The Complete Works of Doctor Francois Rabelais: Abstractor of the Quintessence Being an Account of the Inestimable Life of the Great Gargantua, and of the Heroic Deeds, Sayings and Marvellous Voyages of his Son the Good Pantagruel

A faithfully rendered first trade edition of Francois Rabelais' complete works, decorated with many striking illustrations. The first trade edition of this work. Complete in two volumes.Uniformly bound in the publisher's original gilt-decorated cloth.With many illustrations by English artist Frank C. Pape, who is best known for his illustrations to the 1920s books from writers James Branch Cabell and Anatole France.With a frontispiece and ten plates to volume I, and a frontispiece and twelve plates to volume II, as well as numerous in-text illustrations throughout each. Collated, complete.These volumes contain Rabelais' widely regarded magnus opus, 'Gargantua and Pantagruel', which is made up of five novels celebrated for their rich use of Renaissance French and comedy. They exploit popular legends, farces and romances, as well as classical and Italian material.The work is annotated by Duchat, Ozell and others, as well as introduced by J. Lewis May, a British critic and translator. In the original gilt-decorated cloth binding. Externally, with rubbing and bumping to the extremities. Both spine heads have losses, with chips to the cloth and to the spine itself to Volume I. With marks to the boards and slight fading to the gilt to Volume II. Internally, firmly bound. Pages are generally bright and clean, with a few spots to the endpapers. Good Only.…