Antiquarian and Collectors’ Books

O’CASEY, Sean. Two Plays. London: Macmillan & Co., Limited, 1925. First edition, signed and inscribed by Sean O’Casey to the front-free endpaper, 8vo (189 x 124mm.) (Toning, occasional light spotting.) Original grey cloth-backed boards, mounted paper labels to spine and upper cover (minor mark to spine, small abrasion to upper cover). Note: the inscription reads: ‘To Mr. J. Halliday, Bramley Leeds, from Sean O’Casey. 24/11/25’. Note: contains two of O’Casey’s most significant plays: ‘Juno and the Paycock’ and ‘Shadow of a Gunman’. Provenance: R. Palmer (typed letter loosely inserted, dated 1925); J. Halliday (inscribed to from the author).

DODGSON, Charles Lutwidge. Curiosa Mathematica. Part II Pillow-Problems Thought Out During Wakeful Hours. London: Macmillan & Co., 1895. Fourth edition, 8vo (181 x 117mm.) Diagrammatic frontispiece and illustrations, 1p. advertisement to rear. (First and last leaves browned, toning.) Original tan pictorial cloth (spine browned, finger-marked, light spotting to upper cover). Note: contains a preface for this fourth edition as well as the preface for the second edition. In the latter, Dodgson explains that he has changed the title from ‘sleepless nights’ to ‘wakeful hours’ because concerned friends were worried that he suffered from insomnia. He writes that he has never suffered insomnia but that working out mathematical problems in his mind was a way of countering ‘the harassing thoughts that are apt to invade a wholly-unoccupied mind’. Provenance: W. Parnell-Smith (ink name inscribed to front pastedown).

THATCHER, Margaret. The Path to Power. London: HarperCollins, 1995. Limited edition, this being number 24 of 500 signed copies, 8vo (235 x 149mm.) Photographic illustrations. Original blue crushed morocco, g.e., cloth slipcase.

FLEMING, Ian. For Your Eyes Only. London: Jonathan Cape, 1960. First edition, first impression, 8vo (188 x 120mm.) (Toning, spotting to fore-edge, gift inscribed on front pastedown, dated 1961.) Original black cloth with white eye design to upper cover (lightly bumped spine ends), dust-jacket (sunning to spine panel, light creasing to extremities). Note: the dust-jacket with the price of 15s on the inner flap.

WHITE, T.H. The Once & Future King. London: Collins, 1958. First edition, 8vo (196 x 127mm.) Original blue cloth (lightly bumped spine ends), dust-jacket (slight chipping to spine ends, toned, odd nick and minor finger-marking). Provenance: Margery Harrison (ink name to front-free endpaper, dated 1958).

[DODGSON, Charles Lutwidge.] ‘Lewis Carroll’. Alice’s Adventures Under Ground. Being a Facsimile of the Original Ms. Book Afterwards Developed into ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’. London: Macmillan and Co., 1886. First edition, 8vo (184 x 129mm.) Half-title, illustrations after the author, 2pp. publisher’s advertisements to rear. (Browning to half-title, toning, lacking the front-free endpaper and initial blank.) Original red cloth, gilt lettering to upper cover and spine, g.e. (spine ends and extremities bumped). – And a further volume (Lewis Carroll’s ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’, forty-first thousand, 1874, 8vo) (2).

BINDING. – Ludwig BECHSTEIN (compiler). As Pretty As Seven and Other Popular German Tales. London: John Camden Hotten, [1870.] First edition, 8vo (178 x 127mm.) 8 plates by Richter. (Mild toning, small marks to ‘Page Illustrations’ leaf.) Near contemporary Kelliegram binding in full red morocco with varicoloured pictorial onlay to upper cover and gilt tendrils, g.e., custom-made red cloth clamshell box with mounted paper label to spine.

ROWLING, J.K. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. London: Bloomsbury, 1999. First deluxe issue, first impression, 8vo (233 x 149mm.) (Toned.) Original blue cloth, mounted colour illustration to upper cover, gilt signature, g.e.

ROWLING, J.K. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. London: Bloomsbury, 2007. Collector’s Deluxe First Edition, 8vo (239 x 148mm.) Original cloth with mounted illustration By Jason Cockcroft to upper cover, g.e. Note: still in publisher’s shrink-wrap with ‘First Edition’ sticker.

MILNE, A.A. Winnie-the-Pooh. London: Methuen & Co. Ltd., 1926. First edition, first impression, 8vo (189 x 118mm.) Numerous illustrations by E.H. Shepard. (Mild toning, slight browning to front-free endpaper.) Original green cloth, pictorial gilt to upper cover, t.e.g. (lightly bumped spine ends), dust-jacket (tape repairs verso, some abrasions and name inscribed in ink to upper panel, ink deletion of 7/6 to spine panel). Note: the first issue dust-jacket with ‘117th thousand’ to the rear inner flap.

LEWIS, C.S. The Magician’s Nephew. London: Bodley Head, 1958. First edition, second impression, 8vo (196 x 132mm.) Illustrations by Pauline Baynes. Original green cloth (lightly bumped spine ends), dust-jacket (lightly price-clipped, slight crease to spine panel, toning to lower panel). Note: the sixth novel in the ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ series.

BOWDLER-SHARPE, R. (editor). Lloyd’s Natural History. London: Edward Lloyd, 1896-1897. 16 vols., 8vo (182 x 116mm.) Numerous chromolithographed plates. (Toning, occasional minor spotting, blanks replaced.) Late 20th century green half morocco over marbled paper-covered boards (endpapers replaced). Note: comprises Richard Lydekker’s ‘Mammals’, ‘Cats’, ‘Marsupials’; Ogilvie-Grant’s ‘British Birds’ (2 vols.); H.O. Forbe’s ‘Monkeys’ (2 vols.); Bowdler-Sharpe’s ‘British Birds’ (4 vols.); and W.F. Kirby’s ‘Butterflies and Moths’ (2 vols.) (16).

ROBINSON, Charles (illustrator). – Frances Hodgson BURNETT. The Secret Garden. London: William Heinemann, 1911. First edition, first impression, 8vo (201 x 146mm.) Half-title, 8 colour plates by Charles Robinson with captioned tissue-guards, 6pp. publisher’s advertisements to rear. (Half-title with contemporary gift inscription and child’s scrawl, same hand outlining endpapers in ink, a tissue-guard loosening, toning.) Original green cloth, pictorial gilt (hinges cracked, extremities rubbed). Provenance: K. Davis (ink name to half-title and rear endpaper, dated 1910).

SACKVILLE-WEST, Vita. Twelve Days. London: Hogarth Press, 1958. First edition, signed by the author to the title, 8vo (215 x 134mm.) (Spotting throughout and to fore-edge.) Original cloth (lightly rubbed).

[DODGSON, Charles Lutwidge.] ‘Lewis Carroll’. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. London: Macmillan and Co., 1872. Thirty-Six Thousand, 8vo (183 x 120mm.) Half-title, illustrations by John Tenniel, 1p. publisher’s advertisement to rear. (Toning.) Original cloth, g.e. (extremities bumped, some dis-colouring, slight spine lean, hinges weakened). Provenance: Florence Blanchard (ink name to front-free endpaper, dated 1872).

[HAZLITT, William.] Liber Amoris; or, The New Pygmalion. London: for John Hunt by C.H. Reynell, 1823. First edition, 12mo (183 x 114mm.) Engraved oval portrait to title. (Toning, spotting verso endpapers.) Contemporary green cloth, paper label to spine (spine ends rubbed, slight loss to paper label). Note: a curious and thinly-veiled autobiographical account of Hazlitt’s infatuation with his landlady’s daughter, Sarah Walker. Estranged from his wife and tormented by this unrequited passion, Hazlitt published the work anonymously. His friend, Thomas de Quincey, described the book as an ‘explosion of frenzy’ and the decision to publish it an attempt to ‘burn her out of his thoughts’.

SCOTTISH REFORM. The Loyal Reformers’ Gazette. Glasgow: Muir, Gowans, & Co., May 7th 1831- February 23rd 1833. 3 vols., no. 1-90, 8vo (187 x 113mm.) Wood-engraved headpieces, 4pp. and 3pp. ‘Index’. (Occasional dust-soiling, cuts or tears to several leaves in vol. 2.) Contemporary red half morocco (extremities rubbed, spines heavily, upper joint of vol. 3 splitting). Provenance: John Hopkins University (bookplates to front pastedowns and embossed stamps). Note: an unbroken run of this scarce weekly. After the Reform Act was passed in May 1832, it became known (from no. 55 onwards) as ‘The Reformers’ Gazette’. It played an important role in raising political awareness and suffrage amongst the working-class in Glasgow (3).

SHAKESPEARE, William. The Works of Mr. William Shakespear… Adorn’d with Cuts. London: Jacob Tonson, 1709. Vol. 1 [only, of 6], 8vo (194 x 120mm.) 9 engraved plates, including 1 for each play. (Title browned, initial blank detached.) Contemporary calf (covers detached, loss to spine ends). Note: the first octavo edition of Shakespeare’s works.

DICKENS, Charles. The Adventures of Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy’s Progress. London: for the Author by Bradbury and Evans, 1846. New Edition, Revised and Corrected, 8vo (209 x 132mm.) Half-title, 24 etched plates by George Cruikshank. (Spotting to plates and verso, occasionally to text). Contemporary green half morocco over marbled paper-covered boards, red morocco lettering piece to the spine (some loss to spine label, extremities all rubbed, some loss to lower joint). Note: the first single-volume edition.