LETTERS OF TED HUGHES (First edition - third impression)

Third impression of the true first edition, with the number string: 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 on the printer's page. Illustrated with sixteen pages of black & white photographs. ***Near fine in blue cloth-covered boards with gilt titles to the spine. The boards are clean and unmarked. No bumps or creases. Corners sharp. Page block edges clean. No reading lean to the binding. Spine tight. Internally also near fine with no inscriptions or annotations. Pages clean. No foxing. No creases or tears. The book has a high-quality binding and, although printed on quite thin paper, the binding makes it a heavy book. ***In a near fine colour-illustrated dustwrapper, which has not been price-clipped, retaining the original publisher's printed price of £30.00. Extremities of dustwrapper just very slightly rubbed. No creases, chips or tears. No fading. Dustwrapper bright. ***242mm x 164mm. 756 pages. ***'Edward James Hughes OM OBE FRSL (17 August 1930 - 28 October 1998) was an English poet, translator, and children's writer. Critics frequently rank him as one of the best poets of his generation and one of the twentieth century's greatest writers. He was appointed Poet Laureate in 1984 and held the office until his death. In 2008, The Times ranked Hughes fourth on its list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945". He married fellow poet Sylvia Plath in 1956, and they lived together in the United States and then in England, in a tumultuous relationship. They had two children before separating in 1962 and Plath ended her own life in 1963.' (Wiki) ***'Ted Hughes (1930-1998) was one of the giants of twentieth-century poetry. His vast and multifaceted output, which challenged and stimulated generations of readers, is now a permanent monument. His voice, once heard, is unforgettable. Ted Hughes was also a prolific letter-writer, with a private voice no less original and compelling. He described letter-writing as "excellent training for conversation with the world", and the Letters offers a selection from the thousands he wrote over a period of fifty years. This selection includes correspondence from Hughes's marriage to Sylvia Plath, and his letters to those he trusted reveal much about his feelings for her. There are letters, too, to Assia Wevill, who was the mother of his third child and who, like Plath, killed herself. Beyond that, though, the Letters offers a detailed picture of a visionary, questing and prodigiously creative individual--responding in full tilt to the challenges of an incomparably eventful life and career.' (Quote taken from the front flap of the dustwrapper) ***A third impression of the true first edition, in exactly the same format, complete in its original dustwrapper in extremely nice, bright, clean collectable condition. ***For all our books, postage is charged at cost, allowing for packaging: any shipping rates indicated on ABE are an average only: we will reduce the P & P charge where appropriate - please contact us for postal rates for heavier books and sets etc.…