THE PLACE OF THE LION (Re-issued as No. 4 in the Connoisseur's Library of Strange Fiction)

First impression of this edition - re-issued as No. 4 in the Connoisseur's Library of Strange Fiction. The book was originally published by Victor Gollancz in 1931. This 1947 edition is generally found in the 'First Cheap Edition' dustwrapper, when found at all, and copies in the standard Gollancz yellow dustwrapper are uncommon. ***Very good in pale blue cloth-covered boards with gilt titles to the spine. The gilt is still nice and bright having been protected by the dustwrapper. The boards are clean and unmarked. Head and tail of spine uncreased. No bumps or tears to the cloth. Corners sharp. Very slight reading lean to the binding. Spine tight. Internally also very good with no inscriptions. Endpapers foxed, but interior pages nice and clean. No off-setting to the endpapers. Printed on very thin post-war paper but no creases or tears. Looks almost unread. ***In a very good standard yellow Gollancz dustwrapper, printed in pink and black, which has the original publisher's printed price of 7/6 net at the top of the spine. The dustwrapper is fairly complete except for a small chip out of the top edge of the spine. There is also some foxing and uneven browning to the edges, mainly affecting the back panel. The edges of the dustwrapper are slightly rubbed and creased. The spine of the dustwrapper is slightly marked and darkened with age. The large foldover flaps remain completely uncreased. ***192mm x 130mm. 175 pages. ***'"The Place of the Lion" is a work of supernatural fiction written by Charles Williams. The book was first published in 1931 by Victor Gollancz. T. S. Eliot described Williams' novels in this genre as "supernatural thrillers". J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis had found the book inspirational and it is often cited as a major work that altered their own writings and helped them both become novelists. Anthony Boucher and J. Francis McComas, in their survey of fantasy fiction, called "The Place of the Lion" "one of the most daringly conceived and stunningly visualized of all Williams’ novels."' ***'Charles Walter Stansby Williams (20 Sep 1886 - 15 May 1945) was a British poet, novelist, playwright, theologian, literary critic, and member of the Inklings, an informal literary discussion group associated with C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien at the University of Oxford. Although chiefly remembered as a novelist, Williams also published poetry, works of literary criticism, theology, drama, history, biography, and a voluminous number of book reviews. Some of his best known novels are "War in Heaven" (1930), "Descent into Hell" (1937), and "All Hallows' Eve" (1945). T. S. Eliot, who wrote an introduction for the last of these, described Williams's novels as "supernatural thrillers" because they explore the sacramental intersection of the physical with the spiritual while also examining the ways in which power, even spiritual power, can corrupt as well as sanctify.' (Wiki) ***A very good copy of this re-issued edition of Charles Williams' supernatural novel, complete in its original fragile dustwrapper. It's extremely hard to find Gollancz editions from this period in reasonable condition - the Gollancz dustwrappers are notoriously thin and fragile, and prone to discolouring, wear and tear. This copy is of particular interest to collectors of the works of Charles Williams, as the true first edition from 1931 is almost unobtainable in a dustwrapper now. ***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.…