Satchel & Supplies (Retired)

[HelloMiss]

I purchased this on Ebay therefore it is incomplete, I am missing the Union Reader.

But anyhow, I HAD TO HAVE this because of the adorable abacus!!! I JUST LOVE it!

The pattern on the slate bag is very cute and the abacus is well crafted and just perfection to every detail.

I wish Addy's school supply set came with more pieces, but then I guess that would not be as realistic considering extra school supplies was probably a luxury.

Grade: A+

(Mod. edit to remove dead photo links)

[QNPoohBear]

Addy loves hers! Everything is so tiny and detailed. I love how the book is a real miniature version of a period textbook. It's fun to read it and see what children learned in 1864. A+

[QNPoohBear]

My version has a long piece of chalk with a pointed top, just the same as Kirsten's original slate pencil only white instead of silver. I love how it really writes on the slate!

[EofA]

I got this from a lovely board member and was so thrilled. I was afraid I'd never find it, and I'm telling you, the girl needs her school stuff.

The set is adorable and highly recommended if you can find it. The only down side is that our abacus is a bit flimsy, so I'll give it an A- for that reason.

ETA: A quick photo I snapped, sans the bag, while my daughter was playing school with Addy:
i53.photobucket.com/albums/g80/eleanorofaquitane/100_0858.jpg

[Rexphiles]

I received this yesterday off Craigslist ($30!) and I am beyond thrilled. It was a NIB Pleasant Co. edition with the white box and maroon band - a first for me! It even had the older pamphlet with no border on it.

The abacus is delightful and it has the slate pencil instead of the chalk - yippee!

The one thing that surprised me was her slate board was actually wood painted black and not slate, like Kirsten's is. Is that typical?

To correct myself, when I checked Kirsten's later it appeared to be painted wood, too.

[kenzie]

I was so excited to finally get this set. The satchel is well made and everything stores in it nicely. The acubus isn't flimsy at all and is actually pretty sturdy. The Union reader, like a real text book, has easy lessons in the beginning and more complex stories towards the end. The slate is just painted wood, but is double sided to allow lots of work space.

[Colonial Rose]

I got the piece I most wanted from this set, the Union Reader from a board member. Mine has a laminated cover, which struck me as odd since none of the other paperback schoolbooks have it. Does anyone know if this is normal, or something someone did to preserve the book better? I love this book (no surprise there, I love them all). It is a detailed readable miniature of the original book, and the back cover is an ad for Webster's Dictionaries. A
This is the histoical mini books in chronological order. Bedtime books on top, school books on the bottom.

This is all of the historical mini books by size/height.

[QNPoohBear]

Addy's Union Reader did not come with a laminated cover c. 1993-1995.

[skukla]

[maggiedoll]

AG Playthings.com:

Satchel & Supplies

Addy’s striped satchel has everything you’ll need to help her practice the “three R’s”—reading, ’riting, and ’rithmetic! Her Union Reader is a miniature version of a real schoolbook used in northern schools in the 1860’s. If you have good eyes, you can really read it! Addy learned to write with a slated pencil and a big double slate. The yarn binding around the slate’s edges kept if from scraping against her desktop and disturbing her desk partner. Addy used a wooden abacus, or “numeral frame,” to learn arithmetic. Slide the little beads back and forth to help her add and subtract.

$18 ASAB discontinued

On Addy's desk:

My set does not have a slate pencil. I'm sure it's very nice but not something I needed to die happy.
I really like school sets, and have all except one. Felicity's is the most awesome, but Addy's is in a close second.

Addy with her supplies on her desk. The scale of the set is really good for the doll and fits well on her desk. The supplies looks like something that Addy would use on a daily basis.

The slate is the main thing in the set, so much so that it had a retirement reprieve for a couple years to be paired with the desk. The desk slate is open and the PM slate is closed. The only difference I see is that the PM yarn is slightly wider and redder. There are four sides to each slate, and school work could really be done.

Detail of the yarn. I like this detail because it really does keep the slate on the desk which is good for me because my cats love knocking the slates off my desk.

The abacus is very PM, with little details on the handles, movable beads and a tiny PM sticker. With a little work this can fit into Addy's hands. The only issue is that this is very fragile and I keep it in her satchel.

Speaking of the satchel...Addy's is made out of simple cotton stripe fabric lined in white broadcloth. Like the other historical school bags the satchel has just as enough room for her supplies.

Addy holding all her supplies.

Like all the other school and nighttime sets the best thing is the book. Addy's is a Union Reader from the mid 1860s. This copy, which I guess is mid to late '90s, is laminated. This protects the book well, but makes it hard to keep the damn thing open.

The read is mini reprint of the real thing. Kids can look at the tiny pictures, read the tiny stories and do the tiny lessons, ironically probably while avoiding their own modern homework.

To repeat myself for the umpteenth time, school sets are perhaps the most awesome things ever created by American Girl and worth the Ebay prices. Addy school supplies are mentioned in her books and illustrations. For a set well detailed and relevant in the books A.