Restrictions
Noncirculating; available for research.
Copyright
The collection is protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17,
U. S. Code). Reproductions can be made only if they are to be used for "private study,
scholarship, or research." It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright ownership
and to obtain all necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other
use of any portion of these materials, other than that noted above.
Biographical Sketch
Vicki Cobb (nee Wolf) was born on August 19, 1938 in New York City. She credits her
parents and a progressive education for inspiring her to enjoy hands-on activities in
general and science in particular. She attended The Little Red School House in Greenwich Village from kingergarten to sixth grade. She received her bachelor's degree in zoology from Barnard
College in 1958, and her master's degree in secondary science eduation from Columbia University in 1960. She was
a researcher at Sloan Kettering Institute and Pfizer & Co. from 1953-1961, and a high
school science teacher from 1961-1964. While pregnant with her first child (she was
married in 1960 and divorced in 1983), Cobb quit teaching and began writing. In 1969,
she published her first science book for children, Logic. Since then she has
written approximately eighty-five non-fiction books for children in several different age groups. Her
subject matter is almost exclusively science-related. Cobb believes that science writers
should eschew the dry, dispassionate voice that usually characterizes the genre.
Instead, her colleagues should infuse their works with wit, enthusiasm and the writer's
personality. Cobb has also worked as a writer for children's television programs.
Beginning in 1972, Cobb wrote and hosted "The Science Game" for a New York cable
company. The show featured experiments which children could reproduce at home.
Cobb also wrote briefly for the "Good Morning America" talk show, and conducted
numerous science demonstrations for both students and teachers. She won the
Children's Science Book Award from the New York Academy of Sciences in 1981. She
also won the Eva L. Gordon Award from the American Nature Study Society in 1985. Cobb is a charter member of the award-winning group blog, Interesting Nonfiction for Kids (iNK) and she is the founder and president of Ink Think Tank, LLC, a company of nonfiction authors dedicated to bringing nonfiction literature into the K-12 classroom. Ms. Cobb is also a regular blogger at Education Update and the Huffington Post. She received a Lifetime Achievement Prize from the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2012.
Scope and Content
Cobb has written several how-to books featuring science experiments which both
educate and entertain children. Chemically Active!; Science Experiments You Can
Eat; More Science Experiments You Can Eat; and Magic...Naturally! are
all documented in this collection. There is at least one typescript for every title. For
Chemically Active! there are typescripts, galleys, proofs and blues.
Science Experiments You Can Eat is represented with typescripts, proofs and
blues. For More Science Experiments You Can Eat, there are typescripts,
galleys and layouts.
Several of the books in this collection focus on explaining some natural phenomenon and man's relation with it. More Power to You, Why Can't I Live Forever?, Why Can't You Unscramble an Egg?, Why Doesn't the Earth Fall Up?, Why Doesn't the Sun Burn Out? are all documented with one or more typescripts, as well as galleys and/or proofs. There are also layouts for Why Doesn't the Sun Burn Out? and folded and gathered sheets for Why Can't I Live Forever? There is one typescript in the collection relating to the book Gases.
Cobb has also written many books examining the dynamics and history of everyday items and activities. For Feeding Yourself, Getting Dressed, The Scoop on Ice Cream, The Secret Life of Cosmetics, The Secret Life of Hardware, and Writing It Down the collection contains one or more typescripts, and one or more galleys. In addition, there are proofs, blues and layouts for The Secret Life of Cosmetics and proofs and blues for The Secret Life of Hardware.
Before she began writing books for children, Cobb produced two manuscripts which at one point were to be published as high school textbooks. One of these books addressed molecular biology, while the other concerned chemistry. Cobb also consulted with a publisher about a prospective textbook to be titled "How Animals Communicate." She gave her opinion regarding the effectiveness of the text, and contributed to the teacher's manual accompanying the book.
In 1969, Ms. Cobb wrote a teacher's guide to accompany a series of study prints about natural subjects, such as desert life and animal babies. The collection holds typescripts and correspondence for five such manuals.
A. Published Books (1969-1997)
B. Unpublished or Unidentified Books (1964, 1967-1968)
C. Elementary Science Films (1968-1969)
D. Technician Training Material for Docent Corporation (Undated)
Box/Folder
A. Books
Arts and Crafts You Can Eat by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Peter Lippman
(Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1974).
1/1 Galley, 22 pp.
Cells; The Basic Structure of Life by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Leonard
Dank (New York: F. Watts, 1970).
1/2 Correspondence, 1968, 1 item.
Typescript, edited, pp. 1-23.
Chemically Active!: Experiments You Can Do at Home by Vicki Cobb,
illustrated by Theo Cobb (New York: Lippincott, 1985).
1/3-1/4 Typescript, edited,
1/3 pp. 1-69.
1/4 pp. 70-129.
1/5-1/6 Typescript,
1/5 front matter, 5 pp., and pp. 1-55.
1/6 pp. 56-120, and back matter, 16 pp.
1/7 Periodical tables, 4 items.
2/1 Galley, 10 July 1984, 47 pp.
2/2 Galley, 10 July 1984, 47 pp.
2/3 Galley, index and captions, 9 pp.
2/4-2/6 Proof,
2/4 pp. 1-67.
2/5 pp. 68-152.
2/6 corrected pages, 44 pp.
2/7-3/1 Blues,
2/7 Miscellaneous pages, 21 pp.
3/1 pp. 1-154.
3/2 Book jacket photo, 1 item.
Feeding Yourself by Vicki Cobb, pictures by Marilyn Hafner (New York:
Lippincott, 1989).
3/3 Typescript, edited with typesetter's marks: book jacket, 3 pp., front
matter, 3 pp., and body, 6 pp.
Galley, book jacket, 1 p., and body, 3 pp.
Gases by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Ellie Haines (New York: Franklin Watts,
1970).
3/4 Typescript, edited, pp. 1-32.
Getting Dressed by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Marilyn Hafner (New York:
Lippincott, 1989).
3/5 Typescript, edited with typesetter's marks: book jacket, 4 pp., front
matter, 3 pp., and body, 6 pp.
3/6 Galley, book jacket, 1 p., front matter, 2 pp., and body, 4 pp.
Keeping Clean by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Marilyn Hafner (New York:
Lippincott, 1989).
3/7 Typescript, edited with typesetter's marks: book jacket, 4 pp., front
matter, 1 p., and body, 6 pp.
3/8 Galley, 3 pp.
Galley, 4 pp.
Logic by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Marilyn Hafner (New York: Franklin
Watts, 1969).
3/9 Correspondence, 1968, 3 items.
Outline, 4 pp.
Magic ... Naturally!: Science Entertainments & Amusements by Vicki
Cobb, illustrated by Lance R. Miyamoto (New York: Lippincott, 1976).
3/10-3/11 Typescript, edited with typesetter's marks,
3/10 Front matter, 6 pp., and pp. 1-41.
3/11 pp. 42-92, and back matter, 4 pp.
Making Sense of Money by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Olivia H. H. Cole
(New York: Parents' Magazine, 1971).
3/12 Correspondence, 1969-1970, 21 items.
3/13 Outline, 3 copies, 6 pp.
3/14 Typescript, edited, 19 pp.
3/15 Typescript, 18 pp.
More Power to You by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Bill Ogden (Boston: Little,
Brown, 1986).
4/1 Typescript, typesetter's marks, front matter, 7 pp., and pp. 1-28.
4/2 Galley, front matter, 8 pp., and body, 22 pp.
Galley, 9 pp.
4/3 Galley, front matter, 7 pp., and pp. 1-50.
More Science Experiments You Can Eat by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by
Giulio Maestro (New York: Lippincott, 1979).
4/4-4/5 Typescript, edited with typesetter's marks
4/4 Front matter, 5 pp., and body, 25 pp.
4/5 40 pp.
4/6 Galley, "author's set,"52 pp.
4/7 Galley, "master set, 1st pass," pp. 1-51.
4/8 Galley, 27 February 1979, 25 pp.
4/9 Galley, 27 February 1979, 31 pp.
4/10-4/11 Layouts,
4/10 pp. 1-57.
4/11 pp. 58-128.
Science Experiments You Can Eat by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Peter
Lippman (New York: Lippincott, 1972).
5/1 Correspondence, 1970, 18 items.
5/2 Notes, 17 pp.
Recipes, 4 items.
5/3 Outlines, 3 versions, 7 pp.
5/4-5/5 Typescript, edited,
5/4 Chapters 1-5, pp. 1-38.
5/5 Chapters 6-10, pp. 39-93.
5/6 Partial typescript, edited, chapter 2, 10 pp.
5/7 Partial typescript, 27 pp.
5/8 Partial typescript, chapters 1-4, pp. 1-44.
5/9-5/10 Typescript, edited,
5/9 Chapters 1-6, pp. 1-67.
5/10 Chapters 7-10, pp. 68-130.
6/1-6/2 Typescript,
6/1 Chapters 1-5, pp. 1-44.
6/2 Chapters 6-10, pp. 45-99.
6/3-6/4 Typescript,
6/3 Front matter, 14 pp., and chapters 1-5, pp. 1-44.
6/4 Chapters 6-10, pp. 45-98.
6/5-6/7 Proof, "master set," 7 October 1993,
6/5 Front matter, 12 pp., and chapters 1-3, pp. 1-45.
6/6 Chapters 4-7, pp. 46-128.
6/7 Chapters 8-10, pp. 129-169, and back matter, pp. 170-182.
7/1-7/3 Proof, "master galleys," 6 January 1994,
7/1 Front matter, 13 pp., and chapters 1-3, pp. 1-54.
7/2 Chapters 4-6, pp. 55-126.
7/3 Chapters 7-10, pp. 127-190, and back matter, pp. 191-211.
7/4-7/6 Proof, "master galleys," 11 March 1994,
7/4 Front matter, 12 pp., chapters 1-3, pp. 1-56.
7/5 Chapters 4-6, pp. 57-128.
7/6 Chapters 7-10, pp. 129-192, and back matter, pp. 193-214.
7/7-8/2 Proof, April 1994,
7/7 Front matter, 12 pp., and chapters 1-3, pp. 1-56.
8/1 Chapters 4-6, pp. 57-128.
8/2 Chapters 7-10, pp. 129-198, and back matter, pp. 199-214.
8/3 Miscellaneous proof pages, 60 pp.
8/4-8/5 Blues, May,
8/4 pp. 1-118.
8/5 pp. 119-214.
8/6-8/7 Blues, 6 June,
8/6 pp. 1-118.
8/7 pp. 119-214.
8/8-8/9 Blues, 1 July 1994,
8/8 pp. 1-118.
8/9 pp. 119-214.
8/10 Miscellaneous blues, 22 pp.
The Scoop on Ice Cream by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by G. Brian Karas (New
York: Little, Brown, 1985).
9/1 Typescript, 33 pp.
9/2 Typescript, typesetter's marks, 38 pp.
9/3 Galley, 1 April 1985, front matter, 6 pp., and pp. 1-24.
9/4 Galley, "marked set," 1 April 1985, front matter, 5 pp., and pp. 1-24.
9/5 Galley, front matter, 6 pp., and pp. 1-53.
9/6 Galley, "master set," pp. 1-53.
9/7 Typescript for index, 8 pp.
Galley for index, 5 pp.
The Secret Life of Cosmetics: A Science Experiment Book by Vicki
Cobb, illustrated by Theo Cobb (New York: Lippincott, 1985).
9/8-9/9 Typescript,
9/8 Front matter, 5 pp., and chapters 1-3, pp. 1-42.
9/9 Chapters 4-6, pp. 43-103.
9/10 Style sheet, 5 pp.
9/11 Book jacket copy, 9 pp.
9/12 Typescript for index, 7 pp.
Proof for index, 5 pp.
9/13 Galley: front matter, 13 pp., pp. 3-52, and back matter, 3 pp.
10/1-10/2 Proof,
10/1 Front matter, 12 pp., and chapters 1-3, pp. 3-45.
10/2 Chapters 4-6, pp. 46-103, and back matter, 6 pp.
10/3-10/4 Proof, photocopy,
10/3 Front matter, 14 pp., and chapters 1-3, pp. 3-45.
10/4 Chapters 4-6, pp. 45-103.
10/5 Layout with pasted-up text, pp. i-x, and pp. 1-107.
10/6 Blues, pp. 1-111.
10/7 Folded and gathered sheets, pp. 1-111.
The Secret Life of Hardware: A Science Experiment Book by Vicki
Cobb, illustrated by Bill Morrison (New York: Lippincott, 1982).
10/8-10/9 Typescript,
10/8 Front matter, 4 pp., and pp. 1-64.
10/9 pp. 65-116.
10/10 Typescript for index, 15 pp.
Proof for index, 5 pp.
10/11 Galley, "author's copy," 21 May 1982: front matter, 6 pp., and pp. 1-47.
10/12 Galley, "master set, 1st pass," 21 May 1982: front matter, 9 pp., and
pp. 1-47.
11/1-11/2 Proof, 2 July 1982,
11/1 Front matter, 7 pp., and chapters 1-4, pp. 1-45.
11/2 Chapters 5-6, pp. 46-84.
11/3-11/4 Proof, 2 July 1982,
11/3 Front matter, 6 pp., and chapters 1-4, pp. 1-45.
11/4 Chapters 5-6, pp. 46-82.
11/5 Blues, pp. 1-89.
Sense of Direction: Up and Down and All Around by Vicki Cobb,
illustrated by Carol Nicklaus (New York: Parent's Magazine, 1972).
11/6 Correspondence, 1970-1971, 17 pp.
Notes, 2 pp.
11/7 Typescript, 19 pp.
11/8 Typescript, edited, 19 pp.
11/9 Typescript, 28 January 1971, 20 pp.
Sneakers Meet Your Feet by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Theo Cobb (Boston:
Little, Brown, 1985).
11/10 Typescript, pp. 1-24.
11/11 Typescript, typesetter's marks, front matter, 6 pp., and pp. 1-24.
11/12 Galley, 1 April 1985, front matter, 6 pp., and pp. 1-20.
11/13 Galley, "marked set," 1 April 1985, front matter, 5 pp., and pp. 1-20.
11/14 Galley for copyright page, 3 pp.
Typescript for index, 2 copies, 14 pp.
Galley for index, 4 pp.
11/15 Galley, "master set," front matter, 8 pp., and pp. 1-45.
12/1 Galley, photocopy, "master set," front matter, 8 pp., and pp. 1-45.
12/2 Galley, photocopy, "master set," front matter, 8 pp., and pp. 1-45.
The Trip of a Drip by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Elliot Kreloff (Boston: Little,
Brown, 1986).
12/3 Typescript, 7 pp., front matter, 7 pp., and pp. 1-24.
12/4 Galley for front matter, 8 pp.
Why Can't I Live Forever? And Other Not Such Dumb Questions About
Life by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Mena Dolobowsky (New York: Lodestar,
1997).
12/5 Typescript, edited, pp. 1-21.
12/6 Typescript, edited, pp. 1-25.
12/7 Typescript, 15 August 1995, pp. 1-26.
12/8 Typescript, typesetter's marks, "revised version," 1 September 1995:
front matter, 4 pp., and pp. 1-21.
12/9 Typescript, "edited revised version," front matter, 2 pp., and pp. 1-26.
12/10 Typescript, "third version," 11 October 1995, front matter, 6 pp., and
body, 25 pp.
12/11 Proof, 24 September 1996, 47 pp.
12/12 Folded and gathered sheets, pp. 1-48.
Why Can't You Unscramble an Egg? And Other Not Such Dumb Questions
About Matter by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Ted Enik (Boston: Lodestar, 1990).
12/13 Typescript, typesetter's marks, front matter, 5 pp., pp. 6-36, and back
matter, 6 pp.
12/14 Galley, 11 pp.
12/15 Galley, typesetter's marks, 10 April 1989, 11 pp.
13/1 Galley, typesetter's marks, 12 June 1989, 11 pp.
Why Doesn't the Earth Fall Up? And Other Not Such Dumb Questions
About Motion by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Ted Enik (New York: Lodestar,
1988).
13/2 Typescript, front matter, 8 pp., and pp. 1-28.
13/3 Galley, 18 pp.
Why Doesn't the Sun Burn Out? And Other Not Such Dumb Questions
About Energy by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Ted Enik (New York: Dutton, 1990).
13/4 Typescript, edited, front matter, 3 pp., and pp. 3-25.
13/5 Typescript, front matter, 3 pp., and pp. 6-30.
13/6 Typescript, typesetter's marks, front matter, 5 pp., and pp. 6-30.
13/7 Typescript, "indexer's copy," 33 pp.
13/8 Galley, 9 pp.
Galley, 9 pp.
13/9 Copies of illustrations, 31 pp.
13/10 Proof, pp. 1-40.
13/11 Proof, pp. 1-40.
13/12 Layouts with pasted up text and illustrations, pp. 1-40.
13/13 Copy of layouts, edited, 18 May 1990, pp. 1-40.
13/14 Book jacket layout, 2 items.
13/15 Book jacket illustration, 1 item.
13/16 Copy of book jacket layout, with corrections, 3 pp.
Writing It Down by Vicki Cobb, illustrated by Marilyn Hafner (New York:
Lippincott, 1990).
14/1 Typescript, typesetter's marks, front matter, 6 pp., and pp. 1-6.
14/2 Galley, book jacket, 3 pp., and body, 4 pp.
B. Unpublished or Unidentified Books (1964, 1967-1968)
Unidentified Molecular Biology Textbook
14/3 Correspondence, 1967-1968, 44 items.
14/4 Research notes and material, 27 pp.
14/5 Photographs, 8 items.
"High School Chemistry"
14/6 Correspondence, 1964, 1968, 9 items.
14/7-14/9 Typescript,
14/7 Front matter, 4 pp., and chapters 1-14, pp. 1-79.
14/8 Chapters 15-25, pp. 80-145.
14/9 Chapters 26-31, pp. 146-186.
15/1-15/3 Typescript,
15/1 Front matter, 3 pp., and chapters 1-14, pp. 1-79.
15/2 Chapters 15-24, pp. 80-141.
15/3 Chapters 25-31, pp. 142-186.
15/4 Partial typescript, pp. 5-50.
"How Animals Communicate"
15/5 Correspondence, 1968, 23 items.
Notes, 3 pp.
15/6 Typescript of textbook, 65 pp.
15/7 Comments on textbook by Vicki and Ed Cobb, 9 pp.
15/8 Outline for teacher's manual, 12 pp.
Introduction to teachers' manual, 2 copies, 18 pp.
15/9 Material on animal behavior unit, 15 pp.
C. Elementary Science Films (1968-1969)
"Animal Babies"
16/1 Typescript, prints 1-12, 70 pp.
"Animal Defenses"
16/2 Correspondence, 1969, 1 item.
Typescript, prints 1-12, 64 pp.
"Desert Community"
16/3 Typescript, prints 1-12 (print 7 missing), 37 pp.
16/4 Bibliography, 1 p.
"Comments on captions," 3 pp.
Layouts, 2 items.
"Different Kinds of Animals"
16/5 Correspondence, 1968-1969, 3 items.
Notes, 3 pp.
Research material, 2 pp.
16/6 Typescript, prints 1-12, 41 pp.
"The Life of Rivers and Streams"
16/7 Correspondence, 1969, 1 item.
Notes, 1 p.
Typescript, prints 1-11, 17, 23, 48 pp.
D. Technician Training Program for Docent Corporation (Undated)
16/8 Research material, 1 item.
Notes, 19 pp.
16/9 Typescript pages, 44 pp.
16/10 Training material and lessons, 26 pp.
16/11 Meeting report, 21 pp.
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