"Poor Richard's Almanac" (Benjamin Franklin) Lloyd E. Smith, 1925 (No. 738 - Little Blue Book)
 
Originally published annually by Benjamin Franklin between 1732 and 1758 under the pseudonym "Poor Richard" Saunders, Poor Richard's Almanac was a unique blend of practical utility and wit. While it functioned as a standard almanac—providing weather forecasts, astronomical data, and tides—it became legendary for its aphorisms and proverbs centered on industry, frugality, and common sense. Franklin used the persona of a humble, slightly henpecked philomath to deliver timeless advice such as "Early to bed and early to rise..." and "A penny saved is a penny earned." By distilling Enlightenment values into pithy, memorable maxims, Franklin created one of the most influential pieces of early American literature, shaping the national identity around the virtues of self-improvement and hard work.