"Always read something that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it."
— P.J. O'Rourke

Cecil Louis Troughton Smith (27 August 1899 – 2 April 1966), known by his pen name Cecil Scott "C. S." Forester, was an English novelist known for writing tales of naval warfare. He is most remembered for his 12-book Horatio Hornblower series, depicting a Royal Navyofficer during the Napoleonic wars; indeed, Hornblower has become embedded in the consciousness of generations growing up in the earlier part of the 20th century. Two of the Hornblower books, A Ship of the Line and Flying Colours, were jointly awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction in 1938. His other works include The African Queen, which was adapted into a 1951 film.
See below our stock of C. S. Forester First Editions and signed copies.
London: Michael Joseph, 1945. [Naval adventure] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.271; [1]. Publisher's yellow cloth with silver titles to spine, in striking Barbosa-designed dust-wrapper priced at 9/6. No inscriptions or bookplates. Contents clean, a fine, fresh copy in near fine jacket, slightly rubbed and sunned to the spine..... More
London: Michael Joseph, 1937-1967. [Naval Historical Fiction] COMPLETE FIRST EDITIONS. Eleven volumes. Octavo (19 x 13 x 33cm). The complete series, bound uniformly in navy blue half morocco, with raised bands, gilt titles and 'tall ship' and 'anchor' motifs stamped in gilt to spine, as well as twin burgundy morocco..... More
London: Michael Joseph, 1937. [Naval adventure] FIRST EDITION of the first Horatio Hornblower novel. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.287; [1]. Vintage brown buckram with black morocco title label lettered in gilt, marbled endpapers, top edge brown. A little spotting to fist and final gatherings else contents very clean. Discreet ink..... More
Boston; Little Brown and Company. 1953. [Naval Adventure] INSCRIBED FIRST US EDITION, from the Forester Family Archive. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.[8] 325 [3]. INSCRIBED by Forester in black ink to his wife, Dorothy, on the front flyleaf. Bookplate of the Forester, Troughton-Smith family archive to pastedown. Publisher's green cloth..... More
London: Michael Joseph, 1964. [Historical fiction] FIRST EDITION. Quarto (27 x 20cm), pp.140. Bound in publisher's red cloth, with a gilt ship on a black oval ground to front board, gilt titles to spine; pale blue endpapers. Dust wrapper with large titles in red, white, and yellow to front cover..... More
London: Michael Joseph, 1958. [Naval fiction] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.283 [1]. Publisher's blue cloth with gilt titles to spine. With the dust-jacket illustrated by Val Biro. Light toning to edges, and some offsetting to endpapers, otherwise a crisp, clean copy. Price-clipped jacket shows a little toning to..... More
London: Michael Joseph, 1966-1969. [Naval Historical Fiction] OMNIBUS BOX SET, Vol. I Second Impression, Vols. II and III First Thus. Three volumes in a slipcase. Octavo (23 x 15 x 14cm), pp.633 [7]; pp.572 [4]; pp.758 [2]. Publisher's blue cloth with gilt titles to spine. With the dust-jackets illustrated by..... More
London: Michael Joseph, 1952. [Naval fiction] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.304. Publisher's mid-blue cloth with gilt titles to spine. With the dust-jacket illustrated by Val Biro, priced at 12/6. Toning and spotting to edges, with some light occasional spotting throughout. Cloth sunned to extremities. Jacket toned and sunned..... More
London: Michael Joseph, 1951. [Modern Literature] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.320. Publisher's black cloth, silver titles to spine, pictorial dust-jacket designed by Biro, with printed price 10s 6d. Slight spotting and toning to textblock edges, else internally clean. Light rubbing to spine head/tail, minor bumping to board corners..... More
London: Michael Joseph, 1948. [Modern Literature] FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp.219. Publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to spine. With the green typographic dust-jacket. Book is fine; jacket near fine with one short tear to crown. A most attractive copy. More
London: Gollancz, 1953. [Crime fiction collection] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (18 x 13cm), pp.256. Publisher's red clothwith black titles to spine, typographical dust-jacket with printed price 10/6 to flap. Contents clean, owner bookplate beneath flap, light spotting to edges, some minor rubs and marks to covers and jacket, which is a...... More