The Rainbow by Lawrence, D. H - 1915

London: Methuen & Co. Ltd, 1915. First edition. Near Fine. One of 1250 copies (429 of which were destroyed for "obscenity"). A copy that is very Nearly Fine with the spine a bit darkened and faint tape ghosts on the end papers. Housed in a custom slipcase.

Originally conceived as the first part to Lawrence's more popular, Women in Love, the publisher released the two novels separately to avoid tainting Women in Love with the scandal of the obscenity charges brought against The Rainbow. In The Rainbow, Lawrence follows the Brangwen family through three generations, a narrative arc that corresponds with the Victorian Era. Lawrence's novel investigates the challenges that industrialization wrought on families, labor, beliefs, and relationships, especially intimate ones. It was the novel's candid exploration of sexual desire that disturbed authorities who, after a successful obscenity trial, seized and then destroyed copies of the book before issuing a ban for more than a decade. Near Fine.