Rewards And Fairies -
Rudyard Kipling
1910 - Macmillan and Co., London - First Edition
‘If you can keep your head when all about you are loosing theirs and blaming you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but make allowance for their doubting too.....
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, and – which is more – you’ll be a Man, my son!’
A bright and clean first edition of this charming collection of (occasionally fantastical and supernatural) stories and verse, many of them set in the surroundings of Kipling’s Sussex home, and perfectly capturing the myth and mystery of the English countryside. Includes the tales ‘The Marklake Witches’ and ‘Simple Simon’, together with Kipling’s beloved poem, ‘If’, which made its first appearance in this collection, and was later voted Britain’s favourite poem.
With four full page black and white illustrations by Frank Craig.
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Price HK$ 4,500
1910 - Macmillan and Co., London - First Edition
‘If you can keep your head when all about you are loosing theirs and blaming you; If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but make allowance for their doubting too.....
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, and – which is more – you’ll be a Man, my son!’
A bright and clean first edition of this charming collection of (occasionally fantastical and supernatural) stories and verse, many of them set in the surroundings of Kipling’s Sussex home, and perfectly capturing the myth and mystery of the English countryside. Includes the tales ‘The Marklake Witches’ and ‘Simple Simon’, together with Kipling’s beloved poem, ‘If’, which made its first appearance in this collection, and was later voted Britain’s favourite poem.
With four full page black and white illustrations by Frank Craig.
More details
Price HK$ 4,500
The Jungle Book – with – The Second Jungle Book -
Rudyard Kipling, J. Lockwood Kipling, W. H. Drake, and P. Frenzery (illustrators)
1894 - Macmillan & Co., London - First Edition of ‘Jungle Book’, First English Edition of ‘Second Jungle Book‘
A superb set of Kipling’s classic collection of short stories, exceptional and rare in such fine condition.
Best-known for the three tales revolving around the adventures of the abandoned 'man cub' Mowgli who is raised by wolves in the Indian jungle, but Kipling’s genius as a story teller shines throughout, eloquently weaving morals together with his subtle, multilayered characters to produce some of the most well loved stories of childhood fantasy such as 'Rikki-Tikki-Tavi', the story of a heroic mongoose, 'Toomai of the Elephants', the tale of a young elephant-handler, and Kotick the ‘White Seal’.
Beautifully illustrated throughout, mostly by Kipling’s father John Lockwood Kipling.
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Price HK$ 40,000
1894 - Macmillan & Co., London - First Edition of ‘Jungle Book’, First English Edition of ‘Second Jungle Book‘
A superb set of Kipling’s classic collection of short stories, exceptional and rare in such fine condition.Best-known for the three tales revolving around the adventures of the abandoned 'man cub' Mowgli who is raised by wolves in the Indian jungle, but Kipling’s genius as a story teller shines throughout, eloquently weaving morals together with his subtle, multilayered characters to produce some of the most well loved stories of childhood fantasy such as 'Rikki-Tikki-Tavi', the story of a heroic mongoose, 'Toomai of the Elephants', the tale of a young elephant-handler, and Kotick the ‘White Seal’.
Beautifully illustrated throughout, mostly by Kipling’s father John Lockwood Kipling.
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Price HK$ 40,000
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold -
John le Carré
1963 - Victor Gollancz Ltd, London - First Edition
First edition of example of ‘the best spy story I have ever read’ according to Graham Greene. In a dust jacket without the commonly encountered fading to spine.
‘An icon of the anti-hero spy’ – United States Central Intelligence Agency.
The British Cold War spy novel that became famous for its portrayal of Western espionage methods as being morally inconsistent with Western democracy and values.
‘One of the All-Time 100 Novels’ – TIME Magazine.
‘Best spy novel of all-time’ – Publishers Weekly.
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Price HK$ 12,000
1963 - Victor Gollancz Ltd, London - First Edition
First edition of example of ‘the best spy story I have ever read’ according to Graham Greene. In a dust jacket without the commonly encountered fading to spine.‘An icon of the anti-hero spy’ – United States Central Intelligence Agency.
The British Cold War spy novel that became famous for its portrayal of Western espionage methods as being morally inconsistent with Western democracy and values.
‘One of the All-Time 100 Novels’ – TIME Magazine.
‘Best spy novel of all-time’ – Publishers Weekly.
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Price HK$ 12,000
The Royal Gauger -
Charles Leadbetter
1760 - C. Hitch and L. Hawes et al., London - Fifth Edition, very much enlarged and improved.
A "gauger" was an officer whose business it was to ascertain the contents of casks, mainly to assist in the prevention of illicit shipments of alcohol. In addition to dealing with the ever present challenge of taxing producers of alcohol, he had to prove an accurate mathematical formula for ‘gauging’ the size of containers, mostly barrels. The complex calculations required the use of a slide rule, the three slide version of which is illustrated and described in detail within.
Special sections give advice on how to become an excise officer, and "cask-Gauging" as practised in the Port of London. The majority of this large and comprehensive work is directed at gauging of breweries, malt compounders and distilleries.
Illustrated with two large folding hand-coloured plates, five large folding monochrome plates, and two folding ‘vouchers’. All present and correct as per the binders instructions (due to the size of the second hand-coloured plate (Plate 1) it is sometimes rebound in two parts, and incorrectly collated as two separate plates, in the later seventh edition it was actually printed on two separate pages).
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Price HK$ 6,500
1760 - C. Hitch and L. Hawes et al., London - Fifth Edition, very much enlarged and improved.
A "gauger" was an officer whose business it was to ascertain the contents of casks, mainly to assist in the prevention of illicit shipments of alcohol. In addition to dealing with the ever present challenge of taxing producers of alcohol, he had to prove an accurate mathematical formula for ‘gauging’ the size of containers, mostly barrels. The complex calculations required the use of a slide rule, the three slide version of which is illustrated and described in detail within.Special sections give advice on how to become an excise officer, and "cask-Gauging" as practised in the Port of London. The majority of this large and comprehensive work is directed at gauging of breweries, malt compounders and distilleries.
Illustrated with two large folding hand-coloured plates, five large folding monochrome plates, and two folding ‘vouchers’. All present and correct as per the binders instructions (due to the size of the second hand-coloured plate (Plate 1) it is sometimes rebound in two parts, and incorrectly collated as two separate plates, in the later seventh edition it was actually printed on two separate pages).
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Price HK$ 6,500
Guest in the House -
Philip MacDonald
1956 - Herbert Jenkins, London - First English Edition, preceded by the 1955 Doubleday edition.
First English edition in a bright , thus scarce, near fine dust jacket.
‘Colonel Ivor St. George, a former British Commando and now a pretty broke bloke, settles down in the household of the Goulds-Jeff whose life he had once saved, Mary whose welcome is less heartfelt. The reappearance of Victor, Mary's former husband who is blackmailing her and uses her (their) child as a vise, does much to increase the apprehension and tension here until St. George lives up to his name.... Debonair.’ [Kirkus Reviews]
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Price HK$ 2,800
1956 - Herbert Jenkins, London - First English Edition, preceded by the 1955 Doubleday edition.
First English edition in a bright , thus scarce, near fine dust jacket.‘Colonel Ivor St. George, a former British Commando and now a pretty broke bloke, settles down in the household of the Goulds-Jeff whose life he had once saved, Mary whose welcome is less heartfelt. The reappearance of Victor, Mary's former husband who is blackmailing her and uses her (their) child as a vise, does much to increase the apprehension and tension here until St. George lives up to his name.... Debonair.’ [Kirkus Reviews]
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Price HK$ 2,800
Nocturnes - Signed -
Thomas Mann, Lynd Ward (illustrator)
1934 - Equinox Cooperative Press Inc, New York - 954 of 1000 numbered limited copies
The first English translation of these three short stories – ‘A Gleam’, ‘Railway Accident’, and ‘A Weary Hour’. Illustrated by Lynd Ward with three full page black and white lithographs, and four in-text lithographs.
Signed by Thomas Mann to the limitation page.
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Price HK$ 2,800
1934 - Equinox Cooperative Press Inc, New York - 954 of 1000 numbered limited copies
The first English translation of these three short stories – ‘A Gleam’, ‘Railway Accident’, and ‘A Weary Hour’. Illustrated by Lynd Ward with three full page black and white lithographs, and four in-text lithographs.Signed by Thomas Mann to the limitation page.
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Price HK$ 2,800
The Beetle. A Mystery -
Richard Marsh
1897 - Skeffington & Son, London - First Edition
'I saw him take a different shape before my eyes. His loose draperies fell about him…and there issued out of them a monstrous creature of the beetle tribe…'
An outstanding example of Richard Marsh’s best-selling gothic horror masterpiece. With four full page monochrome plates from illustrations by John Williamson.
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Price HK$ 18,000
1897 - Skeffington & Son, London - First Edition
'I saw him take a different shape before my eyes. His loose draperies fell about him…and there issued out of them a monstrous creature of the beetle tribe…'An outstanding example of Richard Marsh’s best-selling gothic horror masterpiece. With four full page monochrome plates from illustrations by John Williamson.
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Price HK$ 18,000
The Arts of Beauty; or, Secrets of a Lady's Toilet. With Hints to Gentlemen on the Art of Fascinating -
Madame Lola Montez, Countess of Landsfeld
1858 - Dick & Fitzgerald, New York - First Edition
‘If Lola Montez’s life was a film script it would be rejected for being too far fetched. With Franz Liszt, Alexandre Dumas and King Ludwig of Bavaria among her many lovers, and shootings, drownings, bigamy and adultery, you just couldn’t make it up.’ - The Irish Times.
The beautiful and fiery Montez had fictional affairs with Harry Flashman,and is reputed to be the inspiration for Irene Adler, in Conan Doyle’s ‘A Scandal In Bohemia’, her infamous ‘Spider Dance’ involved the discovery and removal of numerous spiders amongst her petticoats whilst whirling around in the style of a Spanish gypsy, and the various fatal endings of many lovers was just as spider like.
And in this rare little tome she reveals all the secrets required to be, well, Lola Montez. The last chapter provides ‘Fifty Rules in the Art of Fascinating’. A superb example, without the us of powders, paints, pomades, embellishment, beautification, or sophistication.
Her name was Lola, she was a showgirl... or more appropriately, Like the spider to a fly...
‘She is fatal to any man who dares to love her.’ - Alexandre Dumas.
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Price HK$ 15,000
1858 - Dick & Fitzgerald, New York - First Edition
‘If Lola Montez’s life was a film script it would be rejected for being too far fetched. With Franz Liszt, Alexandre Dumas and King Ludwig of Bavaria among her many lovers, and shootings, drownings, bigamy and adultery, you just couldn’t make it up.’ - The Irish Times.The beautiful and fiery Montez had fictional affairs with Harry Flashman,and is reputed to be the inspiration for Irene Adler, in Conan Doyle’s ‘A Scandal In Bohemia’, her infamous ‘Spider Dance’ involved the discovery and removal of numerous spiders amongst her petticoats whilst whirling around in the style of a Spanish gypsy, and the various fatal endings of many lovers was just as spider like.
And in this rare little tome she reveals all the secrets required to be, well, Lola Montez. The last chapter provides ‘Fifty Rules in the Art of Fascinating’. A superb example, without the us of powders, paints, pomades, embellishment, beautification, or sophistication.
Her name was Lola, she was a showgirl... or more appropriately, Like the spider to a fly...
‘She is fatal to any man who dares to love her.’ - Alexandre Dumas.
More details
Price HK$ 15,000