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Gifts under £500
LAWRENCE, T. E. - GRAVES, Robert, & B. H. Liddell Hart. T. E. Lawrence to His Biographer Robert Graves; [and to] His Biographer Liddell Hart.London : 1938
First editions, limited to 1,000 copies signed by Robert Graves and Liddell Hart in their respective volumes, here both numbered 476. These works collect Lawrence's correspondence with two of his biographers and are attractively designed by A. P. Tedesco.
The correspondence spans 1920-35; the corrections take the form of strike-throughs and...Learn More
STEINBECK, John. The Pearl.New York : 1947
First edition in book form, with the first issue dust jacket. This retelling of a Mexican folk tale was adapted in the same year into a film by Emilio Fernández, with the screenplay also by Steinbeck.
The first issue dust jacket is distinguished by the photograph of Steinbeck looking to his left on the rear panel, as here. The story was...Learn More
MORRISON, Van. Lit Up Inside. Selected Lyrics.San Francisco : 2014
First US edition, signed by the author on the title page. Loosely inserted are two photographs of Morrison at the book's signing, sat at Lawrence Ferlinghetti's desk at City Lights Bookstore.
Faber and Faber published this title slightly earlier in the UK.Learn More
GINSBERG, Allen. Collected Poems 1947-1980.New York : 1984
First edition, inscribed by the author on the title page, "For Ron Benham, Allen Ginsberg, 2/2/85, AH, Cambridge", and with his red ink stamp. "AH" refers to William Blake's poem "Ah! Sun-flower", a favourite mantra of Ginsberg's.
Benham, a fellow poet, and Ginsberg were correspondents in the 1970s.Learn More
SEUSS, Dr. There's a Wocket in my Pocket!New York : 1974
First edition. With his whimsical use of language and poetic style, Dr Seuss recounts a boy exploring his house and introducing the numerous weird and wacky creatures he lives with.Learn More
POGANY, Willy (illus.); GOETHE, Johann Wolfgang von. Faust.London : 1908
First Pogany edition. Felmingham considers Pogany one of the best of the gift book illustrators (The Illustrated Gift Book, p. 60). This edition employed a new method for printing illustrations, where permanent inks were printed on pure uncoated paper.Learn More
MEREDITH, Joseph. Treatise on the Grape Vine.London : 1876
First edition. Meredith (b. 1829) traded as a "horticultural architect" in Liverpool, specializing in both ornamental and agricultural viticulture. He was a recognized authority on the subject and was praised in The Gardener for his "extra fine samples, large in size, fine in formation of bunch, and well finished - much better than any exhibited...Learn More
MILNE, A. A. Now We Are Six.London : 1927
First edition of the third Winnie-the-Pooh book. Full of Milne's charming verse, this collection also includes many illustrations of Pooh, Piglet, and the other nursery toys, even in instances where the characters are not mentioned in the accompanying poem. It took only two months for it to eclipse the sales records of the previous two Pooh books.Learn More
BRIGGS, Raymond. Fungus the Bogeyman Plop-Up Book.London : 1982
First edition, first impression, based on the 1977 children's picture book of the same name.
Raymond Briggs (1934-2022) was an award-winning illustrator and cartoonist. Renowned for his subtle, thoughtful, and autobiographical style, his work "did a great deal to elevate the art of illustration to being something much more than a servant of...Learn More
CLINTON, Hillary Rodham. It Takes a Village: and Other Lessons Children Teach Us.New York : 1996
First edition, inscribed by the author, "For Mary Curry with best wishes - Hillary Rodham Clinton". Clinton's first book, published while First Lady, argues that raising children depends on support from the wider community and government, drawing on her and Bill's experience raising their daughter Chelsea.
The book and its sentiments...Learn More
ACHEBE, Chinua. Hopes and Impediments: Selected Essays 1965-87.Oxford : 1988
First edition, signed by the author on the title page. In the collection, which opens with the essay "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness", Achebe explores the legacy of colonialism in Africa and cautions against Western generalization of African cultures. He argues that African literature can become a vehicle for both...Learn More
SITWELL, Edith. Bucolic Comedies.London : 1923
First edition in book form, including several Façade poems. Some of the works had previously appeared in periodicals.Learn More
ENDE, Michael. The Neverending Story.New York : 1983
First edition in English of the basis for the popular film series. The translation was published simultaneously in the US and UK following its publication as Die unendliche Geschichte (1979).Learn More
HOUELLEBECQ, Michel. Atomised.London : 2000
First UK edition of the novel that gained the author international notoriety. Houellebecq tackles individualism, the sexual revolution, and consumer culture in a graphic and relentless style that drew him comparisons to Brett Easton Ellis, Camus, and Aldous Huxley.
First published in French in 1998, the English translation was released in...Learn More
DAHL, Roald. Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator.London : 1973
First UK edition of the sequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It was originally published in the US the preceding year.Learn More
DONALDSON, Julia. The Gruffalo's Child.London : 2008
First gift edition of Donaldson's sequel to her enduringly popular children's story. The Gruffalo's Child was first published in September 2004.Learn More
ATWOOD, Margaret, and others. The Myths: The Penelopiad; A Short History of Myth; Weight; A Word or Two about Myths.Edinburgh : 2005
First editions, number 1,389 of 1,500 sets signed by the authors. This boxed set is accompanied by the essay by Philip Pullman, signed as issued, that was commissioned for the set. These are the first three books in the Canongate Myth series, written by Karen Armstrong; Margaret Atwood, and Jeanette Winterson.
The project was first...Learn More
PAOLOZZI, Eduardo. Lost Magic Kingdoms and Six Paper Moons from Nahuatl, an Exhibition at the Museum of Mankind.London : 1985
First edition, inscribed by the author on the front endpaper, "For John Jones, Eduardo Paolozzi, Leeds 1985." Jones was the head of the fine arts department at Leeds University. This catalogue was produced in conjunction with the British Museum, showing pieces from their collections alongside artworks by Paolozzi to explore the connection between...Learn More
BUSH, George W. 41: A Portrait of My Father.New York : 2014
First edition, signed limited issue, signed by the author as issued below the portrait of the two Bush presidents.
George W. Bush's biography of his father, the 41st President, charts his life from birth to the time of writing, including his wartime service, his career in the Texan oil business, and his rise from congressman to President....Learn More
HEANEY, Seamus. The Riverbank Field.Dublin : 2007
First edition, signed limited issue, number 477 of 500 copies signed by the poet, of which 450 were for sale. The poem was later collected in The Human Chain (2010).Learn More
