Rare Book Monthly

Book Catalogue Reviews - January - 2008 Issue

First Editions, History, Science and More from The Manhattan Rare Book Company

Charles Darwin - still controversial after all these years.

Charles Darwin - still controversial after all these years.


It was August 20, 1940, when Winston Churchill strode before the House of Commons to give this speech. The Blitz of London was underway, virtually all of Europe had fallen to the Nazis, and Britain stood alone. To anyone else it may have looked hopeless, but Churchill would rally his people, presenting an honest assessment, unshakable determination, and absolute confidence that right would win out, no matter how long it might take. His words are inspirational still today. "[W]hen we are doing the finest thing in the world, and have the honour to be the sole champion of the liberties of all Europe, we must not grudge these years or weary as we toil and struggle through them." Churchill was right. Time was on his side. Item 68 is A Speech by the Prime Minister...August 20, 1940. $1,600.

Manhattan describes The Grapes of Wrath as "Steinbeck's masterpiece." There will be no quarrel here. It is the quintessential story of the Great Depression, a time of great misery, only to be followed by the agony Churchill spoke of. Item 62 is a first edition, first issue of the masterpiece. $6,500.

Most people think Bambi is as American as Walt Disney, but the young buck was actually born in the forests of Austria. His creator was Felix Salten, and item 48 is a first edition in English of Bambi. A Life in the Woods. Salten was a prolific writer, but nothing else ever quite reached the same level of mass appeal as his story of the orphaned deer. Five years after this edition was published, Salten sold the film rights, which made their way to Disney and his movie in 1942. $1,600.

The Manhattan Rare Book Company is found online at www.manhattanrarebooks.com, telephone 212-326-8907.

Rare Book Monthly

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    December 24 to January 9
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Ellis Smith Prints unsigned. 20” by 16”.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: United typothetae of America presidents. Pictures of 37 UTA presidents 46th annual convention United typothetae of America Cincinnati 1932.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec signed Paper Impressionism Art Prints. MayMilton 9 1/2” by 13” Reine de Joie 9 1/2” by 13”.
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    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Aberle’ Ballet editions. 108th triumph, American season spring and summer 1944.
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    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: An exhibit of printed books, Bridwell library.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur Court By Mark Twain 1889.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: 1963 Philadelphia Eagles official program.
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    Rare Books, Catalogs, Magazines
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    December 24 to January 9
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: 8 - Esquire the magazine for men 1954.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: The American printer, July 1910.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Leaves of grass 1855 by Walt Whitman.
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    Case Antiques, Jan. 25-26: Armory Show 1913 Exhibition Poster. $8,000 to $9,000.
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    Case Antiques, Jan. 25-26: Winston Churchill & Bernard Baruch Signed Letters Plus Photo. $1,400 to $1,600.
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    Sotheby’s: William Shakespeare.
    The Poems and Sonnets of William Shakespeare, 1960. 7,210 USD
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    A Christmas Carol, First Edition, 1843. 17,500 USD
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    Lord of the Flies, First Edition, 1954. 5,400 USD
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    Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There, Inscribed First Edition, 1872. 25,000 USD
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    The Hobbit, First Edition, 1937. 12,000 USD
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    Paradise Lost, 1759. 5,400 USD

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