F I N E B O O K S & M A N U S C R I P T S
UNCOMMON IN THE DUSTWRAPPER
63. The Screwtape Letters LEWIS, C.S.
Bles, 1942. First edition. Original black cloth with white title label in scarce dustwrap- per printed in red and black. A fine copy, with a contemporary name to the front past - edown beneath the flap of the dustwrapper, in a very good dustwrapper indeed, with
a tanned spine showing just a little wear to its head and faint spotting to the front panel. An abnormally fresh example of a fragile produc- tion. [40883] £4,000 One of the author’s most acclaimed books, encompassing Lewis’s consummate abilities as both a storyteller and a theologian. The book takes the form of 31 letters from Screwtape, an urbane elder statesman of the underworld to his nephew, a novice devil, on how to procure the soul of a young Christian. The effect is both fiction and instruction, comic and deadly serious, and a genuinely original work. The first edition, produced to wartime paper standards is uncommon, particu - larly with such a well preserved dustwrapper.
A BRIGHT EXAMPLE
64. The Razor’s Edge MAUGHAM, William Somerset
Heinemann, 1944. First UK edition. Blue boards with gilt lettering in a green dust- wrapper. A fine copy in a near fine dustwrapper, with just a trace of wear to the spine ends but exceptionally bright and crisp. [42127] £1,200
Generally regarded as Maugham’s best book. Due to wartime restrictions the dust- wrapper is made from very thin, poor quality paper, so it rarely survives in undamaged condi- tion.
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