My Account Wish List Shopping Cart Log In
Store Location

Living Book Press

The publishers of Living Book Press dived into the home schooling scene in the mid-2010s (we became aware of them in 2017) and they've definitely made a splash with home schooling families that enjoy living books! 

Anthony Coafield, who owns Living Book Press, is a home school dad, who, when first starting to educate his sons, was really drawn to the Charlotte Mason method. The idea of using great books to convey the big ideas and lessons of life resonated with their family. The main problem was that many of the books were so hard to find. Many that were still protected by copyright were out-of-print and getting very expensive second-hand, and because they live in Australia, many public domain titles readily available in the US were very expensive to import there.

Ambleside was his main curriculum of choice, and Anthony knew that without the wonderful people who had put that curricula together he couldn’t have started schooling his boys. He wanted to try and make homeschooling using the Charlotte Mason method easier for other families to follow, so decided to pursue publishing these hard-to-find titles. Making books available to families that wouldn’t have otherwise been able to use them makes all the hard work tracking down rights, transcribing, formatting and proofing worthwhile. According to him:

Our mission is to pay forward the help we’ve had from those who came before by making great quality reprints of living books affordable for everyone in a variety of formats.

Living Book Press offers three formats for their books: softcover, hardcover, or PDF. Because he has them printed on demand, you can order the books, and he can have them printed and mailed to you from your country (although, this obviously doesn't apply everywhere). This keeps the overhead costs lower, and allows him to focus on adding new titles rather than managing inventory and shipping packages. 

Overall, we're really pleased with LBP. They publish about 300 books (as of April 2024) and many of them are titles that truly have been difficult to obtain for many years. Some, like the colorized Comstock Handbook of Nature Study volumes (with Notebooks), the Halliburton Marvels of the Orient and Occident, and Fleischer's Secrets of the Universe books, are unique to LBP; he has also published an affordable set of Charlotte Mason's volumes about education. But in other areas, he is taking on competition. 

His main competitor in the education market is Yesterday's Classics, which has a similar mission and a nearly identical audience. In fact, many of their titles overlap. It would make sense sometimes to only carry one version of these titles (who are we kidding, we have to offer ALL the versions!) but every time we ask customers to say their preferences, the results are always mixed!

So why is this? We think it would be good to offer a comparison of editions, but you should know that even from book to book, reasons for choosing one publisher over another varies tremendously!

Let's dive in, shall we? 

 

 

Selection: Yesterday's Classics has been around longer and are drawing from a larger batch of books already prepared for online reading. At current count (April 2024), they have 562 total titles, of which 373 are available as printed books. As near as we can tell, LBP has around 300 titles total, though they add new titles very quickly!

Attractiveness/readability: The YC volumes are generally bigger and usually have larger font and wider margins; their covers are glossy, printed in solid colors and use old-fashioned art; they typically use a cream-color paper. LBP tends to be more trim, though generally still very readable. Their covers tend to have a matte feel and, while certain series deviate from this, many of them have a consistent black & white spine design with beautiful color illustrations. The paper in most of their books is cream-colored and of similar weight to YC, but their color illustration books have white, thinner paper. Their website makes it clear which books are which. 

Illustrations: Yesterday's Classics tends to use older illustrations, whereas Living Books is often more diverse. When the books feature the same art, YC tends to offer smaller, crisper images, while LBP has larger images that can feel more pixellated. Sometimes the LBP books will feature pictures from multiple artists (making it hard to credit the illustrator); some of the books feature color photographs rather than b/w art. YC rarely prints in color and the original art can sometimes be much less clear in b/w.

Durability: We've never seen a problem with either of these falling apart; however, we have heard from others that YC occasionally has issues with the bindings not holding the pages well for long. We don't think YC offers hardcover options; we haven't seen many of the LBP hardcovers, only carrying a few of them ourselves.

Price: Yesterday's Classics is almost always slightly more expensive. However, when LBP is the higher priced option, it usually includes color pictures.

Yesterday's Classics on Left Living Book Press on Right
Did you find this review helpful?
Parent Categories
Related Links
Publisher Website
271 Items found Print
Filter
Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$6.99
Among the Farmyard People
by Clara Dillingham Pierson
from Living Book Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$13.99
Among the Forest People
by Clara Dillingham Pierson
from Living Book Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$11.99
Among the Meadow People
by Clara Dillingham Pierson
from Living Book Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$10.99
Among the Night People
by Clara Dillingham Pierson
from Living Book Press
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$11.99
Among the Pond People
by Clara Dillingham Pierson
from Living Book Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$11.99
Antoine of Oregon
America's Children
by James Otis
from Living Book Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Arabian Nights Entertainment
by Andrew Lang
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-5th grade
At the Back of the North Wind
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Frank C. Pape
from Living Book Press
for 4th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$12.99
Awakening of Europe
Story of the World Series #3
by M. B. Synge
from Living Book Press
History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$9.99
Bastable Adventures Set
by E. Nesbit, illustrated by Cecil Leslie
from Living Book Press
Family Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$39.56
Bears of Blue River
by Charles Major
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-7th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare
by Edith Nesbit
from Living Book Press
Shakespeare/Drama for Children for 4th-8th grade
$15.99
Benjamin of Ohio
America's Children
by James Otis
from Living Book Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Betrothed
by Alessandro Manzoni
REPRINT Edition from Living Book Press
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Bevis, The Story of a Boy
by Richard Jefferies
from Living Book Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$17.99
Bible in Spain
from Living Book Press
Birds of the Air
Eyes and No Eyes #4
by Arabella B. Buckley
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$8.99
Black Arrow
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Frances Brundage
from Living Book Press
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Black Tulip
by Alexandre Dumas
from Living Book Press
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Blackfoot Lodge Tales
by George Bird Grinnell
from Living Book Press
in Native Americans (Location: HISA-19NAT)
Book of Centuries (BC/AD Edition)
from Living Book Press
for 1st-12th grade
in Timeline Resources (Location: HISRF-TIM)
$10.99
Book of Centuries (BCE/CE Edition)
from Living Book Press
for 1st-12th grade
in Timeline Resources (Location: HISRF-TIM)
Book of Golden Deeds
by Charlotte M. Yonge
from Living Book Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$13.99
Book of Marvels: Marvels of the Occident
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-Adult
in International Landmarks & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANINT)
$27.99
Book of Marvels: Marvels of the Occident
by Richard Halliburton
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-Adult
in International Landmarks & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANINT)
$17.99
Book of Marvels: Marvels of the Orient
by Richard Halliburton
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-12th grade
in International Landmarks & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANINT)
$27.99
Book of Marvels: Marvels of the Orient
by Richard Halliburton
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-Adult
in International Landmarks & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANINT)
$17.99
Book of Missionary Heroes
by Basil Mathews
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in History of Missions (Location: XCH-MIS)
$11.99
British Empire
by Charlotte M. Mason
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Introductory Geography (Location: GEO-INTRO)
$9.99
Brushwork
by Marion Hudson
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Painting Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTPAI)
$10.99
Bulfinch's Mythology: The Age of Chivalry
by Thomas Bulfinch
from Living Book Press
for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Bulfinch's Mythology: The Age of Fable
by Thomas Bulfinch
from Living Book Press
for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Bulfinch's Mythology: The Legends of Charlemagne
by Thomas Bulfinch
from Living Book Press
for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Burgess Animal Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-6th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$19.99
Burgess Animal Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-6th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$18.99
Burgess Animal Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-6th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$28.99
Burgess Bird Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
Color Edition from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$19.99
Burgess Bird Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$18.99
Burgess Bird Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$28.99
Burgess Flower Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$19.99
Burgess Flower Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$18.99
Burgess Flower Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$28.99
Burgess Hardcover Set
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$99.41
Burgess Paperback Set
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$65.41
Burgess Seashore Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$19.99
Burgess Seashore Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$29.99
By Pond and River
Eyes and No Eyes #2
by Arabella B. Buckley
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$7.99
Calvert of Maryland
America's Children
by James Otis
from Living Book Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Captains Courageous
Signet Classics
by Rudyard Kipling
from Living Book Press
Nautical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Catriona (David Balfour)
by Robert Louis Stevenson
from Living Book Press
for 9th-Adult
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$11.95
Character is Destiny
by Russell Gough
2020 Living Book Press Edition from Living Book Press
for Adult
in Ethics (Location: XCL-ETH)
$14.99
Charlotte Mason Book of Centuries
from Living Book Press
for 1st-12th grade
in Timeline Resources (Location: HISRF-TIM)
Charlotte Mason Made Easy
by Stephanie Walmsley
from Living Book Press
for Adult
in Charlotte Mason Education (Location: HSR-METCM)
$14.99
Chaucer for Children
by Mrs. H.R. (Mary) Haweis
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Chemical History of a Candle
by Michael Faraday
from Living Book Press
for 8th-12th grade
in Chemistry (Location: SCI-CHEM)
$8.99
Child’s Book of Nature: Animals
by Worthington Hooker
2nd edition from Living Book Press
for 5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$9.99
Children of the New Forest
by Frederick Marryat
from Living Book Press
Historical Fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$12.99
Common Sense
Dover Thrift Editions
by Thomas Paine
from Living Book Press
Political Philosophy for 9th-Adult
in 18th Century Literature (Location: LIT5-18)
Complete Charlotte Mason Home Education series
by Charlotte M. Mason
from Living Book Press
for Adult
in Charlotte Mason Education (Location: HSR-METCM)
$84.54
Complete Charlotte Mason Home Education series
by Charlotte Mason
from Living Book Press
for Adult
in Charlotte Mason Education (Location: HSR-METCM)
Comstock's Handbook of Nature Study - Complete Set with Introductions Book
by Anna Botsford Comstock
from Living Book Press
for 6th-9th grade
$117.37
Comstock’s Handbook of Nature Study – Birds
by Anna Botsford Comstock
from Living Book Press
for 6th-9th grade
$16.99
Comstock’s Handbook of Nature Study – Earth and Sky
by Anna Botsford Comstock
from Living Book Press
for 6th-9th grade
$15.99
Comstock’s Handbook of Nature Study – Fish, Reptiles, Amphibians, Invertebrates
by Anna Botsford Comstock
from Living Book Press
for 6th-9th grade
$16.99
Comstock’s Handbook of Nature Study – Insects
by Anna Botsford Comstock
from Living Book Press
for 6th-9th grade
$18.99
Comstock’s Handbook of Nature Study – Introduction
by Anna Botsford Comstock
from Living Book Press
for 6th-9th grade
$11.99
Comstock’s Handbook of Nature Study – Mammals, Flowerless Plants
by Anna Botsford Comstock
from Living Book Press
for 6th-9th grade
$17.99
Comstock’s Handbook of Nature Study – Trees, Garden Flowers
by Anna Botsford Comstock
from Living Book Press
for 6th-9th grade
$17.99
Comstock’s Handbook of Nature Study – Wildflowers, Weeds, Crops
by Anna Botsford Comstock
from Living Book Press
for 6th-9th grade
$17.99
Daisy Chain
by Charlotte Yonge
from Living Book Press
Realistic Fiction for 9th-12th grade
in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05)
Discovery of Guiana
from Living Book Press
Discovery of New Worlds
Story of the World Series #2
by M. B. Synge
from Living Book Press
History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
Dooryard Stories
by Clara Dillingham Pierson
from Living Book Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$8.99
Elementary Geography
by Charlotte M. Mason
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-4th grade
in Introductory Geography (Location: GEO-INTRO)
$6.99
English Fairy Tales
by Joseph Jacobs
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-6th grade
$10.99
English Literature for Boys and Girls
by H. E. Marshall
from Living Book Press
for 10th-12th grade
in British Literature Curriculum (Location: LITCUR-BRI)
$20.99
Famous Legends Adapted for Children
by Emeline G. Crommelin
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 5th-9th grade
$7.99
Field and Hedgerow
by Richard Jefferies
from Living Book Press
for 6th-Adult
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$11.99
Fifty Famous Stories Retold
by James Baldwin
from Living Book Press
for 1st-4th grade
$8.99
First Book of Bees
by Albert B. Tibbets, illustrated by Helene Carter
from Living Book Press
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
First Book of Birds
by Margaret Williamson
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$10.99
First Book of Bugs
First Book Series
by Margaret Williamson
from Living Book Press
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
First Book of Stones
First Book series
by M. B. Cormack, illustrated by M. K. Scott
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-5th grade
in Geology (Rocks & Minerals) (Location: SCI-GEO)
$7.99
First Book of Water
by Jo and Ernest Norling
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$9.99
First Caldecott Collection
by Randolph Caldecott
from Living Book Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$19.99
Five Little Peppers Abroad
Five Little Peppers #3
by Margaret Sidney
from Living Book Press
Family Stories for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$10.99
Five Little Peppers and How They Grew
Five Little Peppers #1
by Margaret Sidney
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.99
Five Little Peppers Grown Up
Five Little Peppers #4
by Margaret Sidney
from Living Book Press
Family Stories for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.99
Five Little Peppers Midway
Five Little Peppers #2
by Margaret Sidney
from Living Book Press
Family Stories for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Formation of Character
by Charlotte Mason
from Living Book Press
in Charlotte Mason Education (Location: HSR-METCM)
$16.99
Four Great Americans
by James Baldwin
from Living Book Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
Fourth Caldecott Collection
by Randolph Caldecott
from Living Book Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$19.99
Frankenstein
by Mary Shelley
from Living Book Press
Horror for 7th-10th grade
in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
Freckles
by Gene Stratton-Porter
from Living Book Press
Romance for 7th-10th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Gladiola Garden
World Voices
by Effie Lee Newsome, illustrated by Lois Mailou Jones
from Living Book Press
for Kindergarten-5th grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Great Astronomers
by Robert S. Ball
from Living Book Press
for 5th-8th grade
in Astronomy (Space) (Location: SCI-AST)
$12.99
Great Inventors and Their Inventions
by Frank P. Bachman
2019 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 5th-7th grade
in Inventions & Discoveries (Location: SCI-INV)
$9.99
Greyfriars Bobby
by Eleanor Atkinson
from Living Book Press
for 6th-Adult
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$9.99
Growth of the British Empire
Story of the World Series #5
by M. B. Synge
from Living Book Press
British History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$10.99
123
Sign Up!

Shop

Support

Hours & Directions

Learn more about our store location and hours

Connect

503.655.1951

hello@exodusbooks.com

19146 Molalla Ave,
Oregon City, OR 97045