Amelia Bedelia is the first book in the Amelia Bedelia children's picture book series about a housekeeper who takes her instructions literally. It was written by Peggy Parish and published in 1963. HarperCollins adapted this and several other books in the series for its I Can Read! line of beginning books. Over 35 million copies of books in the Amelia Bedelia series have been sold. A 50th anniversary edition was published in 2013 which includes author's notes and archive photos. The first two chapter books in the series written by Peggy's nephew, Herman Parish, were published to coincide with the anniversary, focusing on the young Amelia Bedelia.