Rare books from Paul Foster Books

Methuen & Co. Ltd. London.,1913. Spurrious First edition. Actually the fourth impression with a cancel title page, stating " First Published 1913" on verso, on the title page stub. 8vo. (7.7 x 5.3 inches). 8 page publishers advert dated Autumn 1913. A very good copy in publishers green cloth binding with spine decorated and lettered in gilt, including the correct spelling of the publishers name at the bottom. Signed by Joseph Conrad on the front free endpaper, Dated 1923. The top of the signed leaf and the half title page have a small indentation where a paper clip has been used.Aside from some light rubbing to the extremities this is a very good tight copy, the gilt on the spine still strong and bright. Loosely inserted is the front panel from the rare dustwrapper, showing a full colour illustration by J. Dewar Mills within a grey border. The whole panel dark blue with grey title and author. An interesting copy, signed by the author and with part of the wrapper, of the less common 1913 Cancel title… Read More

Privately Printed by Clement Shorter. London.,1919. LIMITED EDITION. One of just 25 copies printed. 20pp. Unopened copy, sewn in wraps. (10.1 x 7.8 inches). Printed on hand made Aldwich paper. Red paper wraps, sewn with original red cord. Printed in black to front panel. Edges a little rubbed but essentially a fine copy of this Rare booklet.:.

Arena. Published by Arrow books. London. 1983. FIRST EDITION. 8vo. (7.6 x 5 inches). Paperback. Illustrated throughout with black and white drawings by Steve Maguire. A very good copy with some minor rubbing to the edges but generally bright and tight. ---- With; A folder containing five A4 typescript and partial manuscript leaves of poems by Clarke that feature in the book, all in an early form and different from the published version, some quite substantially so. Number 1. Spilt Beans. -- 47 line poem. 31 lines (4 stanzas) typescript and the final 16 lines manuscript in JCC's hand in green ink. This version is very different to the published text. --- Number 2. Salome (published as Salome Maloney). 40 Line poem in 10 typed stanzas. This version substantially different to the published version. --- Number 3. Readers Wives. 20 line poem. 16 lines (4 stanzas) typed and four lines in JCC hand in green ink. There is a line and arrow showing the manuscript verse belongs between the second and third typed… Read More

The Modern Press. 1886. First separate issue, larger untrimmed variant, inscribed by the author. Originally printed in the April 1885-March 1886 issues of "To-Day", this first edition was printed from the corrected and revised stereos of the original setting for the journal. This is the larger, variant issue, with the preliminary blank leaf bound at the beginning. Shaw explains the variant this way: "The size of the bigger copies is due to the fact that they reproduced not only the type but the format of To-day. But the booksellers objected that in this form it occupied too much room to be displayed on their stalls and counters. It was probably cut down as far as the margins would allow to meet this objection" (Laurence). Inscribed by Shaw, "This is the first Issue, which was so tall that the booksellers refused to exhibit it on their counters, as it took too much room. So it had to be cut down. G. Bernard Shaw 26/7/30." . ---- Housed in a green cloth covered chemise and quarter green morocco slip… Read More

Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner and Co. Ltd. London. 1907. Small 8vo. (6.2 x 4 inches). Fine early twentieth century full vellum hand painted binding. Fine binding decorated with a painted scene on the front cover depicting a woman and two children in a rustic garden scene, the spine is decorated with a matching design of a variety of painted flowers and the back cover has a single painted flower in the bottom left corner. Marbled endpapers. All edges gilt. The book is miss-titled in gilt and black on the spine reading 'The Christian Year' so the binder may have been working on more than one book at a time and got two mixed up. The binding is unsigned but similar to several made by the Royal School of Art Needlework around the same period and is in remarkably good condition, only some slight wear on the border of the front cover and the gilded bands on the spine-ends.

The Nonesuch Press. London. 1924-27. FIVE VOLUMES. Tall 4to. (12.3 x 8.3 inches). Limited edition. One of 1000 sets printed on Japon vellum (The Apochrypha is one of 1250 copies) from a total edition of 1075 copies. The typography was arranged by Frances Meynell. Each volume decorated with copperplate engravings by Stephen Gooden, including the title pages. A lovely clean set finely bound in recent full black morocco, decorative gilt border to boards. Spines with raised bands, each with decorative gilt piping and ruling. Red title labels, gilt. Top edges gilt, others untrimmed. A beautiful set.

Cassell and Company. London. 1941-46. FIRST EDITIONS. 7 Volumes. 8vo. (8.7 x 5.6 inches). A complete set of first editions and 1st impressions of Churchill's war speeches. A few pages with light foxing but overall a clean and fine set which has been finely bound in recent full dark blue morocco leather, spines with five raised bands, gilt. Red title and name labels, gilt. Spines with lettering and rampant lion device stamped in gilt. Single gilt ruled borders on boards. All edges gilt. Fine. A fantastic presentation of this important set.

( Geo. P. Putman. New York.) - Paris. 1848 (1928). FACSIMILE EDITION. One of 50 copies printed. 12mo. (7.5 x 5.3 inches). [1] - 143pp, plus 16pp publishers advertisements. Black cloth with blind ruled lines and gilt lettering to the spine. Both boards with triple ruled line borders and decorative circular device to the centre, all in blind. Complete with the facsimile bookplate of noted American book collector Stephen H. Wakeman, the sixth owner, after Poe, of the original book, on the front pastedown endpaper. A fine copy of this rare facsimile of the Author's own annotated copy of the last work published in Poe's lifetime, and one he considered his finest. This facsimile was created in 1928 while the book was owned by Florence Meyer Blumenthal, the 8th owner of the original annotated book, after Poe himself. "A beautiful and remarkably faithful facsimile of this copy was made in 1928 in Paris, in an edition of 50 copies. It is occasionally mistaken for the original" - Edgar Allan Poe Society of… Read More

J. Johnson, John Nichols and Son, R. Baldwin ...... London. 1803. FIRST PRINTING OF THIS EDITION. 24 volumes. 6mo. (6.4 x 4.1 inches). Frontis portrait of Swift in volume one. Offsetting front frontis to the title page. Finely bound in contemporary attractive full black straight grained morocco bindings. Spines with two wide and one narrow raised bands, lettered and decorated in gilt. The compartments are fully decorated in gilt. Boards with single ruled line border around a decorative floral roll, gilt. Board edge corners with multiple gilt ruled lines. Floral gilt roll to the turn ins. Beige coloured silk endpapers with gilt tooled Greek key roll around edges and floral corner pieces. All edges gilt. A little rubbing to the extremities of some volumes but overall a very good fresh and highly attractive set of early 19th century leather bindings.

Lami Denozan. Paris. 1826. FIRST EDITION. Oblong 4to. (13.8 x 9.8 inches). Illustrated with 12 fine hand coloured lithographs, engraved by de Villain. A complete copy with the 12 plates and printed brown paper front wrapper and plain rear one mounted onto tabs and bound in a late 20th century half dark red cloth binding with gilt lettering to the spine. Marbled paper on boards. Plain off-white endpapers. A previous owner's small attractive colour printed bookplate on front pastedown. Some spotting to the leaves but mainly in the plain margins. Overall a very good copy of this scarce and attractive work. --------- Starting with the Artist's rough crossing of the Channel and stage coach from Dover, The London scenes include Pall-Mall, Westminster Abbey, A Horse race, Boxing match, and Boat race. ----- The sketches for this work were drawn during Lami's first visit to England in 1826. '.... a set of a dozen delicately hand coloured lithographs. These were intended as a memento for for tourists from the… Read More

Fred De Fau & Company. New York. 1902. LIMITED EDITION. One of 1,000 numbered sets, this number 942. 10 volumes. 8vo. (7.7 x 5.5 inches). Finely bound by Brentanos in contemporary half tan morocco. Each spine with five raised bands, decorated with gilt piping. Compartments multi ruled and lettered in gilt and with blind tooled centre decorations. Marbled paper on boards. Gold on grey marbled endpapers. Top edges gilt, the others untrimmed and a few gatherings still unopened. Illustrated with decorative head and tail pieces, vignettes in the text and multiple full page black and white illustrations by F. S. Coburn throughout. Each frontis plate protected with a printed descriptive tissue guards. Title pages printed in red and black. Pages nice and clean throughout. There is some minor bumping and rubbing to the corners of the bindings and a couple of small scratches to the lower board of volume 9 but overall this is a near fine, handsome set in excellent condition that looks wonderful on the shelf.

William Heinemann and The Bodley Head. London. 1969 - 1982. 23 Volumes - Complete. FIRST EDITIONS and First printings of all volumes in this collected edition. --- Volume 1, Brighton Rock, is inscribed and signed by Graham Greene on the front free endpaper; - "For Doctor A. D. Thomson from Graham Greene." Publishers dark green cloth bindings with gilt ruling and lettering to the spines and grey endpapers. A fine set of books in very good dustwrappers, designed by Michael Harvey with some toning to the spines and a small amount of rubbing to extremities. Some volumes have a neat previous owner name on the front free endpaper and four of the wrappers nave been neatly price-clipped. A very good set with the added bonus of Greene's signature and inscription in Brighton Rock. Collected essays was issued in 1969, before the rest of the volumes, and is a little larger although the wrapper style is similar so it doesn't look out of place on the shelf with the set. ---- Greene wrote a new introduction to each… Read More

Methuen & Co. Ltd. London. 1926. FIRST EDITION. 8vo. (7.7 x 5.2 inches). Illustrated throughout with beautiful line drawings by E. H. Shepard. Decorative map endpapers. A neat previous owner address has been blind stamped to the front blank endpaper and there are a few minor marks to a handful of pages but overall this is better than very good copy in original dark green cloth, decorated to the front board with an illustration of Christopher Robin and Pooh, within a single ruled border, and double ruled lines and lettering to the spine, all in gilt. Top edge gilt, others untrimmed. The cloth and gilt still sharp and fresh. A beautiful copy in the original correct first impression dustwrapper which has some very minor loss to the top and bottom of the spine and corner tips, a couple of small marks and is a little toned to the spine but is still overall a very good example. A lovely copy of this classic.

William Heniemann. London. 1898. FIRST EDITION. Large 4to. (13.4 x 11.5 inches). Inscribed on the front paste down endpaper by Nicholson to the Daughter, and her second Husband, of his Mistress and house keeper Marie Laquelle; "For Georgette and Norman Holder with love from W. N. who did the pictures. London. Xmas. 1916". Decorative colour printed front board, lettered and showing the illustration for The Bus Driver, plus twelve full page colour lithographs after the original woodblocks. Brown paper covered boards, printed in colour litho. Plain tan cloth spine. Some minor foxing to endpapers and the edges of the boards are rubbed and bumped. Spine cloth is frayed and split,with boards still firmly attached, but overall a very good copy of this beautiful book with an interesting association. Housed in a felt-lined clam-shell box. Marbled paper on boards and a black calf spine, lettered in gilt. ---- 'From about 1910 until he remarried in 1919, Nicholson's housekeeper Marie Laquelle, whose real name… Read More

George Allen. London. 1894. FIRST HUGH THOMSON EDITION. 8vo. (7.6 x 5.4 inches). Fully illustrated throughout with 101 fine engravings by Thomson. Several of the illustrations (about half of them) have been finely hand coloured by a skilled hand. A beautiful copy of the book, bound in an attractive early fine leather binding of half red morocco by Palmer, Howe and Company of Manchester, with their blind stamp on the front blank free endpaper. Spine with raised bands, the compartments ruled in blind, and decorated and lettered in gilt. Marbled paper on boards. Top edge gilt, the others untrimmed. Marbled endpapers. A fine copy of the scarce first Thomson edition in an attractive leather binding. --- Hugh Thomson illustrated this work for George Allen publishers before going on to illustrate the other Austen books for Macmillan & Co. -- More photos available on request.