[Rarebooks] FS: W. H. Auden's 99th birthday today: 10 titles from our stock of over 100 items
Charles Agvent
agvent at erols.com
Tue Feb 21 07:59:38 EST 2006
In honor of what would have been W. H. Auden's 99th birthday today, we list 10
midlevel titles from our stock of over 100 Auden items including letters,
manuscripts, and signed books.
1. AUDEN, W. H. ANOTHER TIME. New York: Random House (1940). First
Edition. Bloomfield & Mendelson A22a: 1500 copies printed, precedes
the English edition, his first book to do so. Connolly Modern
Movement 90: "certainly his best collection of poems." Includes many
of his best known poems such as "In Memory of W. B. Yeats,"
"September 1, 1939," "The Unknown Citizen," "Musee Des Beaux Arts,"
and "Funeral Blues," perhaps now the most popular of all due to its
appearance in the film FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL. Dustwrapper
lightly soiled with a darkened spine and some wear to the top rear
edge with a short 1/2" jagged slit in the blank margin on the rear
panel. Near Fine in Very Good dustwrapper. $750.00
2. AUDEN, W. H. NONES. New York: Random House (1950). First Edition.
Bloomfield & Mendelson A32: 4000 copies printed, precedes the English
edition. This copy SIGNED by Auden in green ink on the title page.
Near Fine in Near Fine dustwrapper with light soiling & edgewear
$500.00
3. AUDEN, W. H. ON THIS ISLAND. New York: Random House (1939). First
Edition. Bloomfield & Mendelson A13b: 2000 copies printed, preceded
by the English edition which was titled LOOK STRANGER!. Beautiful,
bright book in an attractive dustwrapper with a small chip at the
head of the spine and minor chipping at the heel. Fine in Near Fine
dustwrapper. $300.00
4. AUDEN, W. H. POEMS. London: Faber & Faber (1930). First Edition.
Stiff blue printed wraps. Auden's first regularly published book.
Bloomfield A2: 1000 copies. Laid in is a small flyer from Faber &
Faber advertising this volume and two other poetry volumes. A 1-3/4"
closed tear on the rear of the integral dustwrapper is the only real
defect. Fine, largely unopened copy in bright dustwrapper. $1500.00
5. AUDEN, W. H. THE AGE OF ANXIETY. New York: Random House (1947).
First Edition. Bloomfield A29: 3500 copies printed, preceding the
English edition. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and basis of Leonard
Bernstein's "Symphony, no. 2," this book is one of Auden's finest
accomplishments. Fine in bright, Fine dustwrapper and increasingly
uncommon thus. $250.00
6. AUDEN, W. H. THE DOUBLE MAN. New York: Random House (1941). First
Edition. Bloomfield & Mendelson A24a: 2000 copies printed, precedes
the English edition. This copy INSCRIBED to Olive F. "with best
wishes" and SIGNED by Auden in July 1941 on the title page. Adhesive
remnant from bookplate on front pastedown; offsetting from clippings
on front and rear endpapers and half title page. Spine of dustwrapper
a little sunned with minor chips at top and bottom and lower front
corner. Near Fine in Very Good or better dustwrapper. $750.00
7. AUDEN, W. H. THE SHIELD OF ACHILLES. New York: Random House
(1955). First Edition. National Book Award winner. Precedes the
English edition. SIGNED by Auden on the title page in his usual
fashion crossing out his printed name. Bloomfield A35a. Browning to
gutters at title page and at rear. Slight edgewear to book and
dustwrapper which is lightly soiled with a small closed tear to the
top of the front panel. Very Good in Very Good dustwrapper. Uncommon
signed. $600.00
8. AUDEN, W. H. THREE SONGS FOR ST. CECILLIA'S DAY. [New York]:
Privately Printed 1941. First Edition. String-tied printed blue
wrappers. Bloomfied A25. One of only 250 copies of this Christmas
book printed for Caroline Newton. Fine $450.00
9. [AUDEN, W. H.]. SELECTED WRITINGS OF SYDNEY SMITH. New York:
Farrar Straus Cudahy (1956). First Edition. Bloomfield & Mendelson
B61. Edited and with an introduction by W. H. Auden of this
collection of letters and essays by Smith (1771-1845), "the most
famous wit of his generation." This copy INSCRIBED by Auden on the
half title page to David Cecil "with best wishes/from/Wystan Auden."
Lord Cecil, a biographer of Jane Austen and an essayist, was a
professor of English at Oxford where Auden graduated in 1928 and
returned in 1972 as an honorary fellow. A scarce book to find signed
by Auden, this is an especially nice association. Fine in Near Fine
dustwrapper with minor chips at spine tips. $1500.00
10. [AUDEN, W. H.] PERSE, St.-John. ON POETRY. (New York): Bollingen
Series (1961). First Edition. Bloomfield & Mendelson B77. Published
in an edition of 2500 copies, none of which were for sale, in white
card covers with a grayish green printed wrapper. This is St.-John
Perse's Nobel Acceptance Speech translated by Auden and printed here
in both the original French and Auden's English translation. SIGNED
by Auden on the title page. Quite uncommon, especially signed. Fine
$500.00
--
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full value. We carry a diverse stock with major specialties including Modern
and 19th Century Literary First Editions, Autographed Books, and Limited
Editions Club books. We are proud to be members of the Antiquarian Booksellers
Association of America (ABAA) and the International League of Antiquarian
Booksellers (ILAB) as well as the Manuscript Society and the Universal Autograph
Collectors Club (UACC). Please feel free to contact us with any wants or
offerings. Thank you.
CHARLES AGVENT
291 Linden Road
Mertztown, PA 19539-8750
Voice/Fax: 610-682-4750
agvent at erols.com
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