20 Ants – 20th Century and
Antiquarian Books for the Reader and Collector
Michael Watson archetype@20ants.com www.20ants.com (317)514-3829
Greetings.
Below, in no particular order, is our current, cataloged stock of books in the
following categories. Letters
& Correspondence; Diaries & Journals; and First-Person Accounts & Memoirs. While we have several topic
interests and concentrations, our main focus is on compilations of letters and
correspondence. These can be personal, business-related, political, or
otherwise. While the letters that are included in a compilation are subject to
the whims of the Editor, barring any outright skewing by systematic selection
or omission, these can be viewed as primary source material for the historian
as well as information for the reader and often desirable editions for the
collector.
Any of
these books may be ordered by e-mailing us at archetype@20ants.com to verify that it’s
in stock and to reserve the book. USPS Media Rate shipping starts at $3.50 for
the 1st book and $1.00 per additional. We’ll quote the cost of your
preferred method of shipping when you order. Payment by PayPal is preferred,
but your check or money order is welcome. Returns are accepted for any reason
within 10 days, but please e-mail us first so that we understand the reason:
purchase price refunded and if the book was misdescribed we’ll also refund your
shipping. We always have far more stock than we can catalog and would be happy
to accept your want list for items you’re seeking.
Letters &
Correspondence
Richie,
Anne Thackeray [William Makepeace Thackeray], Thackeray and His Daughter, :
The Letters and Journals of Anne Thackeray Ritchie, with Many Letters of
William Makepeace Thackeray, Harper & Brothers, 1924, Later
Printing, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 340 pp., VG/
Ex-library with evidence of a label being removed from the spine, ink stamps to
head of text block and front pastedown. Spine ends bumped and somewhat worn,
tail corners bumped, joints rubbed. Head edge of front cover sunned. Lacks the dust jacket. The personal
correspondence and journals of Anne Thackeray Ritchie, daughter of William
Makepeace Thackeray. Provides a very revealing
first-person account of her father's turbulant home and married life and the
unusual circumstances of his children being raised by his own parents.
The letters of both Anne and William show the workings of daily life, his and
her writing, and their world views. Includes previously-unpublished line drawings by both Anne and William, the latter's
drawings accompanying facsimiles of his holograph letters. Includes
a Preface by the Editor Hester Thackeray Richie, Anne's daughter.
Sections include Princlpal Dates in the Life of Anne Thackeray Richie, letters
written from 1837 through 1919, and an Appendix, that being a Chronological
List of Lady Richie's Books. Red cloth on boards, gilt title
to spine. This copy is ex-library and the "B-Y" line on
the copyright page indicates printing in February (B) 1949 (Y). Internally clean and more presentable than VG- would suggest.
Stock# 698 $10.00 USD
Perry,
Bliss, Life and Letters of Henry Lee Higginson, Atlantic Monthly Press,
1921, 1st Edition, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 557 pp.,
VG/ All corners, spine ends, joints, and fore edges rubbed. Tail
corners bumped, tiny dent to the spine. Faintest
browning around the edges of the pastedowns and endpapers. No dust
jacket: unknown if this editon was originally issued with DJ. The biography and
excerpted personal letters of the man who founded the Boston Symphony
Orchestra, donated the Soldier's Field ground to
Henrey,
Blanche, No Ordinary Gardner Thomas Knowlton 1691-1781, British Museum, 1986,
1st Edition, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 324 pp., NF/
F, Two tiny abrasions at head edge of back cover. Compilation
of this seminal British horticulturist's letters and personal correspondence to
other horticulturists, botanists, and gardeners. The bulk of the book,
Parts One and Two, are letters and excerpts, most being annotated and explained
by Henrey. Not just a fascinating look at horticulture, botany, and landscape
architecture, but contains much related material about the maintenance of
grounds, the cost of labor, and a hundred other facets of the commerce of
horticulture in the 1700s. Letters and text edited by A.O. Chater. Black
and white plates of other prominent horticulturists and botanists of the day,
also reproductions of a few species. Green cloth over boards,
gilt title to spin. Clean, unbumped, beautiful Near Fine copy in a Fine
dj now in mylar cover. Stock# 635 $30.00 USD
Zwinger,
Ann, The Fort Tejon Letters 1857-1859, University of Arizona Press,
1986, 1st Edition, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 255 pp.,
F/ VG+, DJ clipped and has dampstain to tail edge of back. John Xantus, an
amateur ornithologist and zoologist of questionable repute and checkered past:
this book being his correspondence while gathering specimens in the
Thackeray,
William Makepeace, A Collection of Letters of Thackarey 1847-1855, Charles
Scribners Sons, 1888, Unknown ediiton, Unknown printing, Hardcover, 12mo
7" - 7½" tall, 243 pp., VG/ University library withdrawal stamp in
ink on the front pastedown, faint library withdrawal stamp in ink to the head
edge of the text block. Light rubbing to the edges of the
hinges and corners, evidence of removal of a label at the tail of the spine,
rough removal of a small label from the front endpaper leaving white paper
showing on the dark-brown surface. A chronological printing of William
Makepeace Thackeray's letters to his friends the Reverend W. H. (William Henry)
and his wife Jane Octavia Brookfield. The Brookfields were friends to Alfred Lord
Tennyson and Thomas Carlyle, as well as Thackeray. These letters from 1847 to
1855 reveal the nature of Thackeray before the writing of Vanity Fair and
subsequent fame. The author was living alone at this time, his wife stricken
with illness, their two children living with his mother in
=== SOLD === Moore, George, Letters
to Lady Cunard, Rupert Hart-Davis, 1957, 1st Edition, 1st Printing, Hardcover,
8vo 8" - 9" tall, 208 pp., VG/ Lacks
the dust jacket: remaining interior flaps laid into the book. Spine darkened
with tail bumped and head worn a bit. Bump to the rear tail corner, slight wear
to the rear head corner. Front endpaper has owner's name blacked-out by marker.
George Augustus Moore was a 'naturalistic' writer keen on killing off the
traits of Victorian fiction, influenced by Emile Zola, himself influential to
James Joyce, and considered the first prominent Irish novelist. Multitalented;
he was novelist, poet, art critic, memoirist, and dramatist known for the moral
controversy some of his works produced. In
Vulliamy,
C.E., English Letter Writers, Collins, 1946, Unknown ediiton, Unknown
printing, Hardcover, 8vo 8" - 9" tall,
48 pp., VG/ VG, Slight rubbing to all corners and tail edge of the boards. Faintest tanning at the edges of pastedowns and endpapers.
Previous owners signature to front pastedown. Dust
jacket has more wear to the corners and spine tail with tiny chipping around
the spine head, spine edge somewhat darkened. Celebrates the history and art of
letter writing, the slow conversation on paper that leads the writer to consider
words carefully and convey meaning eloquently. This volume reveals the personal
nature of British people of stature who were famed for their letters, either in
life or later. Included are Jonathan Swift, Alexander Pope, Sarah Jennings,
Horace Walpole, W.B. Yeats, Dorothy Osborne, King George III, John Keats,
Thomas Carlyle, T.E. Lawrence, and more, each of these explained in terms of
their letter writing in the context their time and culture. These writers
produced ephemeral works that survived to reveal the writer, the social customs
and mores, the politics, and the character of the British. A
concise, yet detailed overview of British letter writing in the age when it
mattered most. Has 8 color plates and 24 black
and white illustrations, mostly portraits of the writers. Includes
a Short Bibliography of compilations of letters. Illustrated paper over
boards with matching illustrated dust jacket. A clean, nice
copy in better that's VG and almost VG+, with a clean VG dust jacket.
Stock# 685 $10.00 USD
Hamburger, Jean, The
Diary of William Harvey, : The Imaginary
Journal of the Physician who Revolutionized Medicine, Rutgers
University Press, 1992, Softcover, 8vo 8" - 9" tall, 255 pp.,
F/ The fact-based *fictionalized* diary of the 17th century English physician
who accurately described the circulation of blood in the human body. Written
from
Washington,
George; Sparks, Jared editor, Letters and Recollections of George
Washington, Doubleday Doran & Co., 1932, Not 1st Edition, Hardcover,
8vo 8" - 9" tall, 289 pp., VG+/ Gilt title on spine is dull.
Spine ends bumped. Front pastedown shows evidence of bookplate removal. Lacks the DJ. "Being letters to
Tobias Lear and others between 1790 and 1799, showing the First American in the
management of his estate and domestic affairs. With a diary of
Fleming,
Thomas J., editor, Affectionately Yours, George Washington, W. W. Norton
& Company, 1967, 1st Edition, 1st Printing, Hardcover, Large 8vo
9" - 10" tall, 280 pp., VG/ NONE, Spine sunned and slight fading at
the head edge of the covers. Spine ends bumped. Lacks the DJ. Letters between
Washington and his friends and family: 1748 to 1799. Shows the personal and
non-political side of Washington, often slighted in the many biographies of
him. Compiled and edited, thank goodness, from the thirty-nine volume Collected
Writings of George Washington. Index is not topical, but lists all persons
mentioned in the letters. Blue cloth on boards. Printed on buff-colored paper.
A bit better than VG. Stock# 628 $15.00 USD
Cohen, J.M., editor, Letters
of Edward FitzGerald, Centaur Press, 1960, 1st Edition, Hardcover, Small
8vo 7½" - 8" tall, 275 pp., NF/ VG+, One corner of spine tail
bumped. DJ has very light wear to edges, short wrinkle to front cover at head
of spine, price clipped. "Edward FitzGerald, the least productive of the
great Victorians, wrote the best letters of his age." A selection of the
personal correspondence of this famed translator of the Rubaiyat of Omar
Khayyam and author of lesser and forgotten literature. The correspondents were
his friends: artist, poet, sculptor, dean, librarian, vicar, bank clerk,
farmer, maltster, essayist, rector, and others. The topics were varied, such as
politics, the theater, the editing of books, translation, country houses and
country living, the restoration of paintings, etc: all show the thoughts of a
learned, cultured Victorian Englishman. This edition is a compilation of
selected letters and excerpts from the four volume set edited by Aldis Wright.
Introduction. List and description of the correspondents. Has a couple of
proofreader's marks on the last couple of pages: possibly a post-publishing
proofing copy or previously owned by someone who just couldn't let an error
pass uncorrected. Absolutely clean, bright, Near Fine copy in a VG+ DJ.
Includes ephemera: a printed, extensive review of a four volume set of
FitzGerald's letters. Stock# 604 $18.00 USD
Marsh, James, Coleridge's
American Disciples: The Selected Letters of James Marsh, University of
Massachusetts Press, 1973, 1st Edition, Hardcover, 8vo 8" - 9"
tall, 272 pp., NF/ VG, DJ slightly rubbed at all corners and spine ends,
well-scuffed on the back, faintly soiled overall. Marsh was a Congregationalist
minister, professor of philosophy and later President of the University of
Vermont, central figure in the Transcendentalist movement in Vermont, and
publisher of Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Aid to Reflection" in the US.
This book contains approximately 85 of his letters related to these subjects.
An extensive Introducton by Editor John J. Duffy gives background and context
to Marsh's life and environment. Index. A clean Near Fine copy in a VG dust
wrapper. Stock# 677 $15.00 USD
=== On Hold === Rosenberg, James N., Unfinished Business, : James N.
Rosenberg Papers, Vincent Marasia Press, 1967, 1st Edition, 1st
Printing, Hardcover, 8vo 8" - 9" tall, 377 pp., VG+/ VG-,
Slightest rubbing to spine ends. Dust wrapper chipped at spine ends and along
the head edge at front, spine somewhat darkened. The public papers, published
or presented, of this lawyer, artist and art curator, and proponent of the
American Jewish community. The papers are divided thus: Part 1 covers his
contributions to bankruptcy law, anti-Nazi sentiments, the genocide of the
European Jewish culture, and essays on the World Court and the League of
Nations. Rosenberg's "Declaration of Interdependence" was ratified by
the United Nations in 1947 as an international bill of rights. Part 2 covers
his establishment of the New Gallery to popularize artists including Derain,
Dufy, Kisling, Matisse, Modigliani, Vlaminick, and Cezanne. His letters to the
Metropolitan Museum of Art regardinig Native American artworks are covered as
well as his own art and exhibitions. Part 3 covers his involvement and
phianthropic activities for the American Jewish community and Israel. The
douments in this book have the thread of world peace running through them and,
though formal, reveal the personal beliefs within. Editing and Preface by
Maxwell Geismar. Extensive "Footnotes" actually at the end of the
text. Reproduction of one of Rosenberg's paintings and an honorary
presentation. "Compliments of the Author" card laid in. Red cloth on
boards, gilt title and text to front and spine. Clean and conservatively VG+ in
a presentable VG- dust wrapper. Stock# 676 $35.00 USD === On Hold ===
Fisk, Ethel F., The
Letters of John Fisk, The Macmillan Company, 1940, 1st Edition, 1st
Printing, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 706 pp., VG+/
Spine ends bumped, slight wear to the head end. All corners have slight wear.
Lacks the dust wrapper. The personal correspondence of this philosopher,
historian, educator, and lecturer who promoted the ideas of Charles Darwin and
Herbert Spencer regarding the evolution of species. His published works advanced
the idea that societies follow an evolutionary process similar to the
bilological evolution of species. These letters, mostly from the late 19th
century, are written from various countries to friends and colleagues, yet
contain a great amount of his personal philosophy and beliefs mingled with the
pleasantries. As a whole, revealing. Frontis of Fisk at age four with his
mother. In blue cloth over boards with title in a medalion and gilt to front,
gilt on the spine. Quite clean and VG+. Stock# 675 $12.00 USD
Fensh, Thomas, Steinbeck
and Covici, : The Story of a Friendship, Paul S. Eriksson, 1979, 1st
Edition, Hardcover, 8vo 8" - 9" tall, 248 pp., NF/ NF, A slight
bump to one head corner at spine. DJ scuffed, price clipped, and has minute
wrinkles at spine ends. Letters and excerpts, most introduced and annotated by
Fensh, between John Steinbeck and his editor Pascal Covici whom Steinbeck
called "my collaborator and my concience." Covici edited and
published Steinbeck starting with Tortilla Flat under his own imprint
Covici-Freide and later edited Steinbeck at Viking. These letters date from the
early 1940s through the early 1960s and reveal a close, trusting, and
productive relationship on many levels. Appendix, Bibliography, Notes, and
Index. Clean and Near Fine in an NF DJ. Stock# 674 $14.00 USD
Goyen, William, Selected
Letters From a Writer's Life, University of Texas Press, 1995, 1st Edition,
Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 427 pp., F/ F, William
Goyen's intensely personal letters to friends, relatives, and fellow authors
providing essentially an autobiography of his writing life. This novelist,
playwrite, editor, and literary critic is revealed as angst-ridden, hurt by the
writing and publishing process, and hurt by life. Letters to Anias Nin, W.H.
Audin, Joyce Carol Oates, Archibald MacLeish, and a hundred other authors,
editors, agents, family, and friends. Edited and Introduction by Robert
Phillips. Afterword by Sir Stephen Spender. Extensive Index. Absolutely
as new and defect-free in Fine condition in a Fine DJ. Stock# 673 $12.00 USD
Thackeray,
W.M., A Collection of Letters of W.M. Thackeray 1847-1855, : With
Portraits and Reproductions of Letters and Drawings, Smith, Elder &
Company, 1887, 1st British Edition, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" -
10" tall, 189 pp., VG/ Very light foxing to endpapers and title,
occasional faint foxing in the pages. Rubbing to corners and spine ends. Rubbed
area to front cover. Personal letters between Thackeray and friends, the
Reverend W. H. and Jane Octavia Brookfield, written in Thackeray’s
personally trying times before the publishing of Vanity Fair and subsequent
fame. Some letters presented in their entirety, some are excerpts. Certainly
shows the personal side of Thackeray and his relationships, daily life, European
travel, etc. Reproductions of his drawings and many sometimes-humorous sketches
he incorporated into his letters. Facsimile of a holograph letter of
Thackeray’s. Several black and white plates. Index. "The letters contained
in this volume are in the course of publication in Scribner's Magazine, and the
book is printed from the stereotype plates of a volume about to be published in
New York." Modern rebind in heavy blue canvas on boards. A clean VG
copy in a sturdy binding. Stock# 653 $25.00 USD
Seymour,
Charles (Editor), Intimate Papers of Colonel House, :
Behind The Political Curtain 1912-191, Houghton Mifflin, 1926,
Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 471 pp., VG/ VG, 1"
closed tear to front endpaper. Spine a bit darkened. Rubbed spine ends and corners.
One leaf roughly cut. Lacks the two-volume slipcase. A compilation, in
narrative form, of the personal and professional papers, letters, and
correspondence of Edward Mandell House: foreign policy advisor to Woodrow
Wilson and primary negotiator for peace in Europe, basically Wilson's
"right hand man" until his removal in 1919 over policy disagreements.
Involved with the groundwork for the constitution of the League of Nations.
These papers and letters provide primary-source insight into the relationship
between House and Wilson, and the politics and personalities of the time.
Written in narrative form that weaves excerpts of the letters into a
chronologic account of the time. Cancelled leaf before the Prefatory Note.
Frontis and black & white photos. Gilt title to spine. An unopened leaf or
two. A clean, solid VG copy. Stock# 650 $10.00 USD
Levy,
William Turner and Scherle, Victor, Affectionately, T.S. Eliot, : The
Story of a Friendship: 1947-1965, J. B. Lippincott, 1968, 1st
Edition, Hardcover, 8vo 8" - 9" tall, 148 pp., F/ VG+, Light
rubs to corners and spine ends of DJ. SIGNED and inscribed on the front
endpaper by both authors. An account of Levy's friendship with Eliot: based
primarily on letters and excerpts of Eliot's letters to Levy, woven together
with narrative. Principle topics of the letters are literature and religion,
but the men's correspondence often strayed into the general status of humanity.
The first memoir published after Eliot's death. Quarter cloth on paper-covered
boards. "Threaded" endpapers and pastedowns. Uncut fore edge.
Indexed. Absolutely clean and Fine condition in a nice VG+ DJ. Stock# 648
$24.00 USD
Winter,
Ella and Hicks Granville, editors, The Letters of Lincoln Steffens, :
Volumes I and II, Harcourt Brace & Company, 1938, 1st Edition,
Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 1072 pp., VG/ Spines quite
sunned, gilt titles still very readable. Spine tails a bit bumped and rubbed.
Lacks the dust jackets and slipcase. A compilation of the personal and professional
letters of this notable, muckraking, investigative journalist and author.
Steffans' specialty was the exposition of government and political corruption.
An on-again-off-again Communist and embracer of revolutionary ideals, he was
both a "lover and rebuker of humanity" as Carl Sandburg wrote in this
book's Memorandum. A complete set: Vol I covers from 1889-1919, Vol II covers
1920-1936, cumulatively paginated. Introductory Notes by the Editors. In the
publisher's red cloth on boards. Black and white photos. Vol II contains the
following: Appendix of several of Steffens' important letters that do not fit
with the theme of the compilation; bibliography of his magazine articles, short
stories, and books; comprehensive Index. A fascinating look at the mind of a
literate cynic still in love with humanity and it's possibilities. Clean and VG
overall. Stock# 627 $30.00 USD
Cater,
Harold Dean, ed., Henry Adams and His Friends, : A collection of His
Unpublished Letters, Octagon Books, 1970, Reprint, Hardcover, 8vo
8" - 9" tall, 797 pp., VG-/ Lacks the DJ. Ex-library, inkstamps to
top of block, front endpaper, and title page, all cancelled with marker. Pasted
down pocket roughly removed from front endpaper. Spine ends and corners bumped.
Slightest wrinkles to cloth on front cover. Dings to edges of covers. From an
age when letter writing was an art of the cultured and educated, this is a
compilation of the personal correspondence of historian and novelist Henry
Adams. Taken from letters held by the family. Recounts the life and political
environment in mid-to-late 1800s Washington DC, correspondence with friends,
family, and associates. His letters reveal an intelligent and practical man of
relentless wit. Frontis of Adams. Wonderful primary source material for the
historian. Indexed. 1970[1947]. Conservatively VG-, but a very clean copy
that's better than the description "reads." Stock# 598 $18.00 USD
Ford, Worthington Chauncey, ed., The Letters Of Henry Adams 1892-1918, Houghton and Mifflin, 1930, 1st Edition, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 552 pp., VG/ Spine somewhat darkened and gilt spine title faded, wear to spine ends, head and tail edges rubbed, gilt title partially faded, corners bumped. Lacks the DJ. A compilation of the personal correspondence of historian and novelist Henry Adams. Taken from letters held by the family. Recounts the life and political environment in mid-to-late 1800s Washington DC, trips abroad, correspondence with friends, family, and associates. His letters reveal an intelligent and practical man of relentless wit. Tissue-covered b&w frontis of Adams. Indexed. Bookplate of Morton J. Netzorg, historian of Philippine culture, bibliophile, and bibliographer. Internally clean and VG. Stock# 595 $20.00 USD
Ford, Worthington Chauncey, ed., The Letters Of Henry Adams 1858-1891, Houghton and Mifflin, 1930, 1st Edition, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 552 pp., VG/ NONE, Spine somewhat darkened and gilt spine title faded, wear to spine ends, head and tail edges rubbed, gilt title partially faded, corners bumped. Lacks the DJ. A compilation of the personal correspondence of historian and novelist Henry Adams. Taken from letters held by the family. Recounts the life and political environment in mid-to-late 1800s Washington DC, trips abroad, correspondence with friends, family, and associates. His letters reveal an intelligent and practical man of relentless wit. Tissue-covered b&w frontis of Adams. Indexed. Bookplate of Morton J. Netzorg, historian of Philippine culture, bibliophile, and bibliographer. Internally clean and VG. Stock# 594 $20.00 USD
Thoron, Ward, ed., The Letters Of Mrs. Henry Adams 1865-1883, Little, Brown, and Company, 1936, 1st Edition, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 587 pp., VG/ NONE, Spine sunned, a bit of wear to spine tail, lower corners bumped. Lacks the DJ. A compilation of the personal correspondence of Mrs. Henry Adams (Marian Hooper), wife of historian and novelist Henry Adams. Very personal accounts taken from letters held by the family. Recounts the life and political environment in mid-to-late 1800s Washington DC, trips abroad, correspondence with her father, as well as an intimate view into their family affairs and personal relationship. Appendixes contain letters from related family members, accounts of contemporary political events, and a letter ostensibly written by Marian's dog Boojum about an adventure with the Washington Dog Catcher. Has b&w photo plates, tissue-covered b&w frontis of Marian Hooper. Indexed. Internally clean and VG. Stock# 593 $20.00 USD
Tehan, Arline Boucher, Henry Adams In Love, : The Pursuit of Elizabeth Sherman Cameron, Universe Books, 1983, 1st Edition, Hardcover, 8vo 8" - 9" tall, 307 pp., VG/ VG, Spine ends bumped. Light ding to fore edge of front cover. DJ soiled, darkened area at front fore edge, roughly price clipped, slight wrinkles at spine ends. Biographical account of the intense, long, platonic relationship between Washington socialite Elizabeth Sherman Cameron and the historian and novelist Henry Adams. Written from personal correspondence held by the Adams and Sherman families. Rich with personal accounts. Shows her profound influence on Adams during their 30-year relationship. Has one b&w plate of E.S. Cameron and b&w cuts which are portraits of other significant family members. Indexed. Quite clean and sharp corners. Conservatively VG/VG and looks better than this implies. Stock# 592 $20.00 USD
Fyndham,
Francis and Melly, Diana, editors, The Letters of Jean Rhys, Viking,
1984, 1st Edition, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, 313 pp.,
VG/ VG, Very slight roll to head edge of DJ. Small penciled notation on rear
pastedown. The personal and professional letters of the author of the
near-biographical Wide Sargasso Sea and After Leaving Mr. Mackenzie show the
complexities and pain of Rhys. These letters cover 1933 through 1966 and most
letters have annotations by the Editors. Includes a Summary of her life before
these letters. A brief Publishing History. General Index and Index of
Correspondents. In cream quarter cloth and paper-covered boards. A very clean,
Near Fine copy in a like DJ. Stock# 651 $10.00 USD
Diaries & Journals
Mackey,
Philip English, editor, A Gentleman of Much Promise, : The Diary of Isaac
Mickle 1837-1845, Vol I and II, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1977,
1st Edition, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, F/ Both
volumes slightly bumped at the spine head. Slipcase has loss to the paper
covering at lower edge of opening, Chronologic
diary of Isaac Mickle (1822-1855). Described as a lawyer, editor, historian,
politician, musician, translator, and inventor, Mickle was a man of diverse
interests and actions from youth through his term as newspaper
editor/publisher, till death. This diary with dated entries reveals an
educated, intelligent man observing not just his Camden County New Jersey
environs, but the world as it came to him through his newspaper work. Contains an occasional sketch from his diary, a frontis portrait of
Mickel, and a few other illustrations. Volume I contains a Foreword, a
comprehensive Contents, comprehensive listing of Illustrations, Introduction,
Chronology of the Live of Isaac Mickle, a Chronology of National and State (New
Jersey) Events, and the first half of the diary text. 248pp. Volume II
continues the diary text. 282pp. Both volumes have pastedowns and endpapers
illustrated with maps of the
Mendenhall,
Corwin, Submarine Diary, : The Silent Stalking of Japan, Algonquin
Books, 1991, Later Printing, Softcover, 8vo 8" - 9" tall, 290
pp., NF/ NONE, Tiny corner crease to two pages. Life and combat aboard U.S.
Navy sumarines USS Sculpin and USS Pintado stalking Japanese shipping in the
Pacific ocean. Diary format that details both the daily
boredom of running beneath the surface and the tension of stalking and sinking
enemy shipping. A very 'first person' account from an
officer who understood submarine service from an enlisted man's perspective.
Clean, sharp corners, and Near Fine. Stock# 679
$6.00 USD
Commons,
Marie Andrews, The Log of Tanager Hill, Williams & Wilkins, 1938,
1st Edition, Hardcover, 8vo, 244 pp., VG+/ VG, Textured DJ has light soil,
chips at spine head, tiny closed tear at head edge of front. Prior owner's
bookplate. A first-person narrative account of bird banding in the mid-1920s.
With great attention to scientific detail, yet the author's personality shines
through. "A model diary of eight years' productive banding activities on
the shores of Lake Minnetonka, Minn. Published for the enjoyment and
information of ornithologists, bird banders and all bird lovers." With the
hand-drawn map in the pocket inside back cover. Black & white photos.
Includes an Analysis of Return and Recovery Records of 25 species, and an
Appendix of Technical Data. Black and white photographs. A clean VG+ book that
verges on Near Fine in a clean VG DJ in mylar. Stock# 540 $20.00 USD
Elliott,
Josephine M., Robert Dale Owen's Travel Journal 1827, Indiana Historical
Society, 1978, 1st Edition, Softcover, 8vo, NF/ NONE, Owner inscription on
front end paper. Travel journal of Robert Dale Owens. Covers a year of
wandering after his 16-month stay in the utopian New Harmony community in
Indiana. R. D. Owens was the eldest son of Robert Owens who founded
Charles G.
Dawes, Journal as Ambassador to Great Britain, The Macmillan Company,
1939, 1st Edition, 1st Printing, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10"
tall, 442 pp., VG+/ NONE, Bumped spine head, slight rub to back at head,
pastedowns and endpapers heavily-foxed as-expected for this edition. Lacks the
DJ. The personal journal of Dawes during his stint as Ambassador to Great
Britain. Entries from 1929 through 1931. Expresses the very human reactions and
thoughts of Dawes in his characteristic straightforward manner. The author was
a life-long public servant and statesman, and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize
in 1925. Frontis is pencil drawing of Herbert Hoover. Includes 85 plates: black
and white photographs of political figures relevant to the journal entries. A
very clean, nice VG+ copy, closer to NF. Stock# 571 $12.00 USD
Merton,
Thomas, The Intimate Merton, : His Life From His Journals, Harpersanfrancisco,
1999, Not 1st Edition, Hardcover, Large 8vo 9" - 10" tall, VG+/
NF, Spine tail bumped. Owners names to front endpaper. Slightly rolled. An
edited compilation of excerpts from the seven volumes of his personal journals.
Reveals his spiritual journey and his gift for expressing it's joys and pains.
Edited by Patrick hart and Jonathan Montaldo. An exceptionally clean VG+ copy
in a VG+ DJ. Stock# 602 $10.00 USD
Greig, James, The Fairington Diary, George H Doran Company, 1926, 1st Edition, Hardcover, 8vo, 299 pp., VG/ NONE, Edge and corner wear. Lower corners bumped. A bit rolled. A tiny bit of marginalia. Magazine or catalog clipping pasted down to lower margin of a single page. Volume VII covering June 10, 1811 to December 18, 1814. Written by a noted English landscape artist, this diary documents the author's keen incite into early 19th century English society, court, and current affairs. Edited by James Greig. Blue cloth over boards. Frontispiece and other b&w photo illustrations. Indexed. Pages clean and bright. Stock# 205 $10.00 USD
Greig, James, The Fairington Diary, George H Doran Company, 1928, 1st Edition, Hardcover, 8vo, 311 pp., VG/ NONE, Edge and corner wear. Slightly cocked. A tiny bit of marginalia. Volume VIII covering May 19, 1815 to December 30, 1821. Written by a noted English landscape artist, this diary documents the author's keen incite into early 19th century English society, court, and current affairs. Edited by James Greig. Blue cloth over boards. Frontispiece and other b&w photo illustrations. Indexed. Pages clean and bright. Stock# 204 $10.00 USD
Greig,
James, The Fairington Diary, George H Doran Company, 1926, 1st Edition,
Hardcover, 8vo, 296 pp., VG/ NONE, Edge and corner wear. Rolled at head of
spine. A tiny bit of marginalia. Magazine or catalog clipping pasted down to
the lower margin of a single page. Volume VI covering January 18, 1810 to June
9, 1811. Written by a noted English landscape artist, this diary documents the
author's keen incite into early 19th century English society, court, and
current affairs. Edited by James Greig. Blue cloth over boards. Frontispiece
and other b&w photo illustrations. Indexed. Pages clean and bright. Stock#
172 $10.00 USD
First-Person Accounts
& Memoirs
Crowe,
Eyre, With Thackeray in America, Charles Scribners Sons, 1893, 1st
Edition, Hardcover, 8vo 8" - 9" tall, 179 pp., VG/ Bumps and
wear to spine ends, head corners rubbed, tail corners worn, nick to joint. Tiny
chip to head corner of front endpaper. Ex-library with a withdrawal inkstamp to
the front pastedown and a small remnant of laid down pocket to the verso of the
rear endpaper. Eyre Crowe's account of William Makepeace Thackeray's 1892-1893
travels in the
MacLean,
David G., Prisoner of the Rebels in Texas, : The Civil War Narrative of
Aaron T. Sutton, Americana Books, 1978, 1st Edition, Hardcover,
8vo 8" - 9" tall, 178 pp., F/ VG+, DJ has light wrinkling at
head edge, two tiny stains to back, light creases to front flap. "The Civil War Narrative of Aaron T. Sutton, Corporal, 83rd
=== SOLD === Broonzy, William and Bruynoghe,
Yannick, Big Bill Blues, : William Broonzy's Story, Cassell &
Company, Ltd., 1955, Hardcover, 8vo 8" - 9" tall, 139 pp., VG+/
VG, Very slight splay at the head and tail fore-corners of the boards. Slight marring to the gilt spine title, done in the making.
DJ soiled, shows tiny chips at spine ends. Small open tear on
the spine near the head. Memoir of William (Big Bill) Broonzy's life
playing delta blues. Told in the first person, it's not really an
autobiography, but more of an account of several aspects of his life. Contents
organized thus: My Life, My Songs, My Friends, Envoi, Discography, Index. Every aspect is related through first person stories
and his song lyrics relevant to the situation, many of the stories relating the
origin of his songs. Tales of playing guitar, Jim Crow in the south, working
for the WPA, whiskey, Sonny Boy Williamson dying after being stabbed in the
head with an ice pick, Sleepy John Estes beating his wife before he left to
work on the railroad with Bill, good women, bad women, more whiskey, living as
a "black man" and as a "whisky head man," etc. A very
personal telling of what he considered significant in his life. Four 'chapter page' drawings by Paul Oliver and thirteen black and
white photos. The 15-page Discography covers all known recordings issued
under his name and his various psudonyms, side players, labels, songs included,
and the complier's notes. Indexed. This copy somewhat
scarce, as it is a Cassell & Company book apparently distributed in the
Goff, Stan,
Hideous Dream, : A Soldiers Memoir of the
Earl of
Oxford and Asquith, K.G. (Herbert Henry Asquith), Memories and Reflections
1852-1927, Vol 1 and 2, Little, Brown, 1928, 1st Edition, Hardcover, Large
8vo 9" - 10" tall, VG-/ NONE, Both volumes: wear and fraying to
spine ends, wear to all corners, spines sunned, scuffing and faint staining to
all covers and spines, ownership stamp to front endpaper. Personal
recollections of Herbert Henry Asquith, the Liberal Prime Minister of
20 Ants – 20th Century and
Antiquarian Books for the Reader and Collector
Michael Watson archetype@20ants.com www.20ants.com (317)514-3829