Charles Dickens, Signed (253 results)

First edition, presentation copy, inscribed by the author at the head of the half-title, "Thomas Beard Esquire, From his old friend Charles Dickens, Devonshire Terrace, Nineteenth May 1846". The inscription is dated the day after publication. Thomas Beard (1807-1891) was almost the oldest of Dickens's friends, and their friendship was uninterrupted until the novelist's death in 1870. Dickens joined Beard as a reporter on the Morning Chronicle in August 1834 through Beard's recommendation; Beard was best man at his wedding and godfather to his eldest son (Letters of Charles Dickens, eds. Madeleine House & Graham Story, p. 3, vol. 1, 1965). Smith II, 7. Small octavo. Original moderate blue fine-diaper cloth, spine lettered in gilt, spine and covers stamped in blind, pale yellow coated endpapers. Recent custom blue morocco-backed folding case. Title vignette and 3 wood-engraved vignettes in the text. The Suzannet copy, with the engraved bookplate of Alain de Suzannet (Sotheby's, 22 Nov. 1971, lot 87, to J. E. Teale; subsequently resold at Sotheby's, 1984.) Rebacked with original spine laid down, light toning to margins, a very good copy.

Presentation copy, inscribed by Dickens to William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878), editor of the New York Evening Post and a leading poet of his generation: "William Cullen Bryant From his friend and admirer Charles Dickens", signed with his characteristic lavish underscores. Dickens met Bryant for their first private audience on his American tour on Tuesday 22 February 1842 and presented him with a gift of six books, all American editions of his own works. Bryant reciprocated by presenting Dickens a copy of his own The Fountain and other Poems, his inscription using the same form of words (that copy later in the Stephen H. Wakeman collection, sold American Art Association, April 1924, lot 26, $400). Bryant was well-disposed to Dickens, at that time the most famous living author in the world, but he, like many other Americans, was dismayed by the criticisms Dickens expressed in his American Notes (1842) and in the American chapters of Martin Chuzzlewit (1844). However, he recovered sufficiently to visit Dickens as an old friend on his return to America in 1867. The fact that this is an American edition of Dickens's first publishing success is evocative: Dickens had strong feelings on the contentious issue of international copyright, and the subject hung over the whole trip. He mentioned it himself several times during his public engagements, eventually drawing on himself the wrath of the American press. Lea and Blanchard (successors to Cary and Lea) were Dickens's "official" American publishers and had prepared for his visit by reprinting his works to date, but the American economy was in the middle of a depression, general fiction could only be sold in the cheapest possible formats, and the cash-strapped publishers were not eager to further erode their profits by paying royalties to foreign authors. Large octavo. Original brown vertical grain cloth, covers blind-stamped, spine with figure and title in gilt (stained, worn), inscribed to Bryant "from his friend and admirer, Charles Dickens". Housed in a brown quarter morocco solander box by the Chelsea Bindery. Provenance: by descent from the recipient. Substantial dampstaining to top edges of boards, also affecting contents but to a lesser extent, head and tail of spine chipped, wormholes to joints, boards rubbed and scuffed, ring stain to front board, some spotting and oxidisation of plates, sporadic foxing and tanning to text.

Presentation copy, inscribed by Dickens to William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878), editor of the New York Evening Post and a leading poet of his generation, inscribed by Dickens: "William Cullen Bryant From his friend and admirer Charles Dickens", signed with his characteristic lavish underscores, and with two accompanying autograph letters signed. In the first letter Dickens writes: "With one exception (and that's Irving) you are the man I most wanted to see in America". Dickens excuses himself for not having been able to see Bryant when he called, adding though that "As I lost what I most eagerly longed for, I ask you for your sympathy and not for your forgiveness". He presses Bryant to come and breakfast with him - "I don't call to leave a card at your door before asking you, because I love you too well to be ceremonious with you. I have a thumbed book at home, so well now that it has nothing of you on the back, but one gilt 'B', and the remotest possible traces of a 'y'. My credentials are in my earnest admiration of its beautiful contents". The second letter was the cover note to the gift of six American editions of Dickens's works, all similarly inscribed: "If I had any control over the accompanying books, they should be unillustrated, and in outward appearance more worthy your acceptance." After the delays indicated by the first letter here, Dickens finally met Bryant for their first private audience on his American tour on Tuesday 22 February 1842. Bryant responded to the gift of books by presenting a copy of this own The Fountain and other Poems, his inscription using the same form of words (that copy later in the Stephen H. Wakeman collection, sold American Art Association, April 1924, lot 26, $400). Bryant was well-disposed to Dickens, at that time the most famous living author in the world, but he, like many other Americans, was dismayed by the criticisms Dickens expressed in his American Notes (1842) and in the American chapters of Martin Chuzzlewit (1844). However, he recovered sufficiently to visit Dickens as an old friend on his return to America in 1867. The fact that this is an American edition is evocative: Dickens had strong feelings on the contentious issue of international copyright, and the subject hung over the whole trip. He mentioned it himself several times during his public engagements, eventually drawing on himself the wrath of the American press. Lea and Blanchard (successors to Cary and Lea) were Dickens's "official" American publishers and had prepared for his visit by reprinting his works to date, but the American economy was in the middle of a depression, general fiction could only be sold in the cheapest possible formats, and the cash-strapped publishers were not eager to further erode their profits by paying royalties to foreign authors. Large octavo. Original brown vertical grain cloth, covers blind-stamped, spine with figure and title in gilt (stained, worn), inscribed to Bryant "from his friend and admirer, Charles Dickens". Housed in a quarter morocco solander box by the Chelsea Bindery. With two autograph letters signed to the poet and journalist William Cullen Bryant, Carlton House, New York, 14 and 27 February 1842, together 3 pages, 8vo, the second with later annotation to upper margin. Provenance: by descent from the recipient. Spine expertly repaired, with restoration at head, dampstaining to top edge of contents, boards scuffed and dampstained, foxing throughout, offsetting and oxidisation to plates, as usual with American piracies of this date, overall a good copy.

Second US edition in book form, inscribed by the author on his first visit to America on the title page: "George Morris from Charles Dickens New York. First June 1842". The recipient was the noted American journalist and poet George Pope Morris (1802-1864), editor and founder of various papers including the New-York Mirror and Ladies' Literary Gazette, which published the writings of many of the best authors of the day including Washington Irving, Edgar Allan Poe, and Dickens himself. Dickens had first met Morris earlier that February, writing to his friend John Forster that at a grand ball in New York he was "waited upon" by Morris "in the full dress uniform of Heaven knows what regiment of militia", most probably in his role as Brigadier-General in the New York State Militia (Letters, Pilgrim Edition, vol. III, p. 71). On 1 June 1842, Dickens inscribed to Morris six known copies of his books, all once offered together in the Rosenbach catalogue of English Literature in November 1913, and since dispersed. Dickens's US visit was by no means successful, as the author was furious at the piracy of his works by American publishers, and his public criticism of their practices led to the condemnation of Dickens by various newspapers. He nonetheless gathered material which he worked into his survey of the country, American Notes, published later that year. The Old Curiosity Shop (which includes Master Humphrey's Clock) was first published in the US in serial form from 1840 to 1841, with the first edition in book form published later in 1841. Provenance: Sotheby's, 24 November 1927, sold to the noted Dickens' collector the Comte Alain de Suzannet (with his bookplate to the front pastedown and inner chemise); sold in his sale at Sotheby's, 22 November 1971, lot 59; sold by J & S Graphics, Inc in their Catalogue number 16, 1973; subsequently in the acclaimed Dickens' collections of Kenyon Starling (bookplate to front pastedown); and William E. Self (ditto), sold in Self's sale at Christie's New York, 4 February 2008, lot 78; and again at the Sotheby's sale of the Lawrence Drizen Charles Dickens Collection, 24 September 2019, lot 78. Smith, Charles Dickens: A Bibliography of His First American Editions, p. 166. Octavo. Original brown cloth, spine lettered with vignette in gilt, covers blocked in blind, plain endpapers. Housed in a custom green half morocco slipcase and chemise. Additional title-page for Master Humphrey's clock, engraved frontispiece, title, and 8 plates after George Cattermole, Hablot K. Browne and Thomas Sibson, numerous woodcut illustrations throughout text. Lightly rubbed, some minor browning, a couple of gatherings a little sprung. A very good copy.

First US edition in book form, inscribed by the author on his first visit to America on the vignette title page: "George Morris from Charles Dickens New York. First June 1842". The recipient was the noted American journalist and poet George Pope Morris (1802-1864), editor and founder of various papers including the New-York Mirror and Ladies' Literary Gazette, which published the writings of many of the best authors of the day including Washington Irving, Edgar Allan Poe, and Dickens himself. Dickens had first met Morris earlier that February, writing to his friend John Forster that at a grand ball in New York he was "waited upon" by Morris "in the full dress uniform of Heaven knows what regiment of militia", most probably in his role as Brigadier-General in the New York State Militia (Letters, Pilgrim Edition, vol. III, p. 71). On 1 June 1842, Dickens inscribed to Morris six known copies of his books, all once offered together in the Rosenbach catalogue of English Literature in November 1913, and since dispersed. Dickens's US visit was by no means successful, as the author was furious at the piracy of his works by American publishers, and his public criticism of their practices led to the condemnation of Dickens by various newspapers. He nonetheless gathered material which he worked into his survey of the country, American Notes, published later that year. This first US book form edition of Barnaby Rudge was published on 20 December 1841, with the title page postdated 1842. It had originally been serialized in 19 parts by Lea and Blanchard between 12 March and 18 December 1841. The publisher's paid Dickens a set fee for the advance sheets of each English number, first published from February to November that year. Provenance: Sotheby's 24 November 1927, sold to the noted Dickens' collector the Comte Alain de Suzannet (with his bookplate to the front pastedown and inner chemise); sold in his sale at Sotheby's, 22 November 1971, lot 62, to Francis Edwards; re-appearing at the sale of the collection of Neville L. Fakes at Sotheby's, 11 July 2002, lot 212; and again at the Sotheby's sale of the Lawrence Drizen Charles Dickens Collection, 24 September 2019, lot 79. Smith, Charles Dickens: A Bibliography of His First American Editions, p. 184. Octavo. Original brown cloth, spine lettered with vignette in gilt, covers blocked in blind, plain endpapers. Housed in a custom green half morocco slipcase and chemise. Engraved title, frontispiece and 14 engravings after Cattermole, H. K. Browne and Sibson by J. Yaeger, numerous woodcut illustrations throughout text. Very light wear at extremities, a couple of gatherings a little sprung, light bumping, occasional slight browning to contents. A very good copy.

First edition, first printing of Dickens' rarest novel. Octavo, three volumes bound in full royal blue crushed levant morocco by Bayntun Bindery with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins and wide gilt inner dentelles stamp-signed by Bayntun, all edges gilt. This copy agrees in all points with Margaret Caldwell's analysis of the differing impressions in the Clarendon edition of GreatÂExpectations. The third volume contains the numeral "3" in the pagination on p. 103, and the initial "i" in "inflexible" on p. 193, both errors that appear in the first impression. In near fine condition. An exceptional example in a very attractive binding. Dickens' penultimate novel, Great Expectations, was written in "the afternoon of [his] life and fame" (G.K. Chesterton). The novel contains some of Dickens' most memorable scenes, including its opening, set in a graveyard, when the young orphan Pip is accosted by escaped convict Abel Magwitch. Upon its release, the novel received near universal acclaim. Although Dickens' contemporary Thomas Carlyle referred to it disparagingly as "that Pip nonsense," he nevertheless reacted to each fresh instalment with "roars of laughter." Later, George Bernard Shaw praised the novel, as "all of one piece and consistently truthful." During the serial publication, Dickens was pleased with public response to Great Expectations and its sales; when the plot first formed in his mind, he called it "a very fine, new and grotesque idea.".

"Ten copies (this is Number 3) of the Edition De-Luxe of the Chapman and Hall Dickens are specially bound in Ten Different Bindings and extra-illustrated by insertion of a series of original water color drawings, on Whatman paper, after Kyd and others. llustrated with 292 original watercolors by "Kyd" (Joseph Clayton Clarke, 1856-1937) and others, also with numerous colored and plain plates, mounted proofs, inserted parts, wrappers, etc. 60 vols. Large 8vo (10 x 7 inches). The Most Elaborate of the Chapman & Hall Editions de Luxe. The letter, dated from Kent on 3 August 1842, is three pages on a bifolium, to Jonathan Chapman (1807-1848), at the time the 8th Mayor of Boston, signed by Dickens at the end and also on the address panel. Dickens describes the fishing village where he spent the summer and writes of his children. Having met Chapman in Boston, Dickens writes "I have decided on writing an account of my journeying in America.it will be published in a couple of volumes. A sumptuous production. Each volume has anywhere from a few to up to a few dozen original watercolors by Kyd and a dozen color prints with two original watercolor by Thomas Onwhyn in the volumes that comprise the Pickwick Papers. Gimbel D90 (based on, limited to 1000) Bound in full red morocco with elaborate gilt, the covers tooled with a floral motif with green morocco onlays, the spines similarly tooled and lettered in gilt with raised bands, gilt dentelles, red silk floral endpapers, all edges gilt. Very fine overall, the bindings with occasional darkened, one headcap rubbed, some leaves loose or pulled due to the heft of the volumes and insertions, the letter with folds and one split touching one word, ex-libris of Charles and Margaret Dyson to blanks llustrated with 292 original watercolors by "Kyd" (Joseph Clayton Clarke, 1856-1937) and others, also with numerous colored and plain plates, mounted proofs, inserted parts, wrappers, etc. 60 vols. Large 8vo (10 x 7 inches) "Ten copies (this is Number 3) of the Edition De-Luxe of the Chapman and Hall Dickens are specially bound in Ten Different Bindings and extra-illustrated by insertion of a series of original water color drawings, on Whatman paper, after Kyd and others.

Signed "Charles Dickens (with a large flourish) Washington, D.C. Seventh February 1868." Large oval portrait photograph measures 13 inches by 13 inches. Matted in a walnut frame which measures 24Âinches by 27 inches. ÂOn his Washington tour Dickens met President Andrew Johnson and signed this photograph on the date of that meeting, February 7, which also happened to be Dickens' birthday. HeÂdiscussed in a letter to his friend and agent John Foster regarding that day, "This scrambling scribblement is resumed this morning, because I have just seen the President: who had sent to me very courteously asking me to make my own appointment. He is a man with a remarkable face." From the Library of The Cosmos Club in Washington, D.C. Portrait photographs of this size signed by Dickens are exceptionally rare, especially with such noted provenance. Charles Dickens was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognized him as a literary genius.

Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine. 'Believe me, my Lord, that I am deeply sensible of this high token, and that I shall ever regard the title with a pride and pleasure much too deep for words.' A letter in which a young Charles Dickens writes from the Royal Hotel, Edinburgh, expressing his gratitude to the Lord Provost of Edinburgh (Sir James Forrest) for the distinguished honour of granting the young novelist the freedom of the city in June 1841. Claire Tomalin writes 'He left an unseasonably cold London to travel north with Catherine, to a warm and enthusiastic welcome. Crowds gathered round their hotel, and over 250 gentlemen attended the public dinner in his honour' ( Charles Dickens, A Life - Viking 2011) 1 page, 7 x 4.5 inches, in excellent, near fine condition, with a main crease through the centre and the remains of a small area of guard to the reverse where it was formerly mounted in a Victorian album. A unique letter displayed in a removable leather frame which is itself housed in a custom full morocco solander box. The box is complete with gilt lettering and a gilt Scottish thistle motif. Signed by Author(s).

Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine. 1st Edition. First Edition, First Printing. This book has the First issue point with the 'Fireside' plate and the author credited as 'Boz' to the title page. This copy is SIGNED by Charles Dickens on a laid in envelope. An attractive copy with light wear to the spine and edges. The bindings in all three books are tight, bound in the ORIGINAL publisher's cloth. The pages are clean with light discoloration. There is NO writing, marks or bookplates in the book. Overall, a lovely copy of this (3) Volume First Edition SIGNED by the author. We buy Charles Dickens First Editions. Signed by Author(s).

Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine. 1st Edition. First Edition, First Printing. This is the TRUE FIRST EDITION with the First issue point with page 213 miss-paginated. The publisher's catalog is present and dated November 1859. This copy is SIGNED by Charles Dickens on a laid in check dated 1859, the same year this book was published. A wonderful UNRESTORED copy bound in the ORIGINAL publisher's Red Cloth. The binding is tight with light wear to the boards. The pages are clean with minor discoloration to the endpapers. There is NO writing, marks or bookplates in the book. Overall, a lovely copy of this First Edition SIGNED by the author. We buy Charles Dickens First Editions. Signed by Author(s).

Soft cover. Condition: Fine. 1st Edition. First Editions, First Printings in the ORIGINAL MONTHLY PARTS SIGNED by Charles Dickens on a laid in check. A superb set in the publisher's green pictorial wrappers with minor wear to the spines and edges. These ORIGINAL wrappers include 27 additional plates with the rare suppressed plates by R. W. Buss in part 3. A total of 70 plates present, with the 27 additions showing different versions of the original 43, some plates being variants not mentioned in Hatton and Cleaver. "These three artists (Seymour, Buss, "Phiz") etched, in all, 92 plates for the completed work; of which 43 are the "Originals" as they appeared in the first issue of the monthly parts, 4 are "Replacements," 2 are "Substitutes," and 24 are "Duplicates" of the originals: total 73. The remaining 19 are not dealt with in this bibliography" (Hatton and Cleaver pp 17). Fourteen of the front wrappers and twelve of the back wrappers are first issue (the wrappers, like the plates, can be found in a number of variants). The text has issue points in twelve of the nineteen books, in this set two of the parts show first issue text and ten show later issue text. The Pickwick advertiser is present and complete in eleven of the sixteen parts which call for it. The set also retains five of the seven "addresses" that were issued in the course of publication. Back ads present are Parts IX, one ad;, part X, one ad; Part XIII, two ads; Part XIV, one ad; Part XV, seven ads; Part XVII, three ads; Part XVIII, four ads; and Part XIX-XX, four ads. This shows twenty-three of the thirty-four ads called for in Hatton and Cleaver. Not complete as for the advertisements, but still with many more ads here than most copies in recent years. An overall excellent set documenting the progression and development of the illustrated plates and their variations housed in a custom clamshell slipcase for preservation SIGNED by the author. Signed by Author(s).

Autograph letter signed from Charles Dickens to Thomas C. Grattan (1792-1864), Irish novelist and British consul in Boston, upon Dickens's return from his first trip to America, in total around 200 words in his hand. A bitter Dickens reflects upon his trip, generally seen as unsuccessful following controversies over copyright, and has come back to find that the only change in Britain is an increase in income tax. He is nonetheless friendly, asking to be commended to their mutual friend and to Grattan's family, commenting on the death of a well-known publisher, and wishing him well. Dickens visited America on a six-month tour in 1842, partly as he had always admired the country, and also with the intent of publishing his observations, which were indeed published as American Notes for General Circulation in October 1842. Dickens landed in America in January 1842, welcomed by local dignitaries and cheering crowds, and was lined up with an itinerary including a visit to the White House, meetings with various literary and political figures, and numerous banquets. However, he soon found his literary stardom oppressive, being unable to keep up with the flood of correspondence and overwhelmed by the surge of admirers. It was the issue of copyright which was the greatest blight on the trip. Throughout his publishing career, the lack of effective copyright was Dickens's bugbear. Even within Britain, where he was protected under British copyright law, Dickens found that from the publication of The Pickwick Papers onwards his novels were plagued by unauthorized stage adaptations, piracy, parodies, and "sequels". In America, which had no legal requirement to recognize British copyright or to pay royalties to authors, Dickens was most afflicted with piracy. Dickens's success in America had been as great as in Britain, and his novels - already in 1842 including Barnaby Rudge, The Old Curiosity Shop, Nicholas Nickleby, Oliver Twist, and The Pickwick Papers - had proved bestsellers in various pirated editions, for which Dickens had not received a penny. In his frustration, Dickens sought to use the trip to raise the issue, which he recounts to Grattan, "You will have seen that I have followed up the International copyright question". In two speeches, at public banquets in his honour on 1 February and 8 February, he criticized the lack of an international copyright agreement. The American reaction was instantly negative, with widespread condemnation in the newspapers, partly no doubt fed by publishers who had a vested interest in the continued absence of international copyright agreements, but also reflecting American outrage that their feted author had debased himself with the subject of money, especially at banquets meant for his honour. The press attacks were often blatantly offensive, attacking his character and motives. However, it was one incident which particularly angered Dickens, albeit not surprising him, as he writes to Grattan: "They have forged a letter under my hand in the American papers - which does not surprise me in the least. Nothing but Honesty or common sense would startle me, from such a quarter." On 11 August 1842 (after Dickens had returned to Britain) the New York Tatler published a letter allegedly written by Dickens to the Morning Chronicle in July, full of contempt for his American hosts and for the hospitality he had received. This forgery, for Dickens, was emblematic of the contempt he was facing, further embittering him against the country. "Dickens's romantic dream of America as a pure, free, 'innocent' land, untrammelled by the corrupt institutions and the pernicious snobberies and class hatreds of the Old World, was rapidly turning sour, and he resolved to decline all future invitations of a public nature" (ODNB). Notwithstanding Dickens's bitterness, his letter to Grattan is affable. Born in Dublin, Grattan was initially educated for the law, but turned instead to writing, publishing a few novels, and the travelogue Highways and Byways (1823). He took up residence as British consul in Boston in 1839, and would himself publish a book critical of America, Civilized America, in 1859. Dickens writes to Grattan "let me report that we are all well and happy, as I shall hope to hear you are". He writes concerning the recently deceased publisher Thomas Longman, who had died three days before Dickens's letter: "the older Longman is just dead. He fell from his horse, and never recovered. I have not heard to whom he has bequeathed his valuable collection of authors' skulls", the last line a sardonic comment on the large number of writers whom Longman published, including Coleridge, Southey, Wordsworth, and Scott. Dickens mentions the great English tenor John Braham - "If you should foregather, any of these odd days, with Braham, commend me to him heartily" - which may well be a pointed comment, as Braham had also made a largely unsuccessful trip through America from 1840 to 1842. Maintaining the friendly tone, Dickens asks that he also pass on the commendations "with all manner of remembrance from Mrs. Dickens to Mrs. Grattan - and to your sons and daughter". Though obviously happy to be back in Britain, Dickens's woes were added to upon finding that Robert Peel had instituted a tax on income over £150 a year. He reports back to Grattan: "everybody is cursing the Income Tax, except the men to whom it gives places - and that there is nothing else new in this Hemisphere". Published in The Pilgrim Edition of the Letters of Charles Dickens, vol. III, 1974, p. 317. Folded bifolium (total leaf size 377 x 226 mm), one page of letter text, another of integral address (and note to send by the Great Western, the first regularly scheduled transatlantic steamship), verso blank, two British postmarks: "Ship Letter" and the cancellation stamp "New York Ship, Sept. 18", wax seal. Housed in a custom green half morocco folding box, green cloth sides, spine and front panel lettered in gilt, latter o.

Hardcover. Condition: Fine. 1st Edition. First Editions, First Printings of this two volume set. A wonderful copy SIGNED by Charles Dickens on a handwritten letter by Dickens laid into the book. The books are bound in the publisher's original green cloth. The bindings are tight with NO cocking or leaning with minor wear to the edges. The pages are clean with NO writing, marks or bookplates in the books. A superb copy SIGNED by the author. We buy Dickens in the original parts. Signed by Author(s).

4 x 5 inches laid down to 4 1/4 by 6 1/2 inch printed board. Photograph Signed ("Charles Dickens / First May, 1868"), albumen print cabinet card portrait of a standing Dickens in coat, 4 x 5 inches laid down to 4 1/4 by 6 1/2 inch printed board, with J. Gurney & Son imprint to lower mount and verso, signed on the verso, some fading and thumbsoiling.This portrait was taken either by Gurney and Son or possibly George Rockwood, another popular New York photographer, during Dickens's last American tour, and signed by him toward the end of the engagement.

A superb memento of Dickens's theatrical high-water mark, his bravura performance as the "craven and boastful" Captain Bobadil in his own "strictly private" production of Ben Jonson's comedy Every Man in his Humour. The invitation card - in effect a ticket to the performance - carries his characteristic flourished signature on the verso and a holograph entry in his hand, requesting the pleasure of Miss Holskamp's company at the first night, seating her in number 44 in the "Boxes, Second Circle". The success of Dickens's performance is attested by a portrait of him in the role, painted by C. R. Leslie in 1846 and lithographed by Thomas Maguire. The playbill is annotated to give a virtually complete cast list and in this regard may well be unique. "Stimulated after giving a reading of The Chimes to a small audience of friends [at Christmas 1844], [Dickens] resolved to organize some amateur theatricals of his own. Returning from a spell of residence in Italy, 'he flung himself with the passionate fullness of his nature into' gathering a cast and choosing a play. On 20 September 1845, Ben Jonson's Every Man in his Humour was played to a private audience at Miss Kelly's Theatre, 'with a success that out-ran the wildest expectation', as Forster recalled, 'and turned our little enterprise into one of the small sensations of the day'" (V&A Dickens centenary catalogue 1970). The attendee, a Miss Holskamp, was one of four sisters, all born in the Somers Town area of London, near St Pancras. The most likely to have been invited to this performance would be Margaret Holskamp (1827 1908), cited as a correspondent of Kate Dickens by Lillian Nayder in her biography of Dickens's wife: "In May [1846], Catherine's description of their trip [to Italy] was more definitive, particularly in regard to its southern boundary, a line that she herself drew [the Dickenses disagreed about the ultimate destination of their year abroad]. 'We are on the move again,' she wrote Margaret Holskamp, who knew the de la Rues and had discouraged the advances of Augusta [de la Rue]'s brother William" (The Other Dickens: A Life of Catherine Hogarth, 2011, p. 139). The friendship with the de la Rues is a minor but intriguing episode in Dickens's life: "In Genoa [in 1845] and elsewhere he became intensely involved in using, either directly or long-distance, the power of mesmeric healing he discovered in himself to alleviate the condition of Mme de la Rue, an Englishwoman who suffered great distress from hallucinations. This strange intimacy with Mme de la Rue caused Catherine considerable uneasiness, not surprisingly. Dickens's response was righteous indignation (eight years later, when he again met the de la Rues abroad, he wrote home to Catherine admonishing her that he thought it would become her now to write Mme de la Rue a friendly letter, which she obediently did). The Dickens family were back in London in July 1845 and Dickens energetically set about organizing a production of Jonson's Every Man in his Humour to be given by a band of his literary and artistic friends, the Amateur Players. This took place on 21 September [sic] in a private theatre in Dean Street, Dickens's own virtuoso performance as Captain Bobadil winning many plaudits" (ODNB). The playbill is annotated in another hand, listing all performers (bar two minor parts), and this is important as it sheds light on the roles taken by Dickens's siblings and friends: Henry Mayhew as Knowell, Fred Dickens as Edward Knowell, Mark Lemon as Brainworm, Dudley Costello as George Downright, T. J. Thompson as Wellbred, Forster as Kitely, Dickens as Bobadil, Douglas Jerrold as Master Stephen, "Leach" (John Leech) as Master Mathew, Augustus Dickens as Thomas Cash, Percival Leigh as Oliver Cob, Marcus Stone as Justice Clement, Frederick Evans as Roger Formal, "Charles" as William, "Jerrold Jun[io]r" (Blanchard Jerrold) as James, Miss Fortescue as Dame Kitely. "It is important to note that the rest of the cast - Mark Lemon, John Leech, Henry Mayhew, Douglas Jerrold, Gilbert a'Beckett [who appears not to have performed on this first night but is named on the ticket] - came from a specific group, a little band of journalists known as the 'Punch brotherhood' to themselves and as 'those Punch people' to outsiders" (Peter Ackroyd, Dickens, 1990, p. 470). It was an extraordinarily lavish evening at Miss Kelly's Theatre: Jonson's comedy was to be preceded by the overture to Rossini's William Tell and followed by silver-fork novelist Catherine Gore's one-act farce, A Good Night's Rest; or, Two O'Clock in the Morning (a two-hander, the characters being "Mr. Snobbington" and "The Stranger"), which itself was to be preceded by the overture to another Rossini opera, La Gazza Ladra - better known as The Thieving Magpie. Dickens had recently returned from Italy and in Pictures from Italy (published in May 1846) notes several visits to the Carlo Felice theatre in Genoa, where a "second-rate opera company" was performing. It is interesting to speculate that this may have given him the idea of punctuating the theatrical proceedings with Rossini's irresistible music. Both ticket and playbill are from the collection of celebrated bibliophile William E. Self, who formed a fine Dickens library; he recorded that the names of the players was "filled in by Mrs. Charles Dickens" (the items once appearing in the market with a copy of the note, since lost). The fact that Catherine Dickens contributed to the production in some small measure is attested by Lillian Nayder: "Catherine had seen the first performance, at Frances ('Fanny') Kelly's Royalty Theatre, in September, writing many of the invitations herself" (ibid.). In fact, in September 1850 Catherine appeared as Bridget in Jonson's comedy during rehearsals for another performance by Dickens's troupe, scheduled for November at Knebworth House, the home of Edward Bulwer Lytton (an onstage accident prevented her appearance). It is not wholly fanciful.

Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Thick 8vo., bound in three quarter dark blue levant morocco, raised bands, lettered in gilt; top edge gilt. Early printing of the trade edition, without date in Roman numerals on copyright page. A stunning copy of a classic of American literature, awarded the Pulitzer Prize posthumously ----- Extra illustrated edition -- Inserted within the text are approximately 80 portrait engravings and 50 documents signed by Henry Adams s circle of associates, including: (page i) Henry Adams, 4-page autograph letter signed (ALS) to C.W. Ernst, April 24, 1894, critiquing HA's "History of the United States"; (viii) Henry Cabot Lodge (HA's close friend), affixed signature; (5) James K. Polk, 1-page document signed; August 7, 1845, regarding a land transaction; (10) Louisa Catherine Adams (HA's grandmother), 1-page ALS, July 8, 1845, regarding a fire at the Adams home; (19) Joshua Johnson (HA's great-grandfather), 3-page document signed, July 1, 1799, regarding a dispute between neighbors; (20) William P. Hunt (JQA's pastor), 1-page ALS to N. Hale, May 9, 1842, regarding a possible story publication; (22) John Quincy Adams II (HA's brother), 1-page ALS to President Andrew Johnson, November 2, 1867, requesting assistance for a friend; (26) Charles Francis Adams (HA's father), 1-page ALS to R. B. Clark, July 10, 1856, demanding payment for services rendered; (34) Horace Mann (HA's hero ), 21-page ALS to G. B. Upton, December 20, 1844, regarding a visit to a school; (41) Charles Francis Adams, Jr. (HA's brother), 2-page ALS, no date (nd), declining a speaking engagement; (50) Caleb Cushing (CFA s diplomatic colleague), 1-page ALS, nd, regarding a lecture; (60) Louis Agassiz (HA's Harvard teacher), 1-page ALS to Franklin B. Sanborn, nd, requesting assistance; (72) Charles Dickens (English novelist whom HA admired), 1-page document signed, June 12, 1866, check; (86) Clarence King (HA's close friend), 1-page ALS, nd, defending a friend against slanderous charges; (90) Giuseppe Garibaldi (HA's hero ), 1-page ALS to George N. Sanders, April 11, 1854, regarding the destiny of Italy and his role; (100) Henry Winter Davis (CFA's political colleague), 1 ½ page ALS, nd, regarding his home, along with a sketch of his garden; (104) Richard Hildreth (CFA's colleague), 1 ½ page ALS to his publisher, March 9, 1855, regarding his "History of the United States"; (108) Horace Gray (HA's law mentor), 1-page ALS, nd, accepting a dinner invitation; (124) Richard Monckton Milnes (HA's English political friend), 1-page ALS, nd, regarding poetry; (136) Benjamin F. Butler (Massachusetts politician disliked by the Adams family), 1-page TLS to O. D. Barrett, August 12, 1887, regarding a weekend visit; (148) William M. Evarts, (secretary of state and HA's friend), 2-page ALS, April 11, 1862, discussing a recent court case; (158) Lord Lyons (British minister to US and CFA's colleague), 3-page ALS to J. Carlisle, March 1961, regarding patents and citizenship; (164) Benjamin F. Butler (Massachusetts politician), 1-page ALS to O. D. Barrett, January 24, 1884, regarding litigation of a paving company; (184) James Mason (Confederate Trent commissioner; CFA's adversary), 1-page ALS, August 29, 1848, regarding a financial settlement; (192) George Grote (Classical historian whom HA admired), 1-page ALS, August 6, 1831, regarding life insurance; (200) Samuel Wilberforce (English bishop with whom HA socialized), 2-page ALS, October 25, 1845, regarding sales of his "History of the Protestant Episcopal Church"; (206) George Canning (British statesman included in HA's "History of the United States"), 2-page ALS; January 6, 1853, regarding a misunderstanding; (210) Francis Barlow (Lawyer-politician in HA's circle), 2-page ALS, nd, regarding a book; (214) Thomas Woolner (HA's English sculptor friend), 1-page ALS to William Gladstone, June 4, 1864, regarding a statue at his studio; (244) (Continued at # ABE-12664270773.). Signed by Author(s).

Hardcover. Condition: Good. 1st Edition. London: Richard Bentley, 1838. First Edition, First Issue with Boz on the title pages (replaced with Charles Dickens in later states) and with the Fireside plate (later replaced with the Church plate). WITH AN AUTHENTICATED SIGNED LETTER bound in a folder in the same style as the volumes from Dickens to Mrs [Georgiana] Morson, Matron of Uriana Cottage; AUTHENTICATED BY Dr Leon Litvack, THE Principal Editor of "THE CHARLES DICKENS LETTERS PROJECT" and Reader in Victorian Studies at The School of Arts, English and Languages at Queen's University, Belfast. The letter is unrelated to the volumes. Autograph letter signed ("Charles Dickens"), to Mrs [Georgiana] Morson, responding: "Yes, to both of your enquiries", 1 page, folded, very light dust-staining, 8vo, Tavistock House, 20 January 1853. From DICKENS TO THE MATRON OF URANIA COTTAGE, the home for 'fallen women' that he had established with Angela Burdett-Coutts at Shepherd's Bush, just outside London, and in which he took an active interest, often visiting several times a week. Georgiana Collin was born in Merton. She married James Morson, a doctor for St George's Hospital, in 1838. Shortly after their marriage, James Morson was appointed as Chief Medical Officer for the Brazilian National Mining Association. He died in 1848, leaving Georgiana with three children to provide for by her own efforts. In 1854, Morson would resign from her post as matron of Urania Cottage in order to marry George Wade Harrison, a printer and bookseller, and they settled in Sevenoaks. On 26 May 1846, Dickens wrote Burdett-Coutts a lengthy letter stating his desire to open an asylum for girls and women working in London's streets as prostitutes. The letter included planning for the asylum ranging from finding a property in London to a detailed process of rehabilitating fallen women. For example, Dickens suggests introducing a marks system and probationary period for asylum residents. Dickens located a home for the asylum originally named Urania Cottage in Shepherd's Bush, Middlesex in 1847. Georgiana Morson served as a dedicated matron of Urania Cottage from 1849 to 1854. In her book, Charles Dickens and the House of Fallen Women, Jenny Hartley describes how, "Georgiana Morson proved herself the best matron Urania ever had. she taught the girls to read and write, as well as all the household skills a servant needed. She presided over the dining table, and made mealtimes a social occasion the girls had not known before. They ate the good food she had taught them to cook and chattered about their future prospects." Oliver Twist; or, the Parish Boy's Progress. By "Boz." In Three Volumes. Vol. I. [II. III.] London: Richard Bentley, 1838. Rebound in three half leather volumes with a slipcase bound in the same style containing the letter. First edition, first issue, with the title-page author stated as "Boz" instead of Dickens and with the "Fireside" version of the final plate. Three octavo volumes (approximately 7 ¾ x 5 inches; 19.7 x 12.5 cm.). Volumes I and III in twelves (gathering of twelve pages), volume II in eights (gathering of 8 pages). Walter E Smith wrote an authoritative bibliography on all of Dickens works and these volumes have been compared to his collation: Vol I [ii Smith states iv this volume lacks the half title], [1], 2-331, [lacking 4 pages of advertisements as is often the case when books are rebound], all other first edition points are present save the Bentley imprint at the base of the 10 illustrations which have been trimmed historically; colophon Printed by Samuel Bentley to the final printed page; Vol II [ii Smith states iv this volume lacks the half title], [1], 2-307, [308]; all other first edition points are present (including for example, on page 151, line 3, a gap between the r and unning , and Chapter XXIX printed XXVIX) save 2 points and the Bentley imprint at the base of the illustrations which have been trimmed historically, 7 p. Signed by Author(s).

First edition, bound from the original parts in the publisher's primary cloth binding, and scarce thus. Pickwick Papers was Dickens's first great success, the novel that transformed him from an obscure journalist into England's most famous writer in a matter of months. The novel is notoriously difficult to secure in the original cloth in desirable condition: "Pickwick (ignoring points) is rarer 'fine in original cloth' than fine in parts" (Sadleir). Upon the completion of the part issue, serialized from March 1836 to November 1837, Chapman and Hall offered Pickwick Papers in book form in three formats: in the present cloth for 21s., full morocco with gilt edges for 26s. 6d, and half-morocco with marbled edges for 24s. 6d. The also offered owners of the original parts their binding services, binding their parts in the same format at a much lower price than purchasing a new book form copy - cloth, 1s. 6d, full morocco 6s. 6d, half morocco, 4s. 6d. A slip inserted in the 19th number of the part issue (dated 30 October 1837) advertised these services and prices (see Kremers, pp. 285/6). This copy is an example bound from the original parts in cloth, with the characteristic stab-holes in the gutter where unstitched from the wrappers. The publisher continued to offer binding services long after publication, and variants in the cloth exist that reflect later binding this cloth here is established as primary by both Smith and by Kremers, and matches a copy we have handled with an ownership signature dated on publication day. It is common to cite various issue points for copies in the cloth, but copies bound from the 19 original parts as here necessarily comprise a mix of issues. The key indicators of issue - wrapper and advertisement variations - were discarded when copies were bound. This copy has the following textual and plate states: the plates do not have Chapman and Hall's imprint (added later), and the title is dated 1837 (later issued with subsequent years). The title reads "Weller", available simultaneously with those reading "Veller". The signature "E" is present on p. 25, the first state without it. As in all but a tiny proportion of copies, the Seymour plates are re-engraved by Phiz, following the former's suicide soon into publication of the parts. The Buss plates, which Dickens disliked and rejected, are also replaced by those of Phiz as usual. Hatton and Cleaver pp. 1 ff; Kremers pp. 54-69; Smith, I.3. Robert Patton, Dickens and his Publishers, p. 326. Demy octavo. Original purple fine-diaper cloth, covers stamped in blind, blind-stamped spine lettered in gilt, pale yellow coated endpapers. Engraved frontispiece, vignette title page, and 41 plates by Robert Seymour and Hablot Knight Browne ("Nemo" and "Phiz"). Spine sunned, cloth faded, spine with a couple of nicks and one small chip at foot, few short splits to rear joint, tips worn, generally clean and fresh internally, the plates in good condition without foxing or oxidisation, early inscription carefully cleaned from head of half-title, plate facing p. 89 with tear from foot up to page number neatly closed, plate facing p. 94 with tiny tear in fore edge similarly closed, very good overall.

Original pen, ink and wash on card. Signed by the artist in the lower right hand corner and below the painting in Rackham's hand is the caption, "Mrs Cratchit brings in the Christmas Pudding, Dickens' A Christmas Carol" and a further full signature. 22.8cm x 17.8cm. The image in very good condition indeed, with a little browning to some sections of the background. Arthur Rackham and Charles Dickens are perfect companions to provide a Christmas cheer. LITERATURE: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (Heinemann, 1915) p.88. Also used as the dustwrapper artwork for an American edition of the same title.

The original playbill, and a ticket signed by Dickens, for the amateur performance of Ben Jonson's Every Man In His Humour in which Dickens starred. The playbill (250 x 200mm) attractively printed in green, red and gold. The ticket (95 x 130mm), titled "Strictly Private" and inscribed in Dickens's hand for "Miss M. Holskamp", and offering her seat no. "40" in "Boxes. Second Circle". The ticket is also signed by Dickens to verso. In excellent condition, the playbill once lightly folded. Now both items mounted, framed and glazed, with a window mount to verso showing Dickens's signature. An excellent relic of a extravagant evening of amateur dramatics, both organised by and starring Charles Dickens. Dickens had warmed to the idea of himself as a performer after giving a small reading of The Chimes in 1844. By the following September he had organised and cast the evening's entertainment remembered here, the highlight of which was Dickens's own performance as Jonson's Captain Bobadil. Jonson's play was both preceded by and followed by the performance of Rossini overtures, with the evening concluded by Catherine Gore's one act farce A Good Night's Rest. Attendance at the private performance at Miss Kelly's Theatre was by invitation only, with both the playbill and ticket titled "strictly private". The "Miss M. Holskamp" of Dickens's inscription is Margaret Holskamp (1827-1908), a correspondent of Dickens's favourite child Kate.

Leather Bound. Condition: Very good. Dust Jacket Condition: Very good. Arthur Rackham (illustrator). Signed Limited Edition. London & Pliladelphia: William Heinemann and J.B. Lippincott Co., 1915. Arthur Rackham. Signed Limited Edition. Leather Bound. H: 11 1/2", D: 9", W: 1 1/2" 1 Volume. Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol. Signed Limited Edition.

Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. First edition 1839, with most first issue points, Smith 5, p.41/42. Rare and early signature, Faithfully Yours Charles Dickens, signed two days after publication  in October 25th, 1839 tipped in between plate and title page. Dickens signatures are scarce but this early is scarcer still. Contemporary half-calf binding, rubbed, with slight bumping to corners and extremities. Internally clean, some spotting to plates, occasional tears or marginal loss, most repaired and not affecting illustrations. Final leaf pp.623-624 torn with loss affecting text, otherwise complete. 8vo. Signed by Author(s).

Soft cover. Condition: Fine. 1st Edition. First Editions, First Printings of All 20 original parts bound in 19 wrappers SIGNED by Charles Dickens on a check laid into volume 1. A wonderful set in the publisher's green printed wrappers with minor wear to the spines and edges. The pages are clean with minor wear. Otherwise, a beautiful set housed in a custom clamshell slipcase for preservation SIGNED by the author. We buy SIGNED Dickens First Editions. Signed by Author(s).

Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. SIGNED on a laid in paper bearing only Dickens' clear signature, First Edition of his immortal Oliver Twist, the first Victorian novel with a child protagonist. First published as a serial from 1837 to 1839 and released as a three-volume book on November 9, 1838 before the serialization ended. 3 vols. Volume one with the plate list inserted after title (not found in all copies); Bound in later 19th century 1/2 calf over marbled boards, with marbled page ends. FIRST EDITION, FIRST ISSUE in book form, meeting all points as per Eckel and Smith, including the later canceled "Fireside" plate in volume 3. Smith 1, 4; Eckel 59. Ownership inscription of Grace Pfeifer to front endpapers. In 2008, Christie's sold a signed first of Oliver Twist, inscribed directly to the book for $229,000. Book #Cv2105. $10,000. We specialize in Rare Ayn Rand, history, and science. Signed by Author(s).

London: The Nonesuch Press, 1937-39. 25 vols. in all, 23 volumes of text, one volume containing an original steel plate engraving, and the companion volume "Nonesuch Dickensiana" in blue cloth. Original buckram in various colors, black morocco label to spines, top edges gilt on the rough, others untrimmed. A fine set as issued, amazingly without any fading or wear. § First Nonesuch edition, number 638 of 877 sets, with an original steel-engraved plate.The limitation is due to the inclusion, enclosed in the 24th volume of each set, of one of the original plates used by Chapman and Hall, Dickens's original publishers, in their first printings of each title. Since they had 877 such plates - the majority steel but with a number of wood blocks - the limitation was thus this number. This set includes the steel-engraved plate "Steerforth and Mr. Mell" from "David Copperfield". Also included is a proof pull and a letter of authentication from Chapman and Hall signed by Deputy Chairman Arthur Waugh.As noted in the Prospectus, tucked into the Nonesuch Dickensiana, "it will never be possible for a more complete and perfect edition to be put upon the market." A very good and attractive set, hard to find unfaded and essentially in perfect condition.

23 vols and etched steel plate in box, 8vo (255 x 158 mm), without the Nonesuch Dickensiana; uncut, volumes and box bound in original coloured full buckram by the Leighton-Straker Bookbinding Co., Ltd., gilt morocco lettering-pieces on spines, top edges gilt; a little light wear and occasional soiling, spines of a few volumes lightly sunned; a very good set, from the library of Laurence Olivier.Limited edition of 877, of which 66 sets were destroyed when a bomb hit the bindery in September 1940, so at most 811 complete sets survive (Dreyfus, Nonesuch Press, 108). The steel plate included with this set is number 605, "Solemn reference is made to Mr. Bunsby" from Dombey and Son (Chapter 23, facing p.458), engraved by H. K. Browne ('Phiz'), with the typed letter of authenticity on Chapman & Hall headed paper, signed by Arthur Waugh.Intended as a definitive edition of Dickens' works the Nonesuch Press edition was printed using the original steel plates and woodblocks created by Chapman & Hall for the illustrations in the first editions of the books. Each set of the works was accompanied by one of the original engraved plates or woodblocks, of which there were 877. The original steel-engraved plate in this set is by 'Phiz' (Hablot Knight Browne), who was Dickens' friend and the most highly regarded illustrator of his works. G. K. Chesterton once remarked, "no other illustrator ever created the true Dickens characters with the precise and correct quantum of exaggeration. No other illustrator ever breathed the true Dickens atmosphere, in which clerks are clerks and yet at the same time elves" (from ODNB). Dreyfus 108. Language: English.

First Thus. The National Edition. Limited to 750 sets printed for England and America, this set unnumbered. Forty large octavo volumes. With approximately 1,000 illustrations, with plates by Cruikshank, Browne, Leech, et al. Title-pages printed in red and black. With many reproductions or the original parts wrappers on colored paper. Volume I with an envelope signed by Dickens and an ALS by John Foster, Dickens' biographer. On the first blank of volume I is a mounted small envelope addressed by Dickens to Edward Chapman (his publisher), and signed by Dickens on the lower left corner. Facing that page is a mounted autograph letter signed by John Foster (Dickens' friend and biographer) addressed to George Cattermole, the artist who illustrated The Old Curiosity Shop. Foster letter is on stationery and is dated 21 September, 1860. Two sixteenmo pages on one octavo sheet, folded. Set is uniformly bound by Riviere & Son in half brown levant morocco over brown cloth. Morocco double ruled in gilt. Spines lettered in gilt and compartments triple-ruled in gilt. Top edges gilt, others uncut. Spines slightly sunned and some occasional minor rubbing and shelfwear. Overall a very attractive and near fine set.

Ca 1883. Volume accompanied by the original 1884 / 1885 sales receipt for the sketches & binding thereof. Each drawing, ~ 5" x 3", all signed, tastefully mounted & displayed via custom matted window with the character's name & relevant descriptive text, from the novel, below. 12 characters are from Pickwick, one from Oliver Twist, and the last from David Copperfield. Folio. 13-1/4" x 11" Some general binding wear, but nothing obtrusive. Some age-toning & minor spots of foxing to drawing mounts. Color drawings still vibrant & appealing. Overall, a VG - VG+ bound collection. Bound in a bespoke gilt decorated black full leather binding, which has been sympathetically respined at some point in the past. Gilt dentelles. AEG.

One volume expanded to two. A UNIQUE COPY, EXTRA-ILLUSTRATED AND WITH AUTOGRAPH LETTERS. With the eleven engraved original portraits featuring handwriting facsimiles and OVER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY extra engraved portraits and views from various sources, AND WITH SEVEN ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT NOTES OR LETTERS BOUND IN. Crown 8vo, in very fine and luxurious full chocolate crushed morocco by the Monastery Hill Bindery, the covers with double-frames composed of 5 gilt ruled lines, the four corners with large gilt tooled decorations in a vine, leaves and berries motif, the spines with six double-gilt framed compartments separated by gilt-ruled raised bands, four tooled with gilt leaves in the corners, two compartments lettered in gilt, additional gilt rule at the heads and tails of the spine, gilt stippled board edges, the turn-ins with wide gilt panels gilt decorated in a geometric motif surrounding a all-over green morocco inlay with geometric frame featuring elaborate gilt floral corners, fine dark-green silk end-leaves, top edges gilt. The bindings protected by felt-backed cloth covered chemises and encased in matching felt lined, morocco backed slipcases with raised bands and lettering in gilt in two of the compartments. 250; [2] 253-419 pp. A beautiful set in very fine condition, the slipcases only with some trivial rubbing. A UNIQUE AND EXQUISITE COPY, WITH OVER A HUNDRED EXTRA-ILLUSTRATIONS AND FINE MANUSCRIPT MATERIAL INCLUDED. The author's literary portraits of his friends is here greatly enhanced with the seven bound in notes and letters. There is a four page signed and dated letter by the author, James T. Fields, a one page note on printed stationery, dated and signed by Dickens' longtime friend and biographer John Forster; a two page literary letter on blue paper dated and initialed by Charles Dickens in 1856; a clipped dated signature by English writer Mary Russell Mitford; a three page letter in the hand of Miss M. R. Mitford; a one page signed and dated note by English Poet Bryan Waller Procter; and a signed manuscript note by poet, author and activist Walter Savage Landor. James T. Fields was a prolific American writer and contemporary and friend of the Transcendentalists and other important New England authors as well. Here he gives us literary biographies and commentaries on Thackeray, Hawthorne, Dickens, Wordsworth, Miss Mitford, and Bryan Proctor (who wrote under the pseudonym of 'Barry Cornwall'. There is within these pages much commentary on other writers and famous persons, such as Alexander Pope, Shakespeare, and others. Added to all of this in the way of extra-illustrations are portraits of noted individuals ranging from Harriet Beecher Stowe to Abraham Lincoln, Charles Dickens, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and contemporaries and subjects of the writers from Andrew Jackson to Napoleon Bonaparte.