Vanity Fair (Signed Limited)
by Thackeray, Henry Makepeace. Lewis Baumer (illustrator)
- Used
- Fine
- Signed
- Condition
- Fine
- Seller
-
Pasadena, California, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1913. Fine. Original publisher's pictorial vellum with gilt to spine and front board. Pictorial endpapers. Boards slightly bowed and lacking silk ties. Some offsetting to endpapers and occasional light foxing not affecting illustrations. Number 38 of 350 copies signed by the illustrator, and complete with twenty mounted color plates with titled tissue-guards.
Considered by its author to be a novel without a hero, Vanity Fair follows the path of the social climbing Becky Sharp as she seeks to improve her position within the Victorian social strata. One of literature's most important early iterations of the female anti-hero, Miss Sharp helped to expose the truth that women were not merely domesticated angels but could be just as ambitious and driven as their male counterparts; and her foil Amelia reveals that even an apparent paragon of femininity was imperfect. A contemporary reviewer noted "Thakeray's theory of characterization proceeds generally on the assumtion that the acts of men and women are directed not by principle but by instincts...There is not a person in the book who excites the reader's respect, and not one who fails to exite his interest. The morbid quickness of the author's perceptions of the selfish element, even in his few amiable characters, is a constant source of surprise. The novel not only has no hero, but implies the non-existence of heroism" (Contemporary Atlantic Monthly review). A literary tour de force, transformed into a popular film starring Reese Witherspoon. The present version is beautifully illustrated with great humor by Lewis Christopher Edward Baumer (August 8, 1870 - October 25, 1963) the English caricaturist who worked for more than fifty years for the British magazine Punch. He illustrated or contributed illustrations to more than forty books between 1897 and 1936. Fine.
Considered by its author to be a novel without a hero, Vanity Fair follows the path of the social climbing Becky Sharp as she seeks to improve her position within the Victorian social strata. One of literature's most important early iterations of the female anti-hero, Miss Sharp helped to expose the truth that women were not merely domesticated angels but could be just as ambitious and driven as their male counterparts; and her foil Amelia reveals that even an apparent paragon of femininity was imperfect. A contemporary reviewer noted "Thakeray's theory of characterization proceeds generally on the assumtion that the acts of men and women are directed not by principle but by instincts...There is not a person in the book who excites the reader's respect, and not one who fails to exite his interest. The morbid quickness of the author's perceptions of the selfish element, even in his few amiable characters, is a constant source of surprise. The novel not only has no hero, but implies the non-existence of heroism" (Contemporary Atlantic Monthly review). A literary tour de force, transformed into a popular film starring Reese Witherspoon. The present version is beautifully illustrated with great humor by Lewis Christopher Edward Baumer (August 8, 1870 - October 25, 1963) the English caricaturist who worked for more than fifty years for the British magazine Punch. He illustrated or contributed illustrations to more than forty books between 1897 and 1936. Fine.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Whitmore Rare Books (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 5136
- Title
- Vanity Fair (Signed Limited)
- Author
- Thackeray, Henry Makepeace. Lewis Baumer (illustrator)
- Book Condition
- Used - Fine
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Publisher
- Hodder & Stoughton
- Place of Publication
- London
- Date Published
- 1913
Terms of Sale
Whitmore Rare Books
15 day return guarantee, with full refund if an item arrives damaged or not matching the description.
About the Seller
Whitmore Rare Books
Biblio member since 2009
Pasadena, California
About Whitmore Rare Books
We operate a retail shop in "Old Town" Pasadena open normal business hours Tuesday through Saturday.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Vellum
- Vellum is a sheet of specialty prepared skin of lamb, calf, or goat kid used for binding a book or for printing and writing. ...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Fair
- is a worn book that has complete text pages (including those with maps or plates) but may lack endpapers, half-title, etc....