious" meant homosexual. George was the name of the King at the time of publication, so the publisher changed the title of the book to "Zozo" to avoid causing offence to King George VI. About The Author H. A. Rey (born Hans Augusto Reyersbach; September 16, 1898 – August 26, 1977) was a German-born American illustrator and author, known best for the series of children’s books that he and his wife Margret created about Curious George. Hans Augusto Reyersbach was born in Hamburg, Germany on September 16, 1898. He and his wife, Margret, were both German Jews. They first met in Hamburg at Margret's sister's 16th birthday party. They met again in Brazil,  where Rey was working as a salesman of bathtubs and Margret had gone to escape the rise of Nazism. They got married in 1935 and moved to Paris, France in August of that year. They lived in Montmartre and fled Paris in June 1940 on bicycles, carrying the Curious George manuscript with them.  They received visas in Bayonne under instructions from the Portuguese consul which enabled them to leave Europe via Portugal. While in Paris, Rey's animal drawings came to the attention of a French publisher, who commissioned him to write a children's book. The characters in Cecily G & The Nine Monkeys  included an impish monkey named Curious George, and the couple then decided to write a book focused entirely on him. The outbreak of WWII interrupted their work. Being Jews, the Reys decided to flee Paris before the Nazis invaded the city. Hans assembled two bicycles, and they left the city just a few hours before it fell. Among the meagre possessions they brought with them was the illustrated manuscript of Curious George. The Reys' odyssey took them to Bayonne France, where they were issued life-saving visas signed by Portuguese Vice-Consul Manuel Vieira Braga. They crossed the Spanish border, where they bought train tickets to Lisbon. From there, they returned to Brazil, where they had met five years earlier, but this time they continued on to New York. The Reys escaped Europe carrying the manuscript to the first Curious George book, which was published in New York in 1941. They originally planned to use water-colour illustrations, but since they were responsible for the colour separation, Rey changed these to the cartoon-like images that continue to be featured in each of the books. A collector's edition with the original water-colours has since been released. Curious George was an instant success, and the Reys were commissioned to write more adventures of the mischievous monkey and his friend, the Man with the Yellow Hat. They wrote seven stories in all, with Hans mainly doing the illustrations and Margret working mostly on the stories, though they both admitted to sharing the work and cooperating fully in every stage of development. At first, however, covers omitted Margret's name. In later editions, this was changed, and Margret now receives full credit for her role in developing the stories. Description 1953 Zozo with stiff cardboard printed paper covers.  The book measures 21.5cm x 16.0cm, unpaginated, with illustrated / typed flaps. Publisher's original pictorial card covers with integral dust jacket. Soiling and chipped covers, particularly at the foot and crown of the spine. The front flap is clipped, but retains the original price of 5s. net. Hand written above the cut out.  The book text is in good condition, unlike the covers, though it has the name Peter Reis on the title page as well as a rubber stamped Welsh Dragon. The contents are complete. Please check pictures and don't hesitate to ask if you have any queries! 63