Oscar and Lucinda

Oscar and Lucinda, by Peter Carey. Queensland: University of Queensland Press, [1988]. First edition, first impression, in original dust wrapper. Signed and dated by the author to title page on 22nd November 1988 in Sydney. Pp. 511. A scarce example.

Oscar and Lucinda won the 1988 Booker Prize and the 1989 Miles Franklin Award. This is the true first, author-signed edition, originally published in Australia in 1988, earlier than the UK and other editions.

The book tells the story of Oscar Hopkins, the Devonian son of a Plymouth Brethren minister who becomes an Anglican priest, and Lucinda Leplastrier, a young Australian heiress who buys a glass factory. They meet on the ship over to Australia, and discover that they are both gamblers, one obsessive, the other compulsive. Lucinda bets Oscar that he cannot transport a glass church from Sydney to a remote settlement at Bellingen, some 400 km up the New South Wales coast. This bet changes both their lives forever.

Condition

Publisher's original green binding with gilt lettering to spine. Externally in very good condition, however with some light edgewear and mild bumping to spine tips and corners. Joints intact. Some spots of foxing to edges. Binding is tight (although not as on a new copy), however the rear inner hinge is beginning to separate (please see last photo), and the top headband has also separated from the text block. Small sticker to front paste-down endpaper for Abbey's Bookshops in Sydney. Author signature, date and location to title page. Otherwise pages are clean and free of inscriptions. Complete. Presenting well in a very good, unclipped (although no price listed) dust wrapper with clean, bright panels panels (inside and out). Minimal, if any, chipping to extremities of the dust jacket with the slightest 1/2 cm tear to top of the spine. Virtually no loss. The dust wrapper has now been placed in a removable, protective sleeve of archival quality.