JOSEPH CONRAD FIRST EDITIONS AT
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London : Methuen & Co., (1911). First edition. “The man who says he has no illusions has at least that one” – Conrad with his classic of terrorism, set variously in St. Petersburg and Geneva and published 5th October 1911. “Any hesitation seems to lie, not in over-estimating, but in doing justice to the rare truth and beauty of Mr. Conrad’s latest book. No Englishman could have written it” (The Sketch, 25th October 1911).
Crown 8vo (20cm). [viii],(378) + (32)pp advertisements dated September 1911. Original red cloth, lettered and decorated in gilt; just a touch sunned; a hint of bruising; mild tanning of endpapers, but a very good copy. With the pictorial bookplate, designed by Oswald Tozeau, of Brand Whitlock (1869-1934), American author, journalist, lawyer and politician.

SOLD

London : Methuen & Co., (1914). First edition : with the regular cancel title-leaf dated 1914, advertisement leaves dated both Autumn and September 1913, and the preferred binding giving “Methven” in capitals at the foot. Originally intended for publication in 1913, delays in binding meant that the novel did not appear until 15th January 1914, by which time demand was such that a second impression had already been printed and bound (Methuen advertisement in “Truth” 14th January 1914, p.49) – a fourth was needed by the end of the month. “Our summary can give no real conception of the greatness and the insight of this moving book; splendid in its style, masterly in the manner it which it paints for one the scent and savour and mystery of the sea; subtle and unerring in its grasp of the minds and motives of its creations ... It is strange that to a Polish exile and a seafaring man, to whom our language is a foreign tongue, it should be given to handle it with a touch so nearly approaching perfection” (Sheffield Daily Telegraph, 15th January 1914).
Crown 8vo (20cm). (viii),406,[ii],8 + (32)pp. Original green cloth, blocked and lettered in gilt; just a hint of rubbing; edges and prelims somewhat spotted, but otherwise a very good, bright and sound copy.

£400

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London : T. Fisher Unwin, (1923). First edition. “The rover Peyrol is a superb creation, the eternal ancient mariner yet native to his time and his soil ... Towards the end Lord Nelson himself steps upon the scene, and in three or four masterly pages we see the man as he was, the fragile body and restless mind nearing their supreme triumph and their doom ... the simplest of Mr. Conrad’s books; none the less, we rank it among the greatest” (Sheffield Daily Telegraph, 6th December 1923).
Crown 8vo (21cm). (318),[ii]pp. Original green cloth, ruled and lettered in gilt; some faint wear; a little dulled; mild tanning of endpapers; a few leaves roughly opened, but otherwise a good, clean and sound copy in the dust-jacket – the jacket with some minor wear, with a few repaired nicks and some shallow chipping, but substantially complete and attractive still.

£200

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London : T. Fisher Unwin, 1925. First edition. Four short stories previously unpublished in book form – “The Warrior’s Soul” – a moving tale of Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow, written during the Great War; “Prince Roman” – the Polish Patriot; “The Tale” – moral dilemmas at sea in the Great War, and “The Black Mate” – one of his earliest ventures into fiction. With a foreword by R. B. Cunninghame Graham (1852-1936). Published posthumously to the delight and acclaim of contemporary reviewers – “A substantial addition to Conrad’s best work” (The Scotsman); “one of the most remarkable books of short stories ever issued” (Daily Dispatch); “No unconsidered trifles ... They are of the stuff by which he will be judged” (Manchester Guardian).
Crown 8vo (21cm). (288)pp. Original holly cloth, ruled and lettered in gilt; some spotting of edges; one leaf with a slight production blemish; endpapers lightly tanned, but otherwise a very good, bright and sound copy in the original dust-jacket in a design by Edmondo Lucchesi (1871-1964) – the jacket just slightly creased, with a couple of tiny nicks, but also very good, clean and fresh.

SOLD