Literature
The Song of Songs.
London: Collins, 1973. [Erotica] FIRST THUS. Small quarto (28 x 21cm), pp.[6] 16 [34]. With frequent line drawings by Erni. Publisher's black cloth with gilt titles to spine, and gilt decoration to upper. With the illustrated dust-jacket, priced at £2.95. A fine copy with just a hint of light handling..... More
The Juvenile Reader; Consisting of Religious, Moral and Intellectual Instruction; Exercises in Spelling, Explanation, and Derivation; and an Appendix, Containing Select Pieces for Recitation. By Preceptor, Member of the College of Preceptors. And Under the Auspices of the Council of Education.
London: Published by Bartholomew Harris, c.1852. [Education] SCARCE COPY. Octavo (18 x 11cm), pp.216. With numerous in-text woodcuts, a few of which are hand-coloured. Red full calf, with gilt titles and blind-stamped decoration to both boards. Edges speckled red. Interior toned and marked, with a few annotations in black ink..... More
The Dream of Ravan: A Mystery. (Reprinted from "The Dublin University Magazine," 1853 & 1854.)
London: The Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895. [Hindu Theosophy] FIRST SEPARATE EDITION. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.[4] 248. Publisher's green cloth with black titles to spine and upper. All edges untrimmed. Merchant Taylors' School prize plate to front pastedown, dated 1944. Spotting to endpapers, and to first and final few leaves..... More
The Club Cricketer. Hints by "Cricketer" of the Manchester Guardian.
Manchester: Manchester Guardian, n.d. FIRST PUBLICATION OF CARDUS. Slim octavo, pp.3 [ads]; 54. Bound in publisher's orange paper covers with illustration of cricketer to front panel. Includes diagrams and charming contemporary advertisements for golfing trousers, etc. Shows very well, excepting one crease to rear of pamphlet which continues into contents..... More
Literary Characters.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1954. [Literary Offprint] ORIGINAL PAMPHLET. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.32. INSCRIBED in black ink to inside of cover on behalf of the publisher. Publisher's plain paper covers with woodcut illustrations, bound with thick brown string. Lightly toned and spotted. Browning to spine and outer edges, with some..... More
Sam Sheridan: The Secret Service Special, or, the jamboree at "Early Bird" bar. The Aldine "Boys' First-Rate Pocket Library." No. 178.
London: Aldine Publishing Company, n.d. [1893]. ORIGINAL PAMPHLET. Octavo, pp.32. In original colour illustrated paper covers. Text browned and brittle. Some chips to leaf edges. Covers less brittle, also chipped in places. Spine reinforced with archival tape. Good considering paper stock. More
The Seasons of the Year. Or The Hand of God Manifested in His Works.
London: T. Nelson and Sons, 1852. [Natural History] FINELY BOUND. Octavo (17 x 12cm), pp.[4] 416 [2]. With an engraved frontispiece and vignette title page by T. Brown. Contemporary dark brown full morocco, with gilt titles and decorations to spine, and decoration in gilt and blind to boards. All edges..... More
Tales of the Classics: A New Delineation of the Most Popular Fables, Legends, and Allegories commemorated in the works of Poets, Painters, and Sculptors. Selected and Written by a Lady, for the amusement and instruction of her own daughters.
London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, 1830. [Greek Mythology] FINELY BOUND FIRST EDITION. Complete in three volumes. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.[4] xxiv; 302 [4]; pp.[4] iv; 302 [4]; pp.[4] iv; 370 [4]. Contemporary black half calf with raised bands, gilt titles to burgundy labels, further gilt decoration to spines..... More
The Tryal and Condemnation of Arundel Coke Alias Cooke Esq; And of John Woodburne Labourer, For Felony, in Slitting the Nose of Edward Crispe Gent. Contrary to the 22 and 23 Car. II. Cap. I. Intitled, An Act to Prevent Malicious Maiming and Wounding; Who Were Found Guilty at the Assizes Held Before the Right Honourable Sir Peter King Knt. Lord Chief Justice of his Majesty's Court of Common Pleas, at Bury St. Edmonds, Tuesday the 13th of March 1721. And Received Sentence the Day Following.
London: Printed for John Darby in Bartholomew-Close, 1722. [Trial/Litigation] FIRST EDITION. Folio (33 x 20cm), pp.38. Perfectly collated. With an imprimatur leaf facing title page and an extra leaf marked D* between signatures D and E. Newly re-bound with brown cloth, gilt titles to spine. Interior toned and moderately spotted..... More
Sinks of London Laid Open: A Pocket Companion for the Uninitiated, To Which is Added a Modern Flash Dictionary Containing all the Cant Words, Slang Terms, and Flash Phrases Now in Vogue, With a List of the Sixty Orders of Prime Coves, the Whole Forming a True Picture of London Life, Cadging Made Easy, the He-She Man, Doings of the Modern Greeks, Snooking Kens Depicted, the Common Lodging-house Gallants, Lessons to Lovers of Dice, the Gaming Table, etc. Embellished With Humorous Illustrations by George Cruikshank.
London: J. Duncombe, 1848 [circa 1885]. [London] VINTAGE COPY, a later reprint. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.131 [1]. With an advertisement for 'Annals of Fashionable Gallantry' (1885) at rear. With a folding colour frontispiece, as well as numerous in-text woodcuts, by Cruikshank. Publisher's crocodile skin-effect tan cloth with gilt titles..... More
Dinner with the Family.
London: Methuen & Co., 1958. [French Drama] FIRST EDITION IN ENGLISH. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.98 [2]. Publisher's red cloth with silver titles to cloth. With the dust-jacket illustrated by Harry More-Gordon, priced at 10/6. A lovely crisp copy, with some toning and chipping to jacket spine. Near fine. An..... More
The Talking Horse and Other Stories.
London: Smith, Elder, and co., 1893. Presentation Copy, "New Edition". Octavo. Bound in publisher's red cloth, with panelling embossed in black to boards, titles to front board, and titles in gilt to spine. Binding is rubbed, with noticable fading to spine; somewhat shaken, linen visible in joint at p.1, and..... More
José Antonio Primo de Rivera: Selected Writings.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1972. [Literature] FIRST ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp. 270; [2]. Publisher's black cloth lettered in silver to spine. With the typographic dust-jacket priced at £3.50 to front flap. Previous owner has a gift message on flyleaf in blue ink, very light wearing to bottom..... More
The Macropulos Secret. A Comedy.
London: Robert Holden and co., 1927. [Drama] FIRST UK EDITION. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.[4] 211 [1]. Publisher's grey quarter cloth with pictorial orange paper over boards. Paper label with titles to spine. Infrequent foxing, mostly to preliminaries. Toning to endpapers. Foxing and toning to edges, especially top. Gentle wear..... More
How They Do It.
London: George Allen and Unwin ltd, 1945. [Essays] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.158; [2]. With numerous in-text illustrations by Karel apek. Publisher's green cloth to boards, blue titles to spine. With the pictorial dust-jacket, price-clipped to front flap. Top edge green. Toning to leaves and endpapers. Minor sunning..... More
Three Novels [Noetic Trilogy]. Hordubal; An Ordinary Life; Meteor.
London: George Allen and Unwin Ltd., 1948. [Modern Literature] FIRST OMNIBUS EDITION IN ENGLISH, first impression. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.469 [3]. Publisher's orange cloth with black titles to spine and upper. Top edge orange. With the grey typographic dust-jacket, printed on the reverse of a WWII map of Denmark..... More
The Golden Ass of Apuleius. The Chiswick Library of Noble Writers.
London: printed at the Chiswick Press for George Bell and Sons, 1904. [Latin Classics in Translation] LIMITED PRIVATE PRESS EDITION. Quarto (35 x 22cm), pp.[12] 226 [6]. With a tissue-guarded engraved frontispiece and decorated title page by W.L. Bruckman. Number 128 of just 220 copies thus, hand-numbered to limitation page..... More
Aristophanes Against War. The Acharnians, The Peace - Lysistrata.
London: Oxford University Press, 1957. [Greek drama] INSCRIBED FIRST EDITION THUS. Octavo (23 x 15cm), pp.[2] xviii; 158 [2]. INSCRIBED to the British historian Edward Crankshaw and his wife Clare in blue ink to flyleaf. Publisher's orange cloth, gilt titles to spine. With the pictorial dust-jacket priced at 18s to..... More
Dead Man's Bay.
London: Published for the Crime Club by Collins, 1959. [Mystery Thriller] FIRST UK EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.160. Publisher's red cloth with black titles to spine. With the green and black dust-jacket priced at 10/6. Light offsetting to endpapers and some browning to edges. Jacket toned and chipped to..... More
The Dead Sea Poems.
London: Faber and Faber, 1995. [Poetry] SIGNED UNCORRECTED PROOF. Octavo (21 x 15cm), pp.[8] 54 [2]. SIGNED by the author in blue ink to title page. Publisher's blue card covers, titled to upper and priced at £6.99. Clean throughout. Covers lightly rubbed and soiled, with a Skoob Books label to..... More
Kid.
London: Faber and Faber, 1992. [Poetry] SIGNED FIRST EDITION. Ocatvo (20 x 13cm), pp. VII; [1]; 88. Soft cover with Faber and Faber patterning in orange and yellow and small illustrated boys. Toning to edges of textblock, bumping to corners and spine. Very good. This is Armitage's second poetry collection..... More
Spies in Amber.
London: Methuen and Co., 1956. [Modern Literature] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.[4]; 235; [1]. Publisher's blue cloth lettered in gilt to spine, illustrated dust-jacket designed by Toni Wellis with printed price of 10s. 6d. to front flap. Slight toning visible to reverse of jacket. Fine. Within an hour..... More
The Secret Trail A Jimmie Rezaire Story.
London, Methuen 1928. A Secret Service thriller. FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp256. Publisher's hardcover in dustwrapper. A very good copy with owner name, loss to jacket at base of spine affecting imprint, faded beneath at same, one or two other minor nicks or tears (one taped at rear) spine sunned. A...... More
Poetical Works of Matthew Arnold.
London: Macmillan, 1913. [Poetry] FINELY BOUND. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.[xii]; 510. Riviere binding of contemporary brown half morocco over purple cloth boards, with raised bands, gilt title and extra gilt to spine, top edge gilt, marbled endpapers. Presentation note to "Miss D.M. Lapage", the commandant of the Kent 142..... More
Poetical Works of Matthew Arnold.
London: Macmillan and Co., 1908. [Poetry] FINELY BOUND, a later printing thus. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.xiv; 510 [2]. With a frontispiece etching of the author. Contemporary green full crushed morocco by SPOTTISWOODE & CO., with raised bands and gilt titles to spine. All edges, gilt-ruled turn-ins, and machine-marbled endpapers..... More