Search Results: Authors starting with W from Whitmore Rare Books

London: Schott's, 1877. First English language edition. First trade edition (and 1st combined edition) in English (translated by Alfred Forman) of The Rhein-Gold, The Walkyrie, Siegfried, and Dusk of the Gods, preceded only by privately printed separate issues of the 4 individual parts (1873-1875) to secure copyright, which had a total of just 238 pages. This is the complete librettos, with 351 pages of snugly printed tiny type, containing all the dialogue and stage directions for all 4 parts. Half cloth, marbled boards, printed paper label. Near fine condition with the series half-title and title page, as well as all 4 half-titles. Ex-Edw. Schuberth & Co. (oval stamp to half-title).

London, Paris, Berlin, New York, Montreal: Raphael Tuck and Sons Ltd, 1910. Early edition. Very Good. A Very Good copy of this uncommon Louis Wain title. Illustraded through-out in Wain's iconic style, with 8 color plates and numerous black and white illustrations within the text. Gift inscription dated Xmas 1912. At the end of the nineteenth century, Louis Wain (1860-1939), the Edwardian cat artist, became a household name as an illustrator of cats, whom he depicted in all sorts of activities, from skating and playing cricket to driving motor cars, attending dances, and playing musical instruments. "He invented a cat style, a cat society, a whole cat world. English cats that do not look like Louis Wain cats are ashamed of themselves" (H.G. Wells). Very Good.

London: Valentine & Sons Ltd, 1919. First edition. Publishers stiff card color pictorial wrappers, die-cut in the form of a black and white, big-eyed puppy with a blue bow round its neck. The back cover shows the back of the puppy. Slight wear to board extremities, otherwise Near Fine. Tall octavo (11 5/16 x 6 1/4 inches; 289 x 159 mm.). [16] pages. Seven full-page drawings in black, red and white. A remarkable survival. Louis Wain, 'The man who drew cats' also drew dogs - at one point in his life he had hoped to make a living by drawing dog portraits. Here is a nice example of a Louis Wain puppy -Tatters. Here we can see the adventures of Tatters from hiding in a hamper, biting slippers, pulling the tablecloth down, barking at a cat in a tree, playing with another puppy, rescuing a bunny from a trap, and rescuing a 'dolly' from a pond." Dale, 198.

London: Raphael Tuck & Sons, Ltd, 1910. Original color pictorial wrappers. Small quarto (9 1/16 x 7 inches: 230 x 177 mm.). 20 pp (including wrappers). Four full-page illustrations in full color with duplicate brown line drawings opposite, designed to be hand colored by the owner (the second drawing already expertly colored). A very fine example of a fragile rarity. At the end of the last century, Louis Wain (1860-1939), the Edwardian cat artist, became a household name as an illustrator of cats, whom he depicted in all sorts of activities, from skating and playing cricket to driving motor cars, attending dances, and playing musical instruments. "He invented a cat style, a cat society, a whole cat world. English cats that do not look like Louis Wain cats are ashamed of themselves" (H.G. Wells). Here, Wain gives children the opportunity to color his cats for themselves. Father Tuck's Little Artists' Series No. 4063.

London: S.W. Partridge & Co., Lrd, 1910. First edition. Original red cloth over color pictorial front board and advertisement on rear board, advertisements on endpapers. Corners and board edges a little worn. Large quarto (10 3/16 x 7 11/16 inches; 259 x 195 mm.). Pictorial title-page printed in blue, 92 unnumbered pages and six full page color plates. Numerous other mono-color and black & white illustrations throughout the text including six by Louis Wain. Ink inscription on verso of color frontispiece dated Xmas 1910. A good copy of a very scarce book, in fact the first time that we have ever seen this title. The Louis Wain illustrations in this delicate book include the following: How Pride Betrays. (three 0ne-third page, printed in brown) When the Cook's Away. (full-page, printed in blue) Tubbing the Kitties. (one-third page, printed in green) "You Naughty Kitties!" (full-page, printed in green).

London: Blackie and Son Limited, 1917. First edition. Publisher's full color staple-bound pictorial wrappers. Oxidation at staples, light wear at edges and spine head, third gathering loose at two staples (of three). Folio (13 1/8 x 10 1/8 in; 334 x 258 mm). Twelve pages with one to two captioned scenes in color, inner covers illustrated in black and white. An excellent copy of a book that would normally have been destroyed by child. A particularly difficult Wain title to find in any condition, with the present being utterly exceptional. "From 1883, Wain began to draw cats as they had never been drawn before, cats in humorous guises, in human situations, but always beautifully handled...although he was sometimes forced to draw dogs before he became well- known!" (Houfe). Dale 34.

London: Blackie and Son Limited, 1908. First edition. Original color pictorial stiff wrappers with original red silk tie, gray end-papers.[48] pages. Eight full-page color (including one double- page) illustrations and forty-nine smaller color illustrations. Very minor rubbing to one corner, otherwise a Near Fine copy of this very fragile and precious little book. A fine collection of favorites including: Jack Horner, Miss Muffet, Jack-in-the-Box, Santa Claws and Hey Diddle Diddle. The illustrations also include cats playing cricket, watching a magic lantern and playing 'Squib'. At the end of the nineteenth century, Louis Wain (1860-1939), the Edwardian cat artist, became a household name as an illustrator of cats, whom he depicted in all sorts of activities, from skating and playing cricket to driving motor cars, attending dances, and playing musical instruments. "He invented a cat style, a cat society, a whole cat world. English cats that do not look like Louis Wain cats are ashamed of themselves"… Read More

Springfield [Massachusetts]: McLoughlin Bros., Inc, 1920. First American edition. Original quarter brown cloth over color pictorial glazed boards (plain tan rear board). Corners and board edges a little worn, inner hinges cracked. Quarto (10 x 8 inches; 256 x 205 mm.). 252 unnumbered pages (256 including covers and inside covers). Title -page illustrated by Louis Wain and eight other illustrations by Louis Wain including one double-page full color, two other color illustrations and five others either tinted or black & white. Numerous other color, tinted and black and white illustrations by various other artists. The other stories in the book include many old favorites (some listed below). An acceptable copy of a book that we have never seen before. While not solely illustrated by Wain, the present includes a significant amount of his work. illustrations by Louis Wain include: 1. Cat playing the flute (title-page, black & white) 2. The Dandy Colored Cat (3/4 page , colored) 3. The Dandy Colored Cat… Read More

London: Raphael Tuck & Sons, 1909. Second edition. Second, enlarged edition, the companion to the Tuck book of the same title issued in the same year. Publisher's red cloth backed color pictorial boards. Large quarto (10 1/4 x 7 3/8 in; 262 x 190 mm). Collating 48, [1, adv.], [1 , blank]. Full-color frontispiece (Tommy on his Travels). Text on every page. Sixteen pages printed in two colors (green and black, red and black, orange and black). Neat gift inscription dated "Xmas 1923." A bit of minor rubbing to extremities, otherwise an internally crisp, clean, and Fine copy. Father Tuck's Golden Gift Series No. 817, similar to Father Tuck's Golden Gift Series No. 805 with same title yet with sufficient differences in illustration, text length (48 pages versus 72 pages) and variations, and binding to warrant them being separate editions. At the end of the last century, Louis Wain (1860-1939), the Edwardian cat artist, became a household name as an illustrator of cats, whom he depicted in all sorts of… Read More

London: Raphael Tuck & Sons, 1903. First edition. Artistic Series No. 2530. Pictorial glossy wrappers in full color. Complete with all post cards present and uncolored; thus scarce. Unusually clean, and with just a tiny chip to lower right corner of front wrapper and a crossed out ink inscription dated 1904 on inside front wrapper. Quarto (10 1/2 x 8 in; 266 x 202 mm). Sixteen leaves (including inside covers) comprised of eight leaves with four full color, gum arabic-heightened illustrations each and eight uncolored perforated leaves with matching illustrations to rectos as post cards with printed mailing info to versos. Designed at the Tuck Studios in London and printed at the Fine Art Works in Germany.An excellent copy. Classic Wain cats (and dogs!) at play and suitable for coloring and mailing. At the end of the last century, Louis Wain (1860-1939), the Edwardian cat artist, became a household name as an illustrator of cats, whom he depicted in all sorts of activities, from skating and playing… Read More

London: George Harrap & Co, 1931. First Thus. Very Good +. Original vellum with gilt to spine and front board. Top edge gilt. Scattered spotting to boards and toning to spine. Front hinge tender; small crack to upper rear joint but both holding well. Bookplate to front pastedown. Preliminaries toned and foxed, but textblock and illustrations largely clean and unmarked. Signed limited edition, this number 498 of 775. First published in 1653, Walton's work stands alone as the quintessential work of fishing prose. Combined with Arthur Rackham's exceptional illustrations, The Compleat Angler becomes a visual joy and an ideal gift for aficionados. Produced at a time of ill health for both Rackham and his artist wife Edyth, the book was one of several designed to help reignite interest in his work and generate income for the couple. Its release coincided with several exhibitions of his illustrations in New York. Very Good +.

Harper's Ferry. Pocket New Testament bound in red sheep over card, measuring 3 x 4.25". Extremities somewhat rubbed but in overall solid condition. Offsetting to pastedowns. Various selections dog-eared but no markings to internal text. Multiple ownership signatures from the prominent Koonce family, most notably the inscription to the front endpaper: "Presented to Mollie E. Koonce by a patriot soldier at the line of surrender in Harper's Ferry to the Rebels under Gen. Hill." Other signatures include Howard Koonce, Alice R. Koonce, and Peachie Koonce. A unique artifact that speaks to women's presence, influence, and the risks they faced in wartime. The Mollie E. Koonce of the ownership is possibly Mary E. Koonce daughter of George Koonce, an entrepreneur and statesman; several other family members' names also appear in the Bible (Howard, who went on to become a physician, and Estelle May "Peach" Koonce). History has remembered and recorded George Koonce. The proprietor of a Harper's Ferry general… Read More

New York: Harcourt Brace, 1946. First edition. Near Fine/Very Good. First printing (Sinclair Lewis blurb on the rear panel). A Near Fine copy in Very Good jacket, retaining its bright colors. Spine gilt a bit dulled and rubbed, otherwise a very nice copy of the book. Jacket with a number of large tears closed with tape on the verso (mostly on the rear panel). An important work of political fiction. Drawing its title from the nursery rhyme Humpty Dumpty, Warren's political novel follows the rise and fall of charismatic populist governor Willie Stark. Though Stark enters public service in the Depression-era Deep South with ambitions of holding crooked politicians and unethical businessmen in Louisiana accountable, he finds over time that mixing with the corrupt ultimately corrupts him. At its release, the New York Times hailed it as "magnificently vital reading, a book so charged with dramatic tension it almost crackles...All the King's Men is really a double story, that of Willie, the hick from the… Read More

New York: Harcourt Brace, 1946. First edition. Near Fine/Near Fine. First printing (Sinclair Lewis blurb on the rear panel). A Near Fine copy in like jacket, retaining its bright colors. Slight offsetting to the front end papers, top edge of text block a bit spotted. Jacket with slight wear and minor chipping to the spine ends, one small tape repair to the jacket verso. Jacket verso also shows some foxing. An important work of political fiction. Drawing its title from the nursery rhyme Humpty Dumpty, Warren's political novel follows the rise and fall of charismatic populist governor Willie Stark. Though Stark enters public service in the Depression-era Deep South with ambitions of holding crooked politicians and unethical businessmen in Louisiana accountable, he finds over time that mixing with the corrupt ultimately corrupts him. At its release, the New York Times hailed it as "magnificently vital reading, a book so charged with dramatic tension it almost crackles...All the King's Men is really a… Read More

London: Printed for Thomas Tegg, 1824. Second edition. Four octavo volumes in the publisher's blue-grey paper-covered boards with cloth spines and paper spine labels. Complete with the engraved frontis of Thomas Warton. Staining along spine edge indicates some type of repair to the spine, but no cloth added, not rebacked, recased or otherwise muddled by restoration. Paper worn from board edges and spine cloth chipped at extremities, but internal contents are generally attractive. Warton's work on English Poetry, originally published 1774 - 1781, was quite valuable to the academic community, but Price's editorial notations in the second edition are quite phenomenal. He discusses the importance of Beowulf at length and highlights a few of the alliterative poems contained in M.S. Cott. Nero A.x. This is the first publication of any work from this manuscript, which includes: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl, Cleanness, and Patience. All works are attributed to the same author, although still… Read More

[Great Britain], 1850. Comprised of 88 manuscript pages of mathematical definitions, tables, methods, and exercises in a single hand, with the ownership signature of "Caroline Waters Age 16 yrs" to the front endpaper. Marbled paper vernacular binding, measuring 8 x 12 inches and stitched at spine. Caroline's metric measurements and English currency reveal her to be a student somewhere in the UK. Though the commonness of her name and the absence of a specific date prevents us from locating her in genealogy records, the manuscript she left behind reveals much about how and why girls of her age and class were being taught arithmetic. Caroline's elegant, practiced hand suggests that she is a member of the rising middle class, and the opening of the book suggests that she is a beginning to intermediate mathematician. At the top of the first page, she defines Arithmetic as "the art of computing by numbers" which "has five principal [sic] rules for this purpose, viz. Numeration, Subtraction, Addition,… Read More

London/New York: Ernest Nister/E.P. Dutton, 1894. First edition. Quarter blue cloth over chromolithographed pictorial glazed boards. Neat gift inscription dated 1895. A stunning copy with only the slightest hint of wear at corners. Chromolithograph and black and white illustrations throughout. Printed in Bavaria. Ernest Nister (1842-1909) "produced more than five hundred mostly undated illustrated books for children, but from the 1890s the firm's production was almost exclusively toy or movable books and Nister introduced many new mechanical techniques... The illustrations in Nister's books—typically featuring affluent, well- dressed, cheerful children at play—were produced by many different artists. The artist's name, however, was often either dropped or missing, while the signature of Nister, as lithographer, was usually found somewhere on the work—thus leading to confusion about attribution. Nister frequently reused illustrations, occasionally adding picture elements that were not in the… Read More

London: Cassell and Company Ltd, 1916. First Edition. Fine/Near Fine. A Fine copy of the book, extremely clean and bright on account of the original dust jacket. Dust jacket Near Fine with only trivial signs of use and age. A work from Wells' middle career period, when his novels became "discussions of social or political themes that showed little concern for the novel as a literary form...Mr. Britling Sees it Through, though touched by the prejudice and short-sightedness of wartime, gives a brilliant picture of the English people in WWI. World War I shook Wells' faith in even short term human progress, and in subsequent works he modified his conception of social evolution, putting forward the view that man could only progress if he would adapt himself to changing circumstances through knowledge and education" (Britannica). In this sense, the novel marked a major shift in Wells' career. Fine in Near Fine dust jacket.

London: George Newnes, 1901. First British edition. Near Fine. Preceded by the first U.S. edition. Finely bound in later full crushed morocco with gilt to spine. Internally unmarked but with a bit of toning. Complete with all 12 plates. A pleasant copy. When businessman Mr. Bedford and scientist Mr. Cavor undertake a journey to the moon, they discover an extraterrestrial world governed by Selenites -- insect-like creatures who are far more technologically advanced than Earth's humans and unaware of violence or war. Ultimately, the two men are captured by the moon's native community, and only Mr. Bedford escapes. It has been called the first alien dystopian novel in English; and it has spawned numerous television, film, and radio adaptations as well as later science fiction short stories and novels (Stableford). Near Fine.

New York [San Francisco]: Random House (Grabhorn Press), 1930. First thus. Very Good +. Illustrated by Valenti Angelo. Printed by the Grabhorn Press (of San Francisco) in an edition of 400 copies, this number 133. A Very Good+ copy with some wear to the Oak boards at the corners, and some superficial rubbing to the morocco spine at the extremities. Internal contents generally clean and in excellent condition with just the odd page with a bit of foxing. With an original, signed letter from Bennett A. Cerf of Random House describing the binding for the original owner (and directing his inquiry about the paperstock to Ed Grabhorn). Perhaps the most important collection of poetry in American Literature. Although Leaves of Grass was first greeted with derision and even shock - Boston's district attorney attempted to have some of the poems suppressed as obscene and Whitman was fired from his job - it eventually claimed its rightful place in the American canon. Whitman wrote the collection after he was… Read More