Search Results: Titles starting with S from Sumner & Stillman

1935. London...: Cassell and Company, (1935). Original dark blue cloth with spine lettered in gilt, with dust jacket. First Edition of this collection of eight cases solved by Father Brown, the diminutive Roman Catholic priest / amateur detective. This was the fifth and last collection of Father Brown cases, preceded by THE INNOCENCE OF FATHER BROWN (1911), THE WISDOM... (1914), THE INCREDULITY... (1926), and THE SECRET... (1927); Chesterton died the year after this one was published. ...It was in his series of Father Brown stories that Chesterton gave life to one of the most famous and best-loved of fictional detectives... The little Roman Catholic priest's main preoccupation is with the moral and religious aspects of the crimes he is solving, rather than the apprehension of the criminal and the administration of legal punishment. With his psychological approach to the problems of human frailty, and his endowment of the guilty with good as well as bad qualities, Chesterton's works of detective… Read More

1896. London: John Lane / New York: Macmillan & Co., 1896. 16 pp ads dated 1896. Original light brown cloth decorated in dark brown, with dark brown cloth spine decorated in gilt. First Edition of Buchan's second book, a collection of essays, preceded only by his SIR QUIXOTE OF THE MOORS of 1895. This book is beautifully illustrated with etchings by D.Y. Cameron (who introduced Buchan to John Lane the publisher), and the cover design is by Patten Wilson. SCHOLAR GIPSIES was published in John Lane's Arcady Library, and on the cover a goat-footed Pan piped to three nymphs. The essays, too, sounded many Arcadian notes -- references to Theocritus, to 'people of this Arcady' (i.e. the Upper Tweed), to 'the Piper'... There are some clear echoes of [Kenneth] Grahame: "Afternoon" in SCHOLAR GIPSIES -- a boy playing Jacobites who steals into the garden of a big house and meets a girl whom he is sure is a princess -- is very much in the vein of the story in [Grahame's 1895] THE GOLDEN AGE where children… Read More

1896. London: John Lane / New York: Macmillan & Co., 1896. 16 pp ads dated 1896. Original light brown cloth decorated in dark brown, with dark brown cloth spine elaborately decorated in gilt. First Edition of Buchan's second book, a volume of sixteen essays, preceded only by his SIR QUIXOTE OF THE MOORS of 1895. Buchan notes in his "Prefatory" that these pieces "were all written in youth, when a man's thoughts run on many diverse things with a certain tentative aim," and also that "they were written in close connection with that most beautiful country, the upper valley of Tweed, where the grace of old times seems to have long lingered." This is the third volume in the publisher's handsome "Arcady Library" series; it is beautifully illustrated with etchings by D.Y. Cameron (Buchan's Glasgow friend who introduced him to the publisher John Lane), and the cover design (of a goat-footed Pan piping to three nymphs) is by Patten Wilson. This is a remarkably bright copy, fine except for a faint damp-stain… Read More

1923. With Eight Pictures in Colour by Jan Juta. London: Martin Secker, (1923). Original brown cloth, with dust jacket. First English Edition, published two years after Thomas Seltzer's New York edition. "In her book LORENZO IN TAOS, Mabel Dodge Luhan says it was after reading SEA AND SARDINIA that she wrote Lawrence inviting him to come to New Mexico; his descriptions of the island had convinced her that he was the only one who could adequately portray the Taos country." D.H. and Frieda Lawrence did indeed visit Luhan in Taos (as did Willa Cather, Georgia O'Keeffe, Martha Graham, Thornton Wilder and others) -- but they remained there, buying a ranch outside of town... The [eight] paintings were done during the summer of 1921 by Jan Juta, a young painter from South Africa, who with his sister had accompanied Lawrence and other friends on a trip to Syracuse [Sicily] in April" [Roberts]. The two paste-downs bear a map (drawn by Lawrence) of the trip, a loop between Italy, Sicily and Sardinia. The… Read More

1868. [signed by George MacDonald] London: Tinsley Brothers, 1868. Original maroon cloth decorated in gilt (portraying medieval-style external book hinges). First Edition. This is the second novel in MacDonald's "Marshmallows Trilogy" -- the other two being ANNALS OF A QUIET NEIGHBOURHOOD (Hurst & Blackett 1867) and THE VICAR'S DAUGHTER (Tinsley 1872, same style binding as this). It takes place in the English seaside village of Bude (the father of the family, a vicar, is serving as interim pastor there), and is the result of a MacDonald family vacation there. This is a near-fine set (spines slightly faded as always with maroon, just a hint of wear at the tips, minor bubbling of the cloth on Vol I). Wolff (4304) had only a set in the secondary binding, without hinge decoration or publisher's name); Sadleir did not have a copy at all. Housed in an open-back case. The half-title of Vol I is signed by George MacDonald (actually, MacDonald inscribed it to someone, but the inscription itself is rubbed… Read More

1911. London: Gall and Inglis, n.d. [1911]. Original green cloth with pictorial spine, with front cover illustration onlay. Second (and first one-volume) Edition of Henty's first book. Agnes Ashleigh is unexpectedly bequeathed a fortune -- but the two sisters of her benefactor have other ideas... A SEARCH FOR A SECRET was initially published by Tinsley in 1867 as a three-decker -- consisting of probably no more than 300 or 400 copies; that edition is now extremely scarce, one of the toughest of all Henty first editions to find. This one-volume edition did not appear until 44 years later, after Henty's death. This copy is in green cloth, as opposed to the red copy cited by Newbolt (we have also had blue); in this copy there is gilt on the top edge only (some have all edges gilt). This is a bright, near-fine copy (endpapers cracked, 1915 Sunday School attendance prize bookplate) -- of a title we do not see very often. Newbolt 1.2.

1895. Kipling, J. Lockwood. With Illustrations by J. Lockwood Kipling, C.I.E. London: Macmillan and Co., 1895. 2 pp undated ads. Original blue cloth pictorially decorated in gilt, all page edges gilt. First English Edition (published three days after the American) of the sequel to THE JUNGLE BOOK, which had been published the year before. It continues with more tales of Mowgli that exemplify "The Laws of the Jungle" -- with illustrations by John Lockwood Kipling, Rudyard's father. This was the second of the four Kipling gift books bound similarly by Macmillan, with SOLDIER TALES and CAPTAINS COURAGEOUS coming out the following two years respectively. This is an attractive, near-fine copy (volume slightly askew, spine gilt less than bright, but no foxing and essentially no wear); the front flyleaf bears an inked "Xmas 1895" signature. Richards A85; Stewart 132.

1907. London: Methuen & Co., (1907). 40 pp ads dated Sept 1907. Original deep red cloth with gilt-decorated spine. First Edition of Conrad's tale of espionage sited in Russia. The idea for the story came from an actual 1890s revolutionary attempt to blow up the Observatory at Greenwich. Conrad initially planned this to be a short story (titled "Verloc"); however, as he "got into" it, he lengthened it into a full-blown novel. He then strove to make it a popular novel, one that would provide him with the cash he needed to get out from under pressing debts; however, after an initial flourish, sales dropped off and the book was not reprinted until 1914, after the success of CHANCE reawakened interest in Conrad. The initial printing consisted of 2,500 copies, including 500 for the colonies plus 500 for Canada. However, the good initial reception of the book prompted the publisher to use the colonial copies for the domestic market instead, replacing the colonial half-title and title with the standard… Read More

1907. New York and London: Harper & Brothers, 1907. Original light blue-grey cloth decorated in orange, white and black. First American Edition of Conrad's great novel of espionage (filmed by Alfred Hitchcock as "Sabotage"). The American edition has over a hundred variations in text from the English edition, since Methuen sent early uncorrected proofs to Harper as copytext. Harper printed 4,000 copies of the book, but initially sold only about two-thirds of them. Most of the others did not sell until after 1914 (when CHANCE reawakened interest in Conrad); these later copies have "Printed in the U. S. of America" ink-stamped onto the title verso (not present in this copy). This American edition also has one of the most unusual bindings among his works -- portraying Atropos about to cut the thread of life. This is a fine, clean copy (just a touch of rubbing at the extremities). We find this to be the very toughest American edition of Conrad to find in truly collectible condition -- due to the fact… Read More

1907. London: Methuen & Co., (1907). 40 pp ads dated Sept 1907. Original deep red cloth with gilt-decorated spine. First Edition of this tale of espionage sited in Russia. The idea for the story came from an actual 1890s revolutionary attempt to blow up the Observatory at Greenwich. Conrad initially planned this to be a short story (titled "Verloc"); however, as he "got into" it, he lengthened it into a full-blown novel. He then strove to make it a popular novel, one that would provide him with the cash he needed to get out from under pressing debts; however, after an initial flourish, sales dropped off and the book was not reprinted until 1914, after the success of CHANCE reawakened interest in Conrad. The initial printing consisted of 2,500 copies, including 500 for the colonies and 500 for Canada. However, the good initial reception of the book prompted the publisher to use the colonial copies for the domestic market instead, replacing the colonial half-title and title with the standard domestic… Read More

1907. London: Methuen & Co., (1907). 40 pp ads dated Sept 1907. Original deep red cloth with gilt-decorated spine. First Edition of this tale of espionage sited in Russia. The idea for the story came from an actual 1890s revolutionary attempt to blow up the Observatory at Greenwich. Conrad initially planned this to be a short story (titled "Verloc"); however, as he "got into" it, he lengthened it into a full-blown novel. He then strove to make it a popular novel, one that would provide him with the cash he needed to get out from under pressing debts; however, after an initial flourish, sales dropped off and the book was not reprinted until 1914, after the success of CHANCE reawakened interest in Conrad. The initial printing consisted of 2,500 copies, including 500 for Canada and 500 intended for the colonies; however, the good initial reception of the book prompted the publisher to use the colonial copies for the domestic market instead, replacing the colonial half-title and title with the standard… Read More

1907. [the Charlie Watts copy] London: Methuen & Co., (1907). 40 pp ads dated Sept 1907. Original deep red cloth with gilt-decorated spine. First Edition of Conrad's tale of espionage sited in Russia. The idea for the story came from an actual 1890s revolutionary attempt to blow up the Observatory at Greenwich. Conrad initially planned this to be a short story (titled "Verloc"); however, as he "got into" it, he lengthened it into a full-blown novel. He then strove to make it a popular novel, one that would provide him with the cash he needed to get out from under pressing debts; however, after an initial flourish, sales dropped off and the book was not reprinted until 1914, after the success of CHANCE reawakened interest in Conrad. The initial printing consisted of 2,500 copies, including 500 for the colonies and 500 for Canada. However, the good initial reception of the book prompted the publisher to use the colonial copies for the domestic market instead, replacing the colonial half-title and… Read More

1921. Nicholson, William. [in dust jacket] With Portrait and Title Page Engraved on Wood by William Nicholson. London, Liverpool and Boston: Philip Lee Warner, Publisher to the Medici Society, 1921. Original blue-grey paper-covered boards with natural linen spine with cover and spine labels, with dust jacket. Riccardi Press Edition, being copy #663 of 1000 copies. Hardy and Macmillan first published this collection of 120 poems in 1916. They selected poems that the "General Reader" might like, from Hardy's five previous volumes of verse -- plus nine from his as-yet-unpublished MOMENTS OF VISION. "Hardy set great store by the volume..., hoping it would bring his poetry to a wider public" [Purdy]. Five years later The Medici Society published this volume, illustrated by William Nicholson and printed at The Riccardi Press. This volume is in fine condition except for a bumped fore-corner; the two spare labels are still tipped in at the rear. Included is the uncommon dust jacket, which, outside of a… Read More

1936. With an Introduction by W.B. Yeats and a Drawing by Sir William Rothenstein. London: Macmillan and Co., 1936. Original pale yellow linen, with dust jacket. First Edition. Dorothy Violet Ashton (1889-1956) married the Duke of Wellington (Gerald Wellesley) in 1914, but left him and their children eight years later, for a relationship with Vita Sackville-West. According to W.B. Yeats, Wellesley was one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century -- see his Introduction to the Oxford Book of Modern Verse 1892-1935. "Within two minutes of our first meeting at my house [in 1935] he said: ‘You must sacrifice everything and everyone to your poetry'." Yeats discovered her poetry while researching the Oxford Book of Modern Verse and said "My eyes filled with tears. I read in excitement that was more delightful because it showed that I had not lost my understanding of poetry." Only later did he find who she was and what was her station in life.[Wiki] Yeats went on to edit and revise her poetry… Read More

1915. Garden City NY: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1915. Original dark blue cloth. First American Edition. The English edition had been published in 1908, and in the same year one of the six stories, "The Duel," was published alone by McClure of New York (as "The Point of Honor"). A few months later McClure went under and was bought out by Doubleday -- but since Doubleday could not acquire the copyright to most of the other five tales (because they had already been published in England), he was in no hurry to publish this volume -- until the success of CHANCE in 1913 prompted him to do so. Hence the seven-year delay of the American A SET OF SIX. In his "author's note" Conrad expresses his satisfaction at having this tale restored "to its proper home and surroundings," rather than cutting down the American edition to "A Set of Five." The volume is "rounded out" with the addition of "The Romantic Story of Joseph Conrad," much of it gleaned from Richard Curle's biography of the year before. This is a… Read More

1908. London: Methuen & Co., (1908). 40 pp ads dated February 1908. Original dark violet-blue cloth decorated in dark red and gilt. First Edition of this collection of six short stories, which consisted of 2,524 copies (including 595 for the colonies). Conrad described these tales -- "Gaspar Ruiz," "The Informer," "The Brute," "An Anarchist," "The Duel" and "Il Conde" -- as "stories of incident -- action -- not of analysis... stories in which I've tried my best to be simply entertaining." One of the stories, "The Duel," was published separately later that year in America (as "The Point of Honor"); this would cause a substantial delay (until 1915) in the American publication of the complete A SET OF SIX. In any event, there had been no rush to do so earlier, since in 1908 Conrad was at the nadir of his career -- a situation unchanged until he hit it big in 1914 with CHANCE. This copy is in the first published state, with the half-title and title leaves (a conjugate cancel) glued onto the stubs of the… Read More

1917. Garden City NY: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1917. Original blue cloth decorated in gilt, with dust jacket. First American Edition, published about a month after Dent's London edition, of one of Conrad's most autobiographical tales. To quote from the dust jacket, The "shadow line" is that dim boundary that divides youth from maturity. How a young first mate, who unexpectedly finds himself in command of a sailing vessel, leaves his carefree youth behind forever in the agonizing responsibility of a twenty-one day voyage from Bankok [sic] to Singapore. His ship is becalmed, the whole crew stricken with fever and no quinine in the medicine chest! The American edition was set from proof sheets supplied by Dent, after which Conrad made changes that were effected in the UK edition but not in the US one; as a result, "the American edition provides an interesting intermediate text between the ENGLISH REVIEW and the first Dent edition, showing the extensive changes made from serial to copy text for the… Read More

1917. Garden City NY: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1917. Original blue cloth decorated in gilt. First American Edition, published about a month after Dent's London edition. The American edition was set from proof sheets supplied by Dent, after which Conrad made changes that were effected in the UK edition but not in the US one; as a result, "the American edition provides an interesting intermediate text between the ENGLISH REVIEW and the first Dent edition, showing the extensive changes made from serial to copy text for the book, as well as the further polishing which took place in proof" [Cagle]. This is one of Conrad's most autobiographical tales; to quote from the dust jacket (not present), The "shadow line" is that dim boundary that divides youth from maturity. How a young first mate, who unexpectedly finds himself in command of a sailing vessel, leaves his carefree youth behind forever in the agonizing responsibility of a twenty-one day voyage from Bankok [sic] to Singapore. His ship is becalmed,… Read More

1909. San Francisco: A.M. Robertson, 1909. Original brown cloth decorated in black, with dust jacket. First Edition. Per the author's note, "It was expected that this book would be included in my 'Collected works' now in course of publication, but unforeseen delay in the date of publication has made this impossible." This copy is in brown buckram (others are in green, no priority). It is a fine, bright copy (the usual offset darkening of the endpapers) of this handsomely printed and bound book; its leaves remain unopoened, in fact. Included is the 1909 dust jacket, remarkably whole and clean, though there is one closed tear on the rear panel. Blanck 1127.

1917. London & Toronto: J.M. Dent & Sons, (1917). 18 pp undated ads. Original sage green cloth decorated in brown, with dust jacket. First Edition, first impression (so stated), of Conrad's third autobiographical work -- this copy printed on laid paper. As Supino explains in detail, the first impression consisted of 5,000 + 80 copies, of which 3,000 were on laid paper for the domestic market, and 2,000 were on (slimmer) wove paper for the colonial market -- but "only 600 copies of the first impression were ever bound for the colonial market, and the remaining 1,400 were diverted to the domestic market." Neither Cagle nor Supino was able to locate a colonial copy in Dent's colonial binding; both bibliographers deduce that the wove-paper copies in the standard binding constitute those 1,400 re-directed copies. This is a remarkably fine, bright copy, essentially as new; the quite uncommon dust jacket, which above Conrad's portrait poses the question "Why did the captain and the silent crew of the… Read More