"A white house is fine," said Mr. Pine, "but there are FIFTY white houses all in a line on Vine Street. How can I tell which one is mine?"

So began "Mr. Pine's Purple House," Wonder Books' charming 1965 children's book written and illustrated by Leonard Kessler.

"Purple House" was classified as an "Easy Reader" -- a book designed for children who are just learning to read -- but its central message was a delightful dividend: It's OK to be different.

(In the story, Mr. Pine, a sign painter by trade, shakes up his creativity-challenged neighbors on Vine Street when he paints his house purple.)

A new publisher, Purple House Press, recently reissued "Mr. Pine's Purple House" and is set to release the 40th anniversary edition of Kessler's "Mr. Pine's Mixed-Up Signs" later this month.

The reissues fill a market void created in the '70s, when "Mr. Pine's Purple House" was pulled out of circulation, explains Kessler.

"People started writing to me over the years saying, 'We can't find the book,' " recalls the writer-artist. "It became more and more difficult to find 'Purple House.'

"Then my son calls me; it was in early 2000. He says, 'Dad, have you looked at (the online auction) eBay?' I said, 'I don't have a computer.' He said, 'eBay is auctioning the book for $300 a copy!' I says, 'Really? That 59-cent book?' "

Next, Kessler heard from Jill Morgan, a Texan bookseller who specialized in rare children's books.

Recalls Kessler: "Jill said, 'People are offering $300 a book. I want to be a publisher and publish that book. That was my favorite book as a little kid.'

"I was so impressed with her on the phone. How often do you get a publisher who says, 'I love your book?'

"So I said, 'You know' -- I do things by gut feeling -- I said, 'You can have the book. I have the rights.' I got the rights reverted to me when the book went out of print. And she took off. The book just soared."

Kessler is asked if he is a bit like Mr. Pine.

"I guess, probably, there are similarities," he tells PAGE X. "Mr. Pine wears glasses and I wear glasses. But Mr. Pine has a mustache; I've never had a mustache.

"And Mr. Pine is a sign painter. When I was in high school, I worked part-time as a sign painter in one of the first supermarkets in Pittsburgh.

"And our first house when we moved to Rockland County (N.Y.) was a kind of a lavender purple."

Come on, Leonard.

"No, I'm not kidding you," Kessler says with a laugh. "A very soft purple, yes. Fortunately, it started to fade a little bit and people started to accept it. All those white houses, and there was Len Kessler's purple house!"