The First Treasure Island Illustrations The thought of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island conjures up images of pirates and buccaneers of the sea. You would imagine that illustrations would be an essential addition to entertain readers of the book. In fact, the first publication of the story of Treasure Island contained only one illustration. This was … Read more
Harper Lee’s First Editions of To Kill A Mocking Bird The recent death of Harper Lee on February 19th brings the classic American novel, To Kill a Mocking Bird, to attention. The novel handles issues of race and bigotry in the American South and remains on school reading list to this day. Collecting a first edition of … Read more
The First Editions of The Nursery Alice Alice in Wonderland is traditionally thought of as a children’s book (although many adults secretly read it!). Yet it’s original appeal was not to the younger aged child. Maybe Lewis Carroll thought to amend this after seeing the 1874 Dutch simplified copy of Alice in Wonderland. He subsequently … Read more
Rudyard Kipling A Very British Author Arguably one of the great 19th Century British authors is Rudyard Kipling. He was born in 1865 in Bombay, India to British parents. After an education at the United Services College, Bideford, England he returned to India pursue a career in writing. Kipling was an avid writer producing his first book, … Read more
Sherlock Holmes, the fictional detective with powerful observation and deductive qualities, is dramatised on the BBC television again over the festive period. The famous detective stories have stood the test of time and remain as popular today as they were when first published between 1887 and 1926 by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. To own a … Read more
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens with illustrations by Arthur Rackham. The story of Scrooge is arguably one of the most famous stories that is retold over the festive period. Written by Charles Dickens, it was published just before the Christmas of 1984 and sold out immediately. The novel describes the wealthy miser, Scrooge, whose unsociable … Read more
Often the story behind a first edition is untold – how a novel ever reaches publication can be a story in itself! The Time Machine has an interesting start in life. The author’s, H. G. Wells, childhood was spent reading extensively yet he was only able to pursue his literary career in young adulthood. He had … Read more
Who needs a reason to read Babar books? One of the delights in dealing in children’s first edition books is having an legitimate reason to dip into the children’s literary world for a short while. Allowing time to relish the humour of a well written children’s story and enjoy the colourful and charming pictures is … Read more
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde: The UK television of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde has started with dramatic scenes of horror and intrigue. Holding the early edition book of this tale prompted a re look at the origins of the story and it’s publication. The plot recounts the investigation by a London lawyer into strange … Read more
Collecting Ian Fleming First Edition Books Fleming’s Bond books are perhaps the most popular and iconic thriller series ever produced. There remains some attraction in identifying with the character and his lifestyle – how many men don’t secretly desire to be Bond at least in some small way! The James Bond “product” has generated all … Read more
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