"If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all. "
— Oscar Wilde
New Arrivals
You Only Live Twice.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1964. [Spy novel] FIRST EDITION, Binding B. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.256. Publisher's black cloth-effect paper over boards with silver titles to spine and Japanese characters in gilt to upper, bamboo patterned endpapers. With the dust-jacket illustrated by Richard Chopping, priced at 16s. A little spotting to... More
Diamonds are Forever.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1956. FIRST EDITION, Binding B (designated without priority). Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.257; [1]. Publisher's black cloth titled in silver, with the pictorial dust-jacket designed by Pat Marriott, priced at 12/6. Some marking to top edge. Light handling. Very light bruising and minor chips to jacket edges... More
![Youth: A Narrative and two Other Stories. [Youth: A Narrative; Heart of Darkness; The End of the Tether]. Joseph CONRAD.](/pictures/thumb/53347.jpg?v=1552917104)
Youth: A Narrative and two Other Stories. [Youth: A Narrative; Heart of Darkness; The End of the Tether].
London: William Blackwood and Sons, 1902. [Classic Literature] FIRST EDITION, first issue (with earliest ads). Octavo (14 x 19cm), pp.[viii]; 375; [1], blank; 32, advertisements dated 10/02. Publisher's light green cloth decoratively blocked in gilt and black. Vintage related news-clipping neatly tipped in to endpapers. Endpapers toned, some occasional spotting... More
The Professor. A Tale.
London: Smith Elder and Co., 1857. [English Literature] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), 2 volumes bound as 1, pp.294; 258. Mid nineteenth century half calf over marbled boards, black title label with gilt rule to spines, marbled boards, drab endpapers, edges speckled red. Bound without half-titles or adverts. Light... More
The Works of Edgar Allan Poe. Tales; Poems; Criticisms.
Edinburgh: Adam and Charles Black, 1874. [Complete works] FIRST THUS, in a variant cloth. Four volumes. Octavo (20 x 14 x 17cm), pp.[4]; c; 513; [1]; pp.vi; 569; [1]; pp.viii; 517; [3]; pp.[2]; viii; 574; [2]. With a frontispiece engraving to each volume, and occasional in-text vignettes. Publisher's green, rather... More
The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes.
London: John Murray, 1929. [Detective Fiction] First 'Cheap' edition (being the FIRST EDITION, Second Impression). Octavo (19 x 14cm), pp.320. Publisher's brown cloth, titled to spine in gilt, in pictorial dust-wrapper priced at 3/5. Some edge spotting, gilt to binding toned, wrapper split along rear spine fold and with chips... More
Lorna Doone. A Romance of Exmoor.
London: Sampson Low, Marston and Co. for Boots Pure Drug Co., no date [circa 1930]. [Illustrated Literature] WITH DUSTJACKET, a later edition. Small quarto (26 x 20cm), pp.x; 520. With 16 tipped-in chromolithographic plates after illustrations by Brittan and Brock, including a frontispiece. Publisher's blue cloth with gilt titles and... More
The Day of The Jackal.
London: Hutchinson, 1971. [Spy thriller] SIGNED FIRST EDITION. Octavo (23 x 15cm), pp.357; [1]. Publisher's hardback cloth binding in the iconic glossy pictorial dust-jacket designed by Tom Simmonds and Trevor Vertigan, priced at £2/40s. Signed by the author in bold black ink to the title page. A lovely fine copy... More
The Mystery of The Blue Train.
London: Collins no date [1928]. [Detective thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.viii; 295; [1] blank. Publisher's blue cloth titled in red, illustrated dust-jacket priced at 7/6. Housed in a custom leather spined clamshell box. Contents are clean, cloth bright and fresh with a little wear to spine tips... More
The Spy Who Came In From The Cold.
London: Victor Gollancz, 1963. [Espionage thriller] SIGNED FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.222; [2]. Publisher's blue cloth, gilt titles to spine, in typographic dust-jacket with printed price of 18/- net. Signed by the author as John le Carré to the title page. A lightly used copy with a little... More
Washington Square. The Pension Beaurepas. A Bundle of Letters.
London: Macmillan and Co., 1881. [Literature] FIRST ENGLISH EDITION, Hybrid issue. Two volumes, Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.265; 271. With a 24-page catalogue at the rear of volume II, dated January 1881. Publisher's blue-green cloth, lettered in gilt to spine, coated brown endpapers. Contents clean. A used set with some... More
Cakes and Ale. or The Skeleton in the Cupboard.
London: William Heinemann, 1930. [Satire] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.[vi]; 270. Printing error 'won' for 'won't' on p.147, line 14. Publisher's mid-blue cloth binding blocked in gilt and black, original printed dust-wrapper. Text block a little toned, light spotting (mostly to preliminaries), jacket crisp and fine with some... More
The Island of Fu Manchu.
London: Cassell, 1941. [Mystery] FIRST UK EDITION. Octavo (19 x 14cm), pp.282. Publisher's black cloth blocked in red to spine, illustrated dust-wrapper designed by Ban priced at 8s. Neat gift inscription to flyleaf, edges uniformly toned, jacket clean and bright with a couple of small nicks. A near fine copy. More
A Small Town In Germany.
London: Heinemann, 1968. [Spy thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (22 x 15cm) pp.306; [2], blank. Burgundy cloth hardcover in pictorial dust-jacket priced at 30s. A very lightly handled copy in fine condition. 'A Small Town In Germany' is set in Bonn, the small and provincial capital of West Germany, where Le... More
Emperor Fu Manchu.
London: Herbert Jenkins, 1959. [Mystery] FIRST UK EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.221; [1], blank; [2], advertisements. Publisher's red cloth lettered in white to spine, striking pictorial dust-wrapper clipped and re-priced by the publisher at 6/6. A near fine copy of the book (slightly bumped), in an attractive wrapper with... More
![The Third Man [and The Fallen Idol]. Graham GREENE.](/pictures/thumb/53050.jpg?v=1552663329)
The Third Man [and The Fallen Idol].
London: William Heinemann Ltd., 1950. [Spy novel and short story] FIRST EDITION. Small Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.188. Publisher's black cloth with silver titles to spine, pictorial dust jacket in monochrome, red and white titles. Minor dustiness to edges of text block; jacket is fine. An outstanding example. Two classic... More
Louder and Funnier.
London: Faber and Faber, 1932. [Humour/satire] FIRST EDITION IN BOOK-FORM, Second issue. Octavo (18 x 13cm), pp.286. Publisher's green cloth lettered in gilt, in plain buff dust-wrapper lettered in black, priced 8/6. A beautiful fine, unread copy of the book in similar price-clipped wrapper, with some minor edgewear. A collection... More
Horatio Hornblower. An omnibus volume comprising The Commodore and Lord Hornblower.
London: Michael Joseph, 1952. [Naval Fiction] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.431; [1]. Publisher's dark blue cloth with silver titles to spine in Val Biro designed dust-jacket, complete with original sash promoting the television adaptation starring Michael Redgrave. Neat ownership to front pastedown. Some mottling to cloth. A few... More
Burmese Days.
New York, NY: Harper and Bros., 1934. [Modern Literature] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.vi;371; [3], blank. Title page printed in two colours. Publisher's orange cloth blocked in black to spine and upper, floral patterned endpapers, edges untrimmed. Contents clean, page edges toned, short tear and small ink number... More
The Far Country.
London: William Heinemann, 1952. [Romantic adventure] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.333; [1]. Publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to spine, debossed monogram and publisher's devices to boards, pictorial dust-jacket designed by Val Biro, with printed price of 12s 6d net. Contents clean, edge of text block a little... More
Requiem for a Wren.
London: William Heinemann, 1955. [Romantic adventure novel] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.284. Publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to spine, pictorial dust-jacket designed by Val Biro with printed price of 12s 6d net. Contents clean, some spotting to page edges, ink name to flyleaf, jacket clean and fresh... More
The Old Reliable.
London: Herbert Jenkins, no date [1964]. [Humour] FIRST EDITION, SECOND IMPRRESSION. Octavo (20 x 13cm), pp.233; [1]; [2 of adverts]. Publisher's red cloth lettered in black in an amusing pictorial dust-jacket designed by Frank Ford with printed price of 6/- net. Offsetting to endpapers, some spotting to top edge, all... More
The Happy Return.
London: Michael Joseph, 1937. [Naval adventure] FIRST EDITION of the first Horatio Hornblower novel. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.287; [1]. Publisher's green cloth in original dust-wrapper illustrated by Rowland Hilder. A little spotting to edges, neat repaired tear to half title, clean bright jacket with one small chip and tear... More
Pigs Have Wings.
London: Herbert Jenkins, 1952. [Classic Humour] FIRST EDITION. Crown octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.220; [2], advertisements; [2], blank. Publisher's red cloth lettered in black, in an amusing pictorial dustjacket by 'Sax'. Edges a little dusty/toned, discreet ink ownership to flyleaf, jacket with a few short tears, price-clipped. Overall a bright... More
Cleopatra. Being an Account of the Fall and Vengeance of Harmachis, the Royal Egyptian, as set forth by his own Hand.
London: Longmans, Green and Co., 1889. [Adventure Fiction] FIRST EDITION, First issue, adverts dated January, 1889. Octavo (20 x 13cm), pp.xvi; 336; [16]. With thirty illustrations, errata slip p.xv. Publisher's blue-grey cloth, bevelled edges, gilt titles, edges untrimmed, patterned endpapers. Light spotting, some leaves unopened/uncut, very light rubbing to extremities;... More