Winter Holiday

Ransome, Arthur

Published by London Jonathan Cape 1933, 1933

About this Item

First edition. 360 pages. Signed by Ransome in ink to the half-title page, above one of his small signature drawings of a sailing dinghy. Partially erased above this is the ownership inscription of S. Morgan, this being the son of Stanley Morgan, of the Newcastle bookseller's Mawson, Swan and Morgan, who arranged for Ransome to sign several books for his children. The book is bound in lightly marked and rubbed dark green cloth, lettered in gilt and blind, the extremities are slightly bumped. The text block is slightly foxed, marked, and age toned, it has been well read, and is cracked quite dramatically at points, with a couple of pages beginning to work loose and some gatherings protruding slightly, there are closed tears to the tops of pages 357-360, with no loss of text. The dust jacket is the original and not price clipped, it is quite rubbed, marked, foxed and toned, with quite significant loss to the edges, it has been quite neatly if rudimentarily conserved using pieces of similarly toned gummed on paper. The fourth title in the series, which sees the introduction of the 'Ds', who despite their background differing somewhat from the Swallows and Amazons("people oughtn't to be allowed to be bought up in towns"), soon manage to carve their own niches: Dick as resident scientist, geologist and astronomer, and Dorothea, with her romantic flights of fancy, as a natural foil for Titty. Ransome also paying homage to the polar explorers of his youth, in particular Nansen, who is referenced regularly. Signed copies of the first edition are uncommon.

Seller Inventory # 7212

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Winter Holiday
• Publisher: London Jonathan Cape 1933
• Publication Date: 1933
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Dust Jacket Condition: Dust Jacket Included
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)