"If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all. "
— Oscar Wilde
Literature
Baa Baa Black Sheep.
London: Macmillan, 1970. FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.223; [1]. Publisher's brown cloth, gilt titles to spine, in pictorial dust-jacket designed by Mike Cook. Some spotting to endpapers and top edge, a few pages creased from being turn over. Price clipped dust-jacket shows well with just some slight fading..... More
Hawksmoor.
London: Hamish Hamilton, 1985. [Detective fiction] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (25 x 16cm), pp.[6]; 217; [1]. Publisher's dark brown cloth with gilt titles to spine. Typographic dust-jacket designed by Russell Mills, with printed price £8.95 to flap. Heavy toning to textblock edges, but otherwise a clean, crisp copy. Some minor marking..... More
The Life of Thomas More.
London: Chatto and Windus, 1998. [Biography] INSCRIBED FIRST EDITION. Octavo (24 x 16cm), pp. ix; [2]; 434; [1]. INSCRIBED by the author in black ink to title page. With numerous colour, as well as black and white plates. Publisher's black cloth lettered in gilt to spine. With the pictorial dust-jacket..... More
Roman Antiquities: Or, an Account of the Manners and Customs of the Romans; Respecting Their Government, Magistracy, Laws, Judicial Proceedings, Religion, Games, Military and Naval Affairs, Dress, Exercises, Baths, Marriages, Divorces, Funerals, Weights and Measures, Coins, Method of Writing, Houses, Gardens, Agriculture, Carriages, Public Buildings, etc. Designed Chiefly to Illustrate the Latin Classics, by Explaining Words and Phrases, From the Rites and Customs to Which They Refer.
London: Printed for Cadell and Davies; F.C. and J. Rivington; G. Wilkie etc., 1819. [Roman antiquity] FINE LEATHER BINDING, eighth edition. Octavo (22 x 14cm), pp.xvi; 570. Dark brown half calf, marbled paper over boards. Brown label with gilt titles to spine, further gilt tooling also to spine. All edges..... More
Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency.
London: Heinemann, 1987. [Modern literature] SIGNED FIRST EDITION. Octavo (25 x 17cm), pp.[8]; 247; [1]. Publisher's blue cloth, gilt titles to spine, pictorial dust-jacket designed by Claudia Zeff. SIGNED by Douglas Adams in blue ink to title page. Some toning to text block, jacket with some wear to spine ends..... More
The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul.
London: Heinemann, 1988. [Modern literature] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (25 x 17cm), pp.[6] 246 [4]. Publisher's grey cloth with gilt titles to spine. With the dust-jacket designed by Claudia Zeff, priced at £10.95 net. Toned to edges and margins. Light general handling. Near fine. The second Inspector Dirk Gently Mystery... More
Mostly Harmless.
London: Heinemann, 1992. [Science Fiction Satire] INSCRIBED COPY, the second impression. Octavo (25 x 17cm), pp.[16] 219 [5]. INSCRIBED by the author in black ink to title page: 'To Dave | Douglas Adams.' Publisher's grey cloth with silver titles to spine. With the pictorial dust-jacket, priced at £12.99. Quite heavily..... More
Watership Down.
Harmondsworth: Penguin Books / Kestrel Books, 1976. [Children's Fantasy] FIRST ILLUSTRATED EDITION, First Impression. Octavo (24 x 16cm), pp.550, plus folding map. With full colour plates by John Lawrence, and numerous marginal sketches in black and white. Publisher's brown quarter cloth, with black and gilt titles to spine, cream paper..... More
Owen Seaman: His Life and Work. Makers of the Nineties, Edited by G. Krishnamurti.
London: The Eighteen Nineties Society, 1977. [Literary Biography] LIMITED EDITION with AUTOGRAPH SIGNED LETTER. Octavo (22 x 14cm), pp.viii; 139 [1]. With three double-sided black and white photographic plates, as well as a frontispiece portrait of the subject. An out-of-series copy concurrent with an edition of 750 numbered copies. Also..... More
At Half-Past Eight: Essays of the Theatre 1921-1922.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1923. [Literary Essays] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 15cm), pp.238 [2]. Publisher's navy quarter cloth, with a printed paper title label to spine, and checkered paper over boards. Top edge green; others untrimmed. Tobacco-scented, with some offsetting to endpapers. Moderate wear to boards, and some toning to..... More
Flawed.
London: HarperCollinsPublishers, 2016. [Young Adult Novel] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (23 x 14cm), pp.[8] 402 [6]. Publisher's black cloth with metallic blue titles to spine, and blue endpapers. With the photographic dust-jacket, priced at £14.99. Promotional sticker to front cover. A fine, as-new copy. More
The Conversation. Or, Pilgrim's Progress. A Domestic Story.
London: Rodney Phillips and Green, 1940. [Modern literature] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.164. Publisher's blue cloth, red titles to spine. With the pictorial dust-jacket. Interior lightly toned but clean. Jacket price-clipped. Some minimal toning to cloth extremities. Rear jacket panel rubbed, with minimal tearing and edgewear. Very good..... More
The Male Response.
London: Dennis Robson, 1963. FIRST EDITION. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.224. Publisher's brown cloth with silver titles to spine. With the dust-jacket illustrated by Harry Grimley, priced at 16s. A little light handling and some spotting to edges. Jacket a little rubbed to edges. Near fine. More
Alentejo Blue.
London: Doubleday, 2006. [Modern fiction]. SIGNED LIMITED FIRST EDITION. Octavo (23 x 15cm). Publisher's blue cloth, gilt titles, without dust-jacket as issued, blue cloth slipcase with gilt titles. A fine, as-new copy. More
Hilda Wade.
London: Grant Richards, 1900. First Edition. 8vo. Publisher's dark blue cloth titled and decorated in gilt to spine and front board. A used copy with some shelfwear,rubbed to extremities, gilt illustration rubbed to upper, discreet owner stamp to flyleaf, inside paper joint cracked. Very good. Illustrated throughout by Gordon Browne..... More
The Savage.
London: Walker Books, 2009. [Children's Illustrated] SIGNED FIRST PAPERBACK EDITION. Octavo (21 x 17cm), pp.79 [1]. Generously illustrated by McKean throughout. SIGNED by both author and illustrator in black marker to title page. Publisher's soft covers, priced at £5.99. Light handling with some rubbing and marks to rear cover. Near..... More
The Colour of the Sun.
London: Hodder Children's Books, 2018. [Children's Literature] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (23 x 15cm), pp.[6] 231 [3]. Publisher's navy cloth with bronze titles to spine and upper, and orange endpapers. With the dust-jacket illustrated by David Litchfield, priced at £12.99. A fine, as-new copy. More
The True Tale of the Monster Billy Dean, teld by hisself.
London: Puffin, 2011. [Young Adult Dystopia] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (24 x 16cm), pp.[8] 256 [8]. Publisher's black cloth with silver titles and decoration to spine and upper. All edges black, and blue decorated endpapers. With the photographic dust-jacket, priced at £12.99. A fine, as-new copy. More
The Ability to Kill: True Tales of Bloody Murder.
New York, NY: The Mysterious Press, 1987. [True Crime] SIGNED LIMITED EDITION. Octavo (23 x 15cm), pp.[2] xxii; 214 [2]. Letter I of 26 lettered copies, SIGNED by the author in black ink to limitation page. Publisher's deep red cloth with gilt titles to spine. With the matching cloth-covered slipcase..... More
Background to Danger.
New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf, 1937. [Intrigue] FIRST U.S. EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.280; [1], blank; [1], advertisements; [2], blank. Publisher's orange cloth lettered in burgundy, pictorial jacket priced at $2.00. Edges of text block toned, ink ownership to flyleaf, jacket with a few chips and tears, clipped..... More
Epitaph For A Spy.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1938. [Haycraft-Queen cornerstone novel] INSCRIBED FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 14cm), pp.287 [1]. INSCRIBED by the author in black ink to title page: 'To Tom with very / best wishes and all / the best - / Eric Ambler'. Publisher's grey cloth titled in black to..... More
The Mask Of Dimitrios.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1939. FIRST EDITION. A Haycraft-Queen cornerstone novel. Octavo (19 x 14cm), pp.320. Publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to spine. Internally very clean with no ownership marks, bookplates or inscriptions. Covers are fresh but for a little sunning to spine, a few small marks and the..... More
Passage of Arms.
London: Heinemann, 1959. [Gun-running thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.250. Publisher's hardback black cloth binding in pictorial dust-jacket priced at 16s. Contents clean, no inscriptions, a few small marks and some splashing to edges of text block, lightly used jacket with a couple of short edge tears. A...... More
Uncommon Danger.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1937. [Intrigue] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.314; [6], advertisements. Publisher's pale blue cloth lettered in black, mid-blue endpapers, pictorial jacket by Gibbs, priced 7/6. Trivial toning to edge of text block, jacket with very light rubbing/wear to extremities. Overall a lovely fine copy of..... More