David Brass Rare Books, Inc.: American Literature
found: 29 books on 2 pages. This is page 1
- Next page

 BAUM, L. Frank; DENSLOW, W.W., Dot and Tot of Merryland
BAUM, L. Frank; DENSLOW, W.W.
Dot and Tot of Merryland
Chicago: Geo. M. Hill Co,, 1901. Inscribed by L. Frank Baum to Fellow Author Harold McGrath With a Page of the Original Manuscript BAUM, L. Frank. Dot and Tot of Merryland.. Pictures by W.W. Denslow. Chicago: Geo. M. Hill Co. 1901. First Edition. Small quarto (8 5/16 x 6 3/8 inches; 211 x 162 mm.). [viii], [13]-225, [226], [2, blank] pp. Inscribed on recto of advertisement leaf "To the coming man if / not already came) / Harold McGrath / with the most obstinate / admiration of his friend / L Frank Baum. / Chicago / September / 6th 1901" Publisher's pictorial tan cloth. Front cover pictorially decorated in red, black and gilt, rear cover pictorially decorated in red and black, spine decorated in red and black. Original pictorial endpapers in red, black and tan, front free endpaper chipped at edge. The front hinge and the spine extremities and corners have been expertly restored. Housed in a felt-lined quarter black morocco over black cloth clamshell case, spine with five raised bands decoratively ruled and lettered in gilt in compartments. Affixed to the verso of the front free endpaper is a folded page of the original manuscript containing the first twenty lines of page 196. "I am sure of that, Mr. Split," answered / the Queen. Dot and Tot had been so astonished / at all this that they had stood / perfectly still[without speaking,] / and (without) noticing this Mr. Split came / toward them [and,](with his key raised) raising his key, / (and said) he asked, briskly: / "Where are your key[-] holes[,] my dears? / You must have run down." "Oh, no!" cried Dot, shrinking back; / "We're--we're alive!" / "Oh, that is different," returned the / man, with a laugh. "I'm glad / you are not to be wound up, for I / am so busy now that there ought / to be three or four of me instead / of two." / "You're funny," remarked Tot, who / had been staring at Mr. Split. / "Thank you, sir," replied the man, / bowing politely. / "What are you made of?" asked the / [boy, curiously.] p. 196 the first twenty lines. A fantastic presentation copy to a fellow major author where L. Frank Baum has included a fine page of his original manuscript. Dot and Tot of Merryland is a novel by L. Frank Baum that published by the Geo. M. Hill company of Chicago in 1901. After Baum wrote The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, he wrote this story about the adventures of a little girl named Dot and a little boy named Tot in a land reached by floating on a river that flowed through a tunnel. The land was called Merryland and was split into seven valleys. The book was illustrated by artist W. W. Denslow, who had illustrated three previous Baum books. Unlike The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Dot and Tot of Merryland contained no tipped in color plates, but was filled with colored text illustrations. There were four full page pictures. The book is the last Baum book that was illustrated by W. W. Denslow. Evangeline "Dot" Freeland is sent to her rich father's country estate Roselawn for her health. She soon meets the gardener's son "Tot" Thompson, who becomes her friend and playmate. One day, they have a picnic and sit in a boat they find by the river, which gets away and takes them to a passage in a cliff face that brings them to the magical country of Merryland. Merryland is made of seven valleys, arranged in a circular pattern connected by a river running through them. The first valley is populated by clowns, the second is a land in which everything-including the people-is entirely made of candy, and the third the valley where babies grow from blossoms before storks deliver them to their parents. The fourth valley is populated by living dolls and is also the home of the Queen of Merryland, a large wax doll who makes Dot and Tot her adopted children. After Dot and Tot have a day of running the valley by themselves, the queen joins Dot and Tot to see the remaining three valleys. The fifth valley is populated entirely by cats, the sixth valley is run by Mr. Split, who makes wind up animals. The final valley is the Valley of Lost Things, where every lost item goes. Tot finds a doll he'd lost and is allowed to take it with him. The Queen decides to allow Dot and Tot to travel onward, which will take them back to Roselawn, but she will close the way to Merryland forever. Returning to the river, Dot is found by her father who notices that she no longer looks sickly. Tot deduces that the Queen of Merryland-who was either interrupted or forgot to answer when asked her name-must be named "Dolly." Harold MacGrath (September 4, 1871 - October 30, 1932) was a best-selling and prolific American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. He sometimes completed more than one novel per year for the mass market, covering romance, spies, mystery, and adventure. He was the first nationally known writer to be commissioned to write original screenplays for the new film industry. In addition, he had eighteen novels and three short stories adapted as films, in some cases more than once. Three of these novels were also adapted as plays that were produced on Broadway in New York City. MacGrath traveled extensively but was always based in Syracuse, New York, where he was born and raised. As a young man, he worked as a reporter and columnist for the Syracuse Herald newspaper until the late 1890s, when he published his first novel, a romance titled Arms and the Woman. According to the New York Times, his next book, The Puppet Crown, was the No.7 best-selling book in the United States for all of 1901. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 05341
USD 14500.00 [Appr.: EURO 13544.25 | £UK 11612.25 | JP¥ 2294672]
Keywords: DENSLOW, W.W. Children's Books Illustrated Books Inscribed Copies Manuscripts

 BURNETT, Frances Hodgson, Little Lord Fauntleroy
BURNETT, Frances Hodgson
Little Lord Fauntleroy
New-York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1886. First Edition, First Isue of Little Lord Fauntleroy With a Signed Quotation from the Book BURNETT, Frances Hodgson. Little Lord Fauntleroy. New-York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1886. First edition, first issue, with the imprint of the De Vinne Press on the verso of the final leaf of text. With a signed ink quotation from the book loosely inserted ""He was always/lovable because/he was simple and/loving"/Frances Hodgson Burnett". (p. 205, line 16). Small quarto (8 1/4 x 6 1/2 inches; 209 x 165 mm.). xi, [xii], 209, [1], [14, ads] pp. With twenty-six illustrations from drawings by Reginald B. Birch, many of them full-page. Publisher's green cloth, front cover and spine pictorially stamped in red, black and gilt, brown coated endpapers. Minimal rubbing to extremities, inner hinges sound. An excellent copy with an original quotation from the book. Chemised in a quarter dark blue morocco slipcase (chemise joints neatly strengthened). Little Lord Fauntleroy is a sentimental novel by the English-American writer Frances Hodgson Burnett, her first children's novel. It was published as a serial in St. Nicholas Magazine from November 1885 to October 1886, then as a book by Scribner's (the publisher of St. Nicholas) in 1886. The novel's protagonist, Cedric, and his mother, Dearest, live in America until Cedric learns that he is to inherit the title and estate of his paternal grandfather. The mother and son then move to England, where Cedric, as Lord Fauntleroy, charms his embittered grandfather, the Earl of Dorincourt, and everyone else he meets with his open, egalitarian ways. In the illustrations for the novel and in the popular stage play that followed, Cedric's hair was worn in shoulder-length curls. He is clad in velvet knee pants and a white lace collar (which would later be referred to as a Lord Fauntleroy collar). Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett (1849-1924) was a British-born American novelist and playwright who was born in Cheetham, Manchester, England. She is best known for the three children's novels Little Lord Fauntleroy (1886), A Little Princess (1905), and The Secret Garden (1911). After her father died in 1852, the family fell on straitened circumstances and in 1865 they emigrated to the United States, settling in New Market, Tennessee. There, Frances began writing to help earn money for the family, publishing stories in magazines from the age of 19. In 1870, her mother died, and in 1872 she married Swan Burnett, who became a medical doctor. The Burnetts lived for two years in Paris, where their two sons were born, before returning to the United States to live in Washington, D.C. Burnett then began to write novels, the first of which (That Lass o' Lowrie's), was published to good reviews. Little Lord Fauntleroy was published in 1886 and made her a popular writer of children's fiction, although her romantic adult novels written in the 1890s were also popular. She wrote and helped to produce stage versions of Little Lord Fauntleroy and A Little Princess. Beginning in the 1880s, Burnett began to travel to England frequently and in the 1890s bought a home there, where she wrote The Secret Garden. Her oldest son, Lionel, died of tuberculosis in 1890, which caused a relapse of the depression she had struggled with for much of her life. She divorced Swan Burnett in 1898, married Stephen Townsend in 1900, and divorced him in 1902. A few years later she settled in Nassau County, New York, where she died in 1924 and is buried in Roslyn Cemetery. In 1936 a memorial sculpture by Bessie Potter Vonnoh was erected in her honor in Central Park's Conservatory Garden. The statue depicts her two famous Secret Garden characters, Mary and Dickon. BAL 2064. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 04735
USD 1950.00 [Appr.: EURO 1821.5 | £UK 1561.75 | JP¥ 308594]
Keywords: Books into Film Nineteenth-Century Literature

 CLARKE, Harry; POE, Edgar Allan, Tales of Mystery and Imagination by Edgar Allan Poe
CLARKE, Harry; POE, Edgar Allan
Tales of Mystery and Imagination by Edgar Allan Poe
London: George G. Harrap & Co. 1928. The Morbid Imaginings of Poe's Extraordinary Genius..The Drawings Are Extremely Beautiful" Illustrated by Harry Clarke [CLARKE, Harry, illustrator]. POE, Edgar Allan. Tales of Mystery and Imagination. Illustrated by Harry Clarke. London: George G. Harrap & Co. [1928]. Reprint of the second trade edition (the first with color plates). Quarto (10 9/16 x 8 inches; 269 x 203 mm.). 381, [2], [1, blank] pp. Eight color plates mounted on gray paper (including frontispiece), twenty-four black and white plates, and twenty-seven decorative tail-pieces and vignettes. Publisher's black cloth with pictorial paper label printed in gold and black on front cover. Spine pictorially stamped and lettered in gilt, top edge gilt, others uncut. Minor rubbing to extremities. Some light foxing to endpapers and preliminary leaves. A very good copy. Tales of Mystery and Imagination was first published in 1919 with twenty-four black and white plates. It was republished in 1923 with all but one of the black and white plates in the 1919 edition (The Colloquy of Monos and Una illustration (facing p. 240) replaced by an extra Pit and the Pendulum illustration (facing p. 252)), three extra tail-pieces (twenty-seven in all, the ten basic designs being repeated a number of times), and eight additional color plates tipped in on gray card (cf. Bowe). "Mr. Harry Clarke has allowed himself full liberty in attempting to express the features of Poe's Tales which differentiate them from others. In his drawings, the morbid imaginings of Poe's extraordinary genius are depicted without any attempt to soften their weird effects upon most readers. At the same time the drawings are extremely beautiful. They exhibit a wealth of delicate and intricate design such as few other, if any, living artists can command" (Harrap's advertising feature in the Bookman's Christmas Supplement, quoted in Bowe, p. 52). Henry Patrick Clarke RHA, aka Harry Clarke (1889-1931) was an Irish stained-glass artist and book illustrator. Born in Dublin, he was a leading figure in the Irish Arts and Crafts Movement. His work was influenced by both the Art Nouveau and Art Deco movements. His stained glass was particularly informed by the French Symbolist movement. He is remembered especially for his illustrations Edgar Allan Poe's Tales of Mystery and Imagination. The first version was published by Harrap in 1919 and was restricted to halftone illustrations, while a second with eight colour plates and more than 24 halftone images was published in 1923, also by Harrap. It was reprinted several times in 1923, 1926 & 1928 after which it was reprinted many times by Brentano's and the Tudor Publishing Company, both of New York. This edition with the eight color plates made his reputation as a book illustrator, during the golden age of gift-book illustration in the first quarter of the twentieth century. See Bowe, pp. 149-150. Steenson A2.j. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 00101
USD 450.00 [Appr.: EURO 420.5 | £UK 360.5 | JP¥ 71214]
Keywords: POE, Edgar Allan American Literature Illustrated Books Nineteenth-Century Literature Horror Illustrated Books Horror Literature Nineteenth-Century Literature

 COOPER, James Fenimore, Chainbearer, the; or the Littlepage Manuscripts
COOPER, James Fenimore
Chainbearer, the; or the Littlepage Manuscripts
New-York: Burgess, Stringer and Company, 1845. The Growing Corruption of Civilization" James Fenimore Cooper's The Chainbearer in the Original Printed Wrappers A Remarkable Survival COOPER, James Fenimore. The Chainbearer; or The Littlepage Manuscripts. Edited by the Author of "Satanstoe," "Spy," "Pathfinder," "Two Admirals, " etc. In Two Volumes. New-York: Burgess, Stringer and Company, 1845. First American Edition. Two octavo volumes (7 11/16 x 4 9/16 inches; 196 x 117 mm.). [i]-iii, iv-vi, 7-212; [1-3], 4-228 pp. Publisher's pale buff paper printed wrappers. The wrappers have been noted by BAL in three different states. No sequence has been determined and the order presented is arbitrary. The wrappers may have been printed simultaneously. In the present copy the wrappers on volume I are in State 'B' with inner front "Mrs. Ellis's Housekeeping"; inner back "History of All Christian Sects.." and back wrapper with "The Great Book". The wrappers on volume II are in State 'A' with inner front "New and Beautiful Edition"; inner back "The Great Book" and back wrapper with "Cheap Books". Some light scattered foxing and or staining. Clean tear to lower margin of pp. iii/iv of preface in volume one. Lower wrapper of volume one with small piece (1 5/8 x 9/16 inches maximum) torn away from blank margin not touching any of the print on recto or verso, a couple of stains on the front and rear wrappers. A remarkable survival, generally bright and fresh, with no restoration whatsoever. Individually chemised and housed in a quarter red morocco over red cloth board slip-case. The first London edition, which preceded the American edition by about one month, was published in three volumes on November 22nd, 1845. The Chainbearer; or The Littlepage Manuscripts is the second book in a trilogy starting with Satanstoe (1845) and ending with The Redskins (1846). The novel focuses mainly on issues of land ownership and the displacement of American Indians as the United States moves Westward. Critical to the trilogy of these novels, is the sense of expansion through the measuring and acquisition of land by civilization. The title The Chainbearer represents "the man who carries the chains in measuring the land, the man who helps civilization to grow from the wilderness, but who at the same time continues the chain of evil, increases the potentiality for corruption." The central position of the "Chainbearer" allows Cooper to deal with the cultural lack of understanding Native Americans had of European concepts of land ownership. This in turn allows Cooper to critique ownership in general. Also, Cooper, like in many of his novels, focuses on the growing corruption of individuals in "civilization" as it expands. This Cooper attributes "an inherent principle in the corrupt nature of man to misuse all his privileges. If history proves anything, it proves this." Two characters, in particular, represent this growing corruption of civilization, Andries Mordaunt, the chainbearer, and Aaron, known as "Thousandacres". The men represent different types of the civilization, Mordaunt as the usurper of old civilization and Thousandacres representing an older society which the new "civilization" means to usurp. Eventually this new civilization decides to embrace force in order to lay full claim on the land. This displacement of Native Americans by the ever expansionist Americans repeatedly becomes an issue for Cooper throughout the trilogy of novels. In so doing, Cooper presents a very strong critique of Americans and America. (Wikipedia). .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 03755
USD 7500.00 [Appr.: EURO 7005.75 | £UK 6006.25 | JP¥ 1186899]
Keywords: Nineteenth-Century Literature

 CRANE, Hart; LIMITED EDITIONS CLUB; BENSON, Richard, photographer; COWLEY, Malcolm, introduction, Bridge, the
CRANE, Hart; LIMITED EDITIONS CLUB; BENSON, Richard, photographer; COWLEY, Malcolm, introduction
Bridge, the
New York: Printed for the Members of The Limited Editions Club, 1981. A Monument of American Poetry" CRANE, Hart. The Bridge. A Poem.. With an Introduction by Malcolm Cowley and Photographs by Richard Benson. New York: Printed for the Members of The Limited Editions Club, 1981. Limited to 2,000 copies signed by Richard Benson, this being no. 521. Large quarto (11 15/16 x 9 inches; 304 x 228 mm.). 96 pp. Illustrated with five photographic plates (including one double-page) by Richard Benson. Publisher's silver-gray Dutch natural-finish cloth, front cover with title stamped in blind, spine lettered in blue, decorative end-papers. A fine copy in the publisher's matching slip-case. Harold Hart Crane (1899-1932) was an American poet. Finding both inspiration and provocation in the poetry of T. S. Eliot, Crane wrote modernist poetry that was difficult, highly stylized, and ambitious in its scope. In his most ambitious work, The Bridge, Crane sought to write an epic poem, in the vein of The Waste Land, that expressed a more optimistic view of modern, urban culture than the one that he found in Eliot's work. In the years following his suicide at the age of thirty-two, Crane has been hailed by playwrights, poets, and literary critics alike (including Robert Lowell, Derek Walcott, Tennessee Williams, and Harold Bloom), as being one of the most influential poets of his generation. Richard Benson (born 1943) is a photographer, printer and educator who utilizes photographic processing techniques of the past and present. Benson has a broad range of interests in the photographic print-silver, platinum, palladium, and ink. Working in these different mediums, sometimes learning forgotten crafts and sometimes creating new ones, he has become convinced that ink and the modern photo offset press possess a potential for photographic rendition beyond anything else previously known. In recent years he has been working on the relationship between the computer and traditional photographic imagery, and has been applying the lessons from this in the production of long run offset books of work by different photographers, in both black and white and color. Limited Editions Club Bibliography, 520. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 03680
USD 200.00 [Appr.: EURO 187 | £UK 160.25 | JP¥ 31651]
Keywords: LIMITED EDITIONS CLUB BENSON, Richard, photographer COWLEY, Malcolm, introduction Illustrated Books Poetry Signed Limited Edition Limited Editions

 FITZGERALD, F. Scott, Tender Is the Night
FITZGERALD, F. Scott
Tender Is the Night
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1934. On the pleasant shore of the French Riviera.." FITZGERALD, F. Scott. Tender is the Night. A Romance by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Decorations by Edward Shenton.New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1934. First edition, first printing. Octavo. [viii], [1]-408 pp. Publisher's ribbed green cloth, front cover bordered in blind, spine lettered in gilt, fore edge untrimmed. Pages 401-408 have been poorly opened, but this only affects the blank margins. The bare minimum of rubbing to extremities. An excellent copy with none of the foxing or browning that is often associated with this title. The first printing of 7,600 copies soon sold out, and subsequent printings continued to sell during the Depression. Fitzgerald rearranged the narrative's order for later editions and the original text was not restored for many years. "In 1932 Fitzgerald had material that he felt strongly about: Zelda's breakdown and his own deterioration. When he resumed work on the novel that would have to recoup his reputation, he had a store of painful emotions to draw on. Tender is the Night became in the writing his attempt to understand the loss of everything he had won, the loss of everything he had ever wanted" (Bruccoli, Life, p. 335). F. Scott Fitzgerald's fourth and final novel, published nine years after The Great Gatsby. Set in French Riviera during the twilight of the Jazz Age, the novel chronicles the rise and fall of Dick Diver, a promising young psychiatrist, and his wife, Nicole, who is one of his patients. The story mirrors events in the lives of the author and his wife Zelda Fitzgerald as Dick starts his descent into alcoholism and Nicole descends into mental illness. Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (1896-1940) was an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. He is best known for his novels depicting the flamboyance and excess of the Jazz Age—a term he popularized in his short story collection Tales of the Jazz Age. During his lifetime, he published four novels, four story collections, and 164 short stories. Although he achieved temporary popular success and fortune in the 1920s, Fitzgerald received critical acclaim only after his death and is now widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Bruccoli A15.I.a. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 05721
USD 2250.00 [Appr.: EURO 2101.75 | £UK 1802 | JP¥ 356070]
Keywords: Modern Firsts

 HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel, Grandfather's Chair
HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel
Grandfather's Chair
Boston: E.P. Peabody, 1841. True Stories from New England History, 1620-1808 HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel. Grandfather's Chair: A History for Youth. Boston: E.P. Peabody. New York:-Wiley & Putnam, 1841. First edition. Sixteenmo (4 7/8 x 3 1/4 inches; 124 x 82 mm.). viii, [9] - 140. Publishers basket-weave plum cloth, cream endpapers. Without the gilt lettered black paper label on the front cover, otherwise a near fine copy of this scarce little book. Chemised in a quarter dark green morocco slip-case. BAL, 7590; Browne, p. 38. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 03108
USD 750.00 [Appr.: EURO 700.75 | £UK 600.75 | JP¥ 118690]
Keywords: Children's Books Nineteenth-Century Literature

 HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel, Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys, A.
HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel
Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys, A.
Boston: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, 1852. First Edition, First Printing of Nathaniel Hawthorne's Most Famous Children's Book Six Tales Adapted from Greek Myths HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel. A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys. With engravings by Baker from designs by Billings. Boston: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, 1852. First edition, first printing, with the misprint "lifed" for lifted" on p. 21, line 3. Small octavo (6 5/8 x 4 3/8 inches; 169 x 111 mm.). [2, flyleaf], [i]-vi, [7]-256, [2, flyleaf] pp. Frontispiece and six inserted engraved plates after designs by Hammat Billings, all with original tissue-guards. Original gray-green, vertically ribbed cloth, covers stamped in blind, spine lettered in gilt, pale yellow wove endpapers. Some occasional and minimal light marginal soiling. Spine extremities expertly and almost invisibly strengthened (only visible under ultra-violet light), minimal rubbing to corners. Original endpapers and hinges untouched. A wonderful example of this superb collection of six children's tales adapted from Greek myths. First Edition, first printing, of this collection of six children's tales adapted from Greek myths. Although dated 1852 on the title-page, A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys was actually published in November 1851. 3,067 copies were printed, of which 100 were distributed for review and the other 2,967 earned Hawthorne a 15% royalty on the 75-cent price. A second printing was ordered almost immediately, in December 1851, also dated 1852 - but with the misprint on p. 21 corrected. Although Hawthorne had written a number of histories, biographies and morals for children prior to the publication of The Scarlet Letter in 1850, these early stories were primarily undertaken as hack-work and published in periodicals. Following the success of The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne attempted to capitalize on his fame with two intended money-makers, A Wonder-Book and Tanglewood Tales, in 1853. Both were very popular and have since been celebrated for their retelling of myths for children. Includes six tales: "The Gorgon s Head," "The Paradise of Children," "The Three Golden Apples," "The Miraculous Pitcher," and "The Chimaera," as well as Hawthorne s version of the King Midas tale, "The Golden Touch." The popular success of A Wonder-Book led Hawthorne to publish another volume of children s stories in 1853, Tanglewood Tales. In his introduction to that book, he wrote "Children possess an unestimated sensitivity to whatever is deep or high, in imagination or feeling, so long as it is simple, likewise. It is only the artificial and the complex that bewilders them." Hawthorne wrote A Wonder-Book immediately after The House of the Seven Gables. That novel had sold 6,710 copies by August 1851, and A Wonder-Book sold 4,667 copies in just two months after its November 1851 publication. By comparison, his friend Herman Melville's novel Moby-Dick was released the same month, with the British edition selling under 300 copies in two years, and the American edition under 1,800 in the first year. BAL 7606; Clark A18.1.a; Grolier Hawthorne 25; Peter Parley to Penrod, p.6. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 04713
USD 2500.00 [Appr.: EURO 2335.25 | £UK 2002.25 | JP¥ 395633]
Keywords: Children's Books Classical Literature Fantasy Literature Nineteenth-Century Literature

 [COOKERY]. HEARNE, Lafcadio, Cuisine Creole, la
[COOKERY]. HEARNE, Lafcadio
Cuisine Creole, la
New York: Will H. Coleman, 1885. A classic of Creole cooking, and the first book published on the subject [HEARN, Lafcadio]. La Cuisine Creole. A Collection of Culinary Recipes from leading chefs and noted Creole housewives, who have made New Orleans famous for its cuisine. New York: Will H. Coleman, [1885]. First edition (BAL state B with the Introduction on one page, and with the word Brulot with an umlaut instead of an accent). Octavo (7 3/8 x 5 3/4 inches; 188 x 146 mm.). [ii, blank], [iii], [i, blank], [1]-268 pp. Over-opened at pp. 172/173, small marginal stain affecting front endpapers and first five leaves only, a few very small marginal stains on p. 217. Publisher's brown cloth, front cover pictorially decorated with a tureen, crab, and crawfish in gilt and black, lilac endpapers. Plain spine as issued, a few stains on back cover, lower half of front inner hinge cracked and repaired. Chemised in a quarter black morocco slipcase, spine with five raised bands, lettered in gilt in compartments. A very good, almost untouched copy of a classic of Creole cooking and the first book published on this culinary tradition. Published in 1885, this pioneering work compiles the recipes of New Orleans in one volume. Celebrating the range of ethnic influences on Creole cuisine, the book contains recipes for many of the classic New Orleans dishes. Having being written by Lafcadio Hearn, one of New Orleans greatest literary talents, it shows a more literary flair than most modern cookbooks. An interesting mix of Northern imports, home grown recipes and French influenced dishes, with a nice selection of wines, sherries and champagne at the end. Patrick Lafcadio Hearn (1850-1904) was an Irish writer, translator, and teacher who introduced the culture and literature of Japan to the West. Before moving to Japan and becoming a Japanese citizen, he worked as a journalist in the United States, primarily in Cincinnati and New Orleans. His writings about New Orleans, based on his decade-long stay there, are also well-known. Hearn lived in New Orleans for nearly a decade, writing first for the newspaper Daily City Item beginning in June 1878, and later for the Times Democrat. Hearn's writings for national publications, such as Harper's Weekly and Scribner's Magazine, helped create the popular reputation of New Orleans as a place with a distinctive culture more akin to that of Europe and the Caribbean than to the rest of North America. The vast number of his writings about New Orleans and its environs, many of which have not been collected, include the city's Creole population and distinctive cuisine, the French Opera, and Louisiana Voodoo. Hearn wrote enthusiastically of New Orleans, but also wrote of the city's decay, "a dead bride crowned with orange flowers". Hearn's best-known Louisiana works including La Cuisine Créole (1885), a collection of culinary recipes from leading chefs and noted Creole housewives who helped make New Orleans famous for its cuisine. BAL 7913 (state B); Bitting, p. 221; Cagle, 348; Johnson, American First Editions, p. 94; Perkins, Lafcadio Hearn, A Bibliography, p. 10. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 05778
USD 1450.00 [Appr.: EURO 1354.5 | £UK 1161.25 | JP¥ 229467]
Keywords: Americana Food Cookery

 HEMINGWAY, Ernest, Across the River and Into the Trees
HEMINGWAY, Ernest
Across the River and Into the Trees
London: Jonathan Cape, 1950. Reflections on a Life HEMINGWAY, Ernest. Across the River and Into the Trees. London: Jonathan Cape, [1950]. First English edition, First Printing. Octavo (7 1/2 x 4 7/8 inches; 191 x 124 mm.). [1]-254 pp. Publisher's green cloth, front cover with decoration in red, spine lettered in red and silver. First issue pictorial dust jacket with "9s 6d. net" printed on lower front flap. Minimal rubbing to extremities of dust jacket. An excellent example. The UK edition preceded the the US edition by four days. "Across the River and Into the Trees first appeared in Cosmopolitan, CXXVIII (Feb. 1950 - June 1950). Numerous changes, additions, and omissions were made prior to book publication. For example: "Conte Carlo" was changed to "Count Andrea"; the passages regarding "the Honorable Pacciardi," on pp. 39-41, were added; the passages regarding d'Annunzio, on pp. 49-51, were added; the whole of Ch. XXXVII was added; the deletions were filled in; etc.. Across the River and Into the Trees appeared on the N.Y. Times Book Review's Best Seller List from September 24, 1950 to February 11, 1951. During the twenty-one weeks that it appeared, it was in first place for seven weeks, from October 15 to November 26, 1950. Twenty-five "advance copies," issued in blue cloth, were printed from discarded plates after the first edition was run off.. These "advance copies" contain the following errors: On p.21, line 26, "Papadopohi" should read "Papadopoli". On p. 24, line 5, there should be a period after "got" and "o" made a capital in "One". On p. 80, line 21, the second "how" should be omitted." (Hanneman, pp. 61-62). Ernest Hemingway (1899 - 1961). Across the River and Into the Trees was his last novel and tells the story of American Colonel Richard Cantwell during the last day of his life as he recalls his experiences in war and love as a younger man in Venice. Hemingway took the title of this novel from the last words of General Thomas J. ("Stonewall") Jackson, quoted on page 307: "Let us cross over the river and rest under the shade of the trees." Like much of his writing, this novel is highly autobiographical. Also in typical Hemingway fashion, Across the River utilizes the Iceberg Theory, in which the true essence of the story is not expressly said in the plot but rather is meant to be inferred. Hanneman 23A. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 05722
USD 800.00 [Appr.: EURO 747.5 | £UK 640.75 | JP¥ 126603]
Keywords: Modern Firsts

 MILLER, Arthur; BASKIN, Leonard; LIMITED EDITIONS CLUB, Death of a Salesman
MILLER, Arthur; BASKIN, Leonard; LIMITED EDITIONS CLUB
Death of a Salesman
New York City: The Limited Editions Club, 1949. One of Fifteen Hundred Copies Signed By Arthur Miller and Leonard Baskin MILLER, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. Certain Private Conversations in Two Acts and a Requiem. With five etchings by Leonard Baskin. New York City: The Limited Editions Club, [1984]. Limited to 1,500 copies signed by the author and the illlustrator (this being no. 1324). Quarto (10 1/2 x 8 inches; 267 x 203 mm.). [viii], [1]-164, [165, verso blank], [colophon leaf signed in pencil by Arthur Miller and Leonard Baskin, verso blank] pp.] Publisher's full brown morocco [by Gray Parrot Incorporated], smooth spine lettered in gilt. A fine copy in the publisher's gray board slipcase. Loosely inserted is the monthly newsletter for December 1984. "This book was Designed by Ben Shiff.. set in American and English Monotype Bulmer by Dan Carr and Julia Ferrarie at Golgonooza Letter Foundry. The text was printed by Daniel Kelcher at the Wild Carrot Letterpress. The etchings were printed by Bruce Chandler at The Heron Press.. Bound by Gray Parrot Incorporated." (Colophon). Death of a Salesman is a 1949 stage play written by the American playwright Arthur Miller. The play premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742 performances. It is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn told through a montage of memories, dreams, and arguments of the protagonist Willy Loman, a travelling salesman who is despondent with his life and appears to be slipping into senility. The play addresses a variety of themes, such as the American Dream, the anatomy of truth, and infidelity. It won the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play. It is considered by some critics to be one of the greatest plays of the 20th century. The play was selected as one of the best plays of 1948-1949, with an excerpted version published in The Burns Mantle Best Plays of 1948-1949. Arthur Asher Miller (1915 -2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are All My Sons (1947), Death of a Salesman (1949), The Crucible (1953), and A View from the Bridge (1955). He wrote several screenplays, including The Misfits (1961). The drama Death of a Salesman is considered one of the best American plays of the 20th century. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 05738
USD 650.00 [Appr.: EURO 607.25 | £UK 520.75 | JP¥ 102865]
Keywords: BASKIN, Leonard LIMITED EDITIONS CLUB Illustrated Books Plays Signed Limited Edition

 O'NEILL, Eugene, Days without End
O'NEILL, Eugene
Days without End
New York: Random House, 1934. O'Neill's "Modern Miracle Play" O'NEILL, Eugene. Days Without End. New York: Random House, [1934]. First edition. Limited to 325 numbered copies printed on all-rag paper and signed by the author (this being copy No. 208). Large octavo (9 5/8 x 6 1/2 inches; 243 x 164 mm.). 157, [3, blank] pp. Publisher's full blue calf. Spine with raised bands and red and white morocco labels lettered in gilt. Top edge gilt, others uncut. A few rubbed spots to spine, mild scuffing to edges. A very good copy. In the original slipcase (slipcase intact, but distressed). "A modern miracle play by Eugene O'Neill. [Henry Miller Theatre, 57 perf.] John Loving is two men simultaneously: John (Earle Larimore), his generous, idealistic half, and Loving (Stanley Ridges), his baser self. Embittered at life, he has abandoned religion and made a god of love. But he has not been faithful even to his new deity. Loving decides to write a book about his experiences and tells his story to a priest (Robert Loraine) and his wife, Elsa (Selena Royle). The shock of hearing her husband's history makes Elsa deathly ill. Mortified, John prostrates himself before the cross and re-embraces Catholicism; John's reaffirmation kills Loving and saves his wife. Although highly praised by the Catholic press, most other American critics treated the Theatre Guild production harshly, seeing it largely as a failed literary exercise rather than a vital drama. Curiously, the play was accorded a better reception the following year when it opened in London. The play's American failure may have played some part in the withdrawal of O'Neill, heretofore prolific, from the stage. He did not return to Broadway until twelve years later with The Iceman Cometh, though he continued to write" (The Oxford Companion to American Theatre). Atkinson A34-I-1.b. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 00153
USD 600.00 [Appr.: EURO 560.5 | £UK 480.5 | JP¥ 94952]
Keywords: American Literature Modern Firsts Theater Modern Firsts Literature Plays Signed Limited Edition

 RACKHAM, Arthur; Ford, Julia Ellsworth; Ford, Lauren, Imagina
RACKHAM, Arthur; Ford, Julia Ellsworth; Ford, Lauren
Imagina
New York: Duffield & Company, 1914. With Two Full-Page Color Plates by Arthur Rackham [RACKHAM, Arthur, illustrator]. FORD, Julia Ellsworth. Imagina. With Illustrations by Arthur Rackham and Lauren Ford. New York: Duffield & Company, 1914. First edition. Quarto (9 1/2 x 7 5/16 inches; x 242 x 185 mm.). [12], 178, [1], [1, blank] pp. Two color plates by Arthur Rackham (including frontispiece) and numerous black and white drawings in the text by Lauren Ford. Pages 171/172 with lower corner crease, pages 173-176 with neat repairs on upper blank margin. Publisher's light blue cloth pictorially stamped and lettered in gilt on front cover and lettered in gilt on spine. Pictorial end-papers in pale blue and white by Lauren Ford. Extremities of binding a little faded, some slight wear to top and and bottom of spine and corners. A good copy of the scarce first edition. A wee young, motherless boy, a dreamer who secretly loves poetry, yearns to be held and loved by the beautiful woman he has conjured in his mind in the dim moonlight - Imagina - and communes with trees, birds, flowers, and his dog, Kit, all of whom understand and accept him as he is rather than how his no-nonsense guardian would prefer him to be. "Julia Ellsworth Ford was a New York socialite, art collector and patron, and author of children's books. She was married to Simeon Ford, a financier and co-owner of the Grand Union Hotel in New York. Ford presided over a salon that included the Lebanese mystic Kahlil Gibran, Irish poet W. B. Yeats, and American dancer Isadora Duncan. Her published works include: Simeon Solomon: An Appreciation (1908), Imagina (1914), and Snickerty Nick (1919), among others" (Yale University, Julia Ellsworth Ford papers). Riall, p. 123. See Latimore and Haskell, p. 42. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 03940
USD 250.00 [Appr.: EURO 233.75 | £UK 200.25 | JP¥ 39563]
Keywords: Ford, Julia Ellsworth Ford, Lauren Illustrated Books Children's Books Fairies Children's Books Illustrated Books

 RACKHAM, Arthur; IRVING, Washington, Rip Van Winkle
RACKHAM, Arthur; IRVING, Washington
Rip Van Winkle
Paris: Hachette et Cie. 1906. De Luxe Edition in French This Copy Specially Signed By Rackham [RACKHAM, Arthur, illustrator]. IRVING, Washington. Rip Van Winkle. Illustré par Arthur Rackham. Paris: Hachette et Cie.1906. French Edition De Luxe, limited to 200 unsigned letterpress-numbered copies on 'Papier Whatman', this being copy no. 199, specially signed by Rackham. Quarto (11 x 8 5/8 in; 280 x 216 mm). x, 69, [3] pp. Frontispiece and fifty color plates with captioned tissue guards mounted on heavy brown stock. Publisher's full gilt-stamped vellum with original yellow ribbon ties. Small marginal wormhole affecting just the front free endpaper and the limitation leaf. An excellent copy, the binding fresh and clean. Housed in a plain chemise-style case. In 1906 Hachette et Cie, Paris, published two Edition DeLuxe versions of this title. There were 200 unsigned copies on 'Papier Whatman' and in addition another 20 copies that were signed by Rackham and printed on 'Papier du Japon.' Around the middle of 1904.. Ernest Brown & Phillips commissioned 50 color illustrations to Rip Van Winkle, and purchased the originals and all rights for 300 guineas. The publishing rights were then resold in a complicated deal to Heinemann, before the illustrations were exhibited at Brown and Phillips' Leicester Galleries.. Most of the Rip drawings were sold at the exhibition, and by October they had all found purchasers. "Brown and Phillips' investment, made secure by the keenness of Rackham's purchasers, was not let down by the reviews his work received. ".. When, in September 1905, Rip Van Winkle was published, comparisons between Rackham and German artists [i.e. Dürer and Joseph Sattler] continued to be voiced, The Times remarking on 'the marvel of his Düreresque detail.' ".. The 51 illustrations, for a story of not more than five thousand words, enables the story to be told twice, once through Irving's words, and once again, image by image, through Rackham's pictures.. In his illustrations, Rackham pays homage not only to Dürer, Cruikshank and Dutch seventeenth-century painting, but to contemporary artists, too.." (Hamilton). ".. But the first work that greatly advanced his fame in the years immediately following his marriage was his edition of Rip Van Winkle.. This lovely book decisively established Rackham as the leading decorative illustrator of the Edwardian period.. The deluxe edition of the book was fully subscribed before the [Leicester Galleries] exhibition closed" (Hudson). Riall, p. 70. Latimore and Haskell, p. 26. .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 02512
USD 1950.00 [Appr.: EURO 1821.5 | £UK 1561.75 | JP¥ 308594]
Keywords: IRVING, Washington Children's Books Illustrated Books Signed Limited Edition American Literature Children's Books Illustrated Books Signed Limited Edition

 RACKHAM, Arthur; IRVING, Washington, Rip Van Winkle
RACKHAM, Arthur; IRVING, Washington
Rip Van Winkle
London: William Heinemann, 1905. First Trade Edition Fifty-One Mounted Color Plates [RACKHAM, Arthur, illustrator]. IRVING, Washington. Rip Van Winkle. London: William Heinemann, 1905. First Trade Edition. Quarto (9 7/8 x 7 1/4 inches; 251 x 184 mm.). viii, 57, [1 blank], [2]pp. Color frontispiece and fifty color plates mounted with titles tissue guards. Publishers green cloth, pictorially stamped in gilt on front cover and lettered in gilt on spine, plain green end-papers, all edges stained green. Preliminary text leaves and some tissue-guards foxed, spine slightly faded and a little worn at head and tail. Small repaired tear cloth on edge of front board, lower corners worn. In inscription date Xmas 1905 on verso of front free end-paper. A good copy only. Around the middle of 1904.. Ernest Brown & Phillips commissioned 50 color illustrations to Rip Van Winkle, and purchased the originals and all rights for 300 guineas. The publishing rights were then resold in a complicated deal to Heinemann, before the illustrations were exhibited at Brown and Phillips' Leicester Galleries.. Most of the Rip drawings were sold at the exhibition, and by October they had all found purchasers. "Brown and Phillips' investment, made secure by the keenness of Rackham's purchasers, was not let down by the reviews his work received. ".. When, in September 1905, Rip Van Winkle was published, comparisons between Rackham and German artists [i.e. Dürer and Joseph Sattler] continued to be voiced, The Times remarking on 'the marvel of his Düreresque detail.' ".. The 51 illustrations, for a story of not more than five thousand words, enables the story to be told twice, once through Irving's words, and once again, image by image, through Rackham's pictures.. In his illustrations, Rackham pays homage not only to Dürer, Cruikshank and Dutch seventeenth-century painting, but to contemporary artists, too.." (Hamilton). ".. But the first work that greatly advanced his fame in the years immediately following his marriage was his edition of Rip Van Winkle.. This lovely book decisively established Rackham as the leading decorative illustrator of the Edwardian period.. The deluxe edition of the book was fully subscribed before the [Leicester Galleries] exhibition closed" (Hudson). Latimore and Haskell p. 26. Riall pp. 69/70. Gettings p. 176. Hamilton pp. 68. Hudson pp. 57, 167. Hudson, p. 180 (Rackham bookplate). .
David Brass Rare Books (ABAA/ILAB)Professional seller
Book number: 03646
USD 450.00 [Appr.: EURO 420.5 | £UK 360.5 | JP¥ 71214]
Keywords: IRVING, Washington Children's Books Illustrated Books Signed Limited Edition American Literature Children's Books Illustrated Books

| Pages: 1 | 2 | - Next page