Tag Archives: old books

First Edition: The Sea The Sea

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The Sea The Sea by Iris Murdoch [below] won the Booker Prize in 1978.

Iris Murdoch

[photo: getty]

Iris MurdochThis hardback first edition, signed by the author, also features an inscription. Published by Chatto & Windus in 1978, the inscription is to Martyn Goff, administrator of the Booker Prize from the early 1970-2005. The distinctive cover features ‘The Great Wave off Kanagawa’ by Hokusai.

The story
Charles Arrowby withdraws from society to the seaside to write his memoir. There, he meets again his first love Mary Hartley Fitch. Again, he idolizes her and tries to persuade her to elope with him. When she won’t, he tries to kidnap her. This is a tale of obsession and arrogance

To read the opening paragraph of The Sea The Sea, click here.

The film Iris MurdochThe film Iris was released in 2001. Murdoch was played in youth and old age by Kate Winslet and Judi Dench, her husband John Bayley was played by Hugh Bonneville and Jim Broadbent. About their lifelong romance and then the sad descent of Iris into dementia. Watch the official trailer here.

The current UK edition Iris MurdochStill in print as a Vintage Classic edition, this is the current cover. Buy at Amazon

Other editions Iris MurdochMy Triad Granada edition [above] features on its cover a detail of a painting, ‘The Sea-Birds Domain’ by Peter Graham, which can be seen in Manchester Art Gallery. It is dated inside in my handwriting as being bought in 1984.

Editions around the world of this book feature beautiful cover designs from Korea, Spain and China.

‘The Sea The Sea’ by Iris Murdoch [UK: Vintage] Buy at Amazon

If you like old books, check out these:-
‘The Hobbit’ by JRR Tolkein
‘The French Lieutenant’s Woman’ by John Fowles
‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ by Lewis Carroll

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
First Edition: THE SEA THE SEA by Iris Murdoch #oldbooks via @SandraDanby http://wp.me/p5gEM4-2rc

First Edition: The French Lieutenant’s Woman

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I was a great John Fowles fan in the Eighties. This is my copy of The French Lieutenant’s Woman, dated 1981, a paperback edition by Triad Granada. It is well-thumbed, well-read, as are all my Fowles paperbacks including The Collector and The Magus. I remember being disappointed with the film, disliking the two-strand screenplay. I haven’t read the novel for years, but it remains on my shelf and I will re-read it soon. I find once the details of a story have been forgotten, the pleasure of re-reading increases exponentially. The French Lieutenant’s WomanThe story
Famous for its multiple endings, The French Lieutenant’s Woman received a mixed reception on publication. It explores the relationship of gentleman and amateur naturalist Charles Smithson, and Sarah Woodruff, former governess and independent woman, with whom he falls in love. Set in the mid-19th century, Woodruff is a ‘disgraced’ woman who lives in Lyme Regis where she spends hours walking The Cobb, a stone jetty where she stares out to sea. Smithson arrives in town and, seeing this lonely figure beside the sea, is curious about her.

The film 

Starring Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons [above], this film was released in 1981 with a stellar cast, director [Karel Reisz], music by [Carl Davis] and a screenplay by Harold Pinter based on the Fowles novel. It was nominated for two Oscars – best actress [Streep] and best adapted screenplay. Streep won a BAFTA for her role. Actors considered for the role included Robert Redford and Richard Chamberlain, actresses up for the role included Francesca Annis, Charlotte Rampling, Gemma Jones and Helen Mirren.

The storyline differs from the novel in that there are two strands, the Victorian drama from the book featuring Woodruff and Smithson, and a modern-day strand about the filming of the story in which the two actors [played by Streep and Irons] fall in love. The French Lieutenant’s WomanWatch this clip on You Tube, the scene where Smithson first sees Woodruff standing on The Cobb [above] on a wild and windy day. Filmed on location in Dorset.

The first edition 

This hardback ticks the ‘first’ box – first edition, first impression – and is signed by the author. Although slightly faded, its sale price is £750 at Peter Harrington. Published in 1969 by Jonathan Cape.

If you like old books, check out these:-
‘Pride and Prejudice’ by Jane Austen
‘Watership Down’ by Richard Adams
‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ by Lewis Carroll

‘The French Lieutenant’s Woman’ by John Fowles Buy at Amazon

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
Still loved: THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT’S WOMAN by John Fowles #oldbooks via @SandraDanby http://wp.me/p5gEM4-2jK

#FirstEdition ‘Pride and Prejudice’ by #JaneAusten #books #old books #classics

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I can’t remember the first time I read Pride and Prejudice. I read Emma at the age of 17 as part of my English Literature syllabus, my battered copy is dated August 1977 when I was 16. My copy of Pride and Prejudice [below] is dated January 1980 and was bought in my first year at university. Jane Austen
The story
Is this the most well-known story? Young woman meets young man, each dislikes the other on sight and are therefore destined to fall in love. But along the way, Jane Austen offers us a study of manners, a humorous portrait of a family of girls who have no fortune of their own and therefore must make a fortunate match. The first sentence is one of the most quoted: ‘It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.’ But this is so much more than a romance. And there are so many editions, see some below.

The film
For me, the best dramatic version of the book is the UK television series, broadcast in 1995 [below]. Featuring a young Colin Firth as Mr Darcy, it is famous for its ‘wet shirt’ scene. I prefer Jennifer Ehle as Lizzie Bennet, rather than Keira Knightly in the 2005 film version.

I also have a soft spot for the 1940 Hollywood version [below] featuring Laurence Olivier and Greer Garson. It starts on a cheerful note, ‘It happened in OLD ENGLAND… in the village of Meryton…’ The capitals are as featured in the credits of the film.

The first edition
Jane AustenThe first editions cost a fortune. This one, in three volumes, is described by seller Peter Harrington as ‘By the author of Sense and Sensibility’ and is priced at £87,500. It was first offered by her father, then titled First Impressions, to Thomas Cadell in 1797 who declined it without seeing the manuscript. It was published in 1813 in London by T Egerton. Here’s the title page. Jane Austen

If you like old books, check out these:-
‘Watership Down’ by Richard Adams
‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ by Lewis Carroll
‘The Hobbit’ by JRR Tolkein

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
#FirstEdition #books PRIDE AND PREJUDICE by Jane Austen #oldbooks via @SandraDanby http://wp.me/p5gEM4-2gO

First Edition: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

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Surely every child and adult knows the story of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll or has seen a film version. I remember receiving the LP [below] of a musical production for Christmas as a child and being enchanted. Perhaps it is a story we think we know, but re-reading may surprise us. Alice’s Adventures in WonderlandListen to my British musical version of the story, featuring Dirk Bogarde, Tommy Cooper, Beryl Reid and Frankie Howerd, at You Tube.

The story
Bored and drowsy one afternoon, a young girl called Alice notices a white rabbit, wearing a waistcoat. She follows him and falls down a rabbit hole, entering a fantasy world where she encounters fantastical creatures. She is questioned by a caterpillar smoking a hookah, plays croquet using a live flamingo, and attends the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party. When Alice awakes, it seems that Wonderland was a dream.

The American first edition 

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

[photo: peterharrington.co.uk]

This is a first edition, second issue book featuring 41 illustrations by John Tenniel and published in New York by D Appleton and Co in 1866. The issue consisted of 1,000 copies. The selling price is $9750.

The current UK edition Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland Lewis Carroll’s Alice has been enchanting children for 150 years. Curious Alice, the bossy White Rabbit, the formidable Queen of Hearts and the Mad Hatter are among the best-loved, most iconic literary creations of all time. Macmillan was the original publisher of Alice in 1865, this hardback edition is illustrated with the original line drawings by John Tenniel, plates coloured by John Macfarlane, a ribbon marker and a foreword by award-winning children’s author Hilary McKay.

‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ by Lewis Carroll [UK: MacMillan] Buy at Amazon

If you like old books, check out these:-
‘Watership Down‘ by Richard Adams
‘The French Lieutenant’s Woman’ by John Fowles
‘The Hobbit’ by JRR Tolkein

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
Still loved: ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND by Lewis Carroll #oldbooks via @SandraDanby http://wp.me/p5gEM4-2gx