The Common Reader. by WOOLF, Virginia - 1925

London: The Hogarth Press,, 1925. A lovely copy in the scarce dust jacket First edition, first impression, first issue binding, in an unusually nice copy of the jacket; this is one of Woolf's scarcest books to find in dust jacket, and seldom in such nice condition. It is the first of the two volumes of Woolf's Common Reader, each series being a discrete work in its own right; the second was published in 1932. The Common Reader series comprise critical essays, articles, and book reviews that had previously appeared in various publications. "Woolf was trying to bring imagination and cohesion to a disparate collection, unified only by her approach and personality... The Times itself saw Woolf as 'a novelist deliberately using her creative imagination' and praised her for 'conduct[ing] us not into the classroom but out of it'" (Clarke, introduction). Octavo. Original grey cloth-backed pictorial boards, designed by Vanessa Bell, spine lettered in black. With dust jacket. Bottom edge slightly bumped with a touch of wear, boards mildly toned remaining bright, minor foxing to edges, internally crisp and clean. An excellent copy in the scarce jacket, lightly browned, spine ends and tips lightly chipped, couple of closed tears at edges; a very well-preserved example. Kirkpatrick A8a; Woolmer 81. Stuart N. Clarke, ed., The Essays of Virginia Woolf, Volume 5: 1929-1932, 2017.