About this Item
The second printing of the first edition in English of this particular selection of stories, published 1945 (the same year as the first printing). With an eight-page Introduction by Janko Lavrin, written at University College, Nottingham in 1945 to the fore. With eight striking full-page illustrations by Robert Turner which are inserted throughout the book on grey card, and illustrated endpapers. ***Very good in red boards with gilt titles to the spine and red titles on a gold block to the front board. The gilt slightly has dulled over time. Head and tail of spine very slightly creased, and the red colour has dulled at the top and tail of the spine where the dustwrapper is chipped. Corners sharp. Light foxing to the top edge of the page block. No reading lean to the binding. Spine tight. Internally also very good, with ownership name and place at the top of the back of the front free endpaper. Internally the pages are clean without any foxing. The paper stock used is quite thin, but there are no creases or tears. ***In a good only example of the very fragile wartime dustwrapper, which is fairly complete, but which has some loss at the top and tail of the spine. There is also some loss along the top edge of the front panel and corner tips. Apart from these faults, the dustwrapper is well preserved, considering it is printed on such thin paper (the book was produced in conformity with the Authorised Economy Standard that was in place due to wartime rationing of paper). Dustwrapper bright. ***190mm x 128mm. 190 pages. Contents: Introduction, Sorochinsky Fair, Christmas Eve, How the Two Ivans Quarrelled, The Nevsky Prospect, The Coach, The Nose. ***'Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol (1 April 1809 - 4 March 1852) was a Russian novelist, short story writer, and playwright of Ukrainian origin. Gogol was one of the first to use the technique of the grotesque, in works such as "The Nose", "Viy", "The Overcoat", and "Nevsky Prospekt". These stories, and others such as "Diary of a Madman", have also been noted for their proto-surrealist qualities. According to Viktor Shklovsky, Gogol's strange style of writing resembles the "ostranenie" technique of defamiliarization. His early works, such as Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka, were influenced by his Ukrainian upbringing, Ukrainian culture and folklore. His later writing satirised political corruption in contemporary Russia ("The Government Inspector", "Dead Souls"), although Gogol also enjoyed the patronage of Tsar Nicholas I who liked his work. The novel "Taras Bulba" (1835), the play "Marriage" (1842), and the short stories "The Tale of How Ivan Ivanovich Quarreled with Ivan Nikiforovich", "The Portrait" and "The Carriage", are also among his best-known works.' (Wiki) ***A second printing of the first UK edition, and first edition in English, of this selection of Nikolai Gogol's short stories, published during the Second World War. Uncommon to find now in the dustwrapper. ***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.
Seller Inventory # 8786
Contact seller
Report this item
