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GOLDSMITH, Oliver

The Vicar of Wakefield

The Vicar of Wakefield

Philadelphia: David McKay Company, [1929]

Illustrated by RACKHAM, Arthur

Regular price £395.00
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The Vicar of Wakefield by Oliver Goldsmith

Philadelphia: David McKay Company, [1929]. First American edition thus. Deluxe issue, limited to 775 copies (575 for England and 200 for the United States) signed by Arthur Rackham, this being copy no. 103 of the American issue. Publisher's white vellum, front cover ruled and lettered in gilt, spine decoratively tooled and lettered in gilt, pictorial endpapers, top edge gilt, others uncut. Quarto (10 5/16 x 7 3/4 in; 263 x 197 mm). 231, [1] pp. Twelve full page color plates, twenty-two black and white line drawings.

One of the most popular books of the 18th century. A work of sentimental fiction and a satire on the genre itself, following the trials and eventual triumph of the Primrose family, led by the Rev’d Dr. Charles Primrose, the vicar.

Goldsmith was a noted Irish wit and a member of Samuel Johnson’s famed literary club, praised by Johnson as: “In genius, vivid, versatile, sublime. In style, clear, elevated, elegant." The legend of the book’s publication is that Goldsmith was about to be arrested by his landlady for debt, when Johnson was able to sell the manuscript of the novel to a publisher for sixty pounds, saving his friend in the nick of time. “I brought Goldsmith the money, and he discharged his rent, not without rating his landlady in a high tone for having used him so ill.” 

Condition

Vellum with mild staining and wear, light bumping to extremities. Internally, some scattered foxing and mild staining (mostly contained to extremities, with contents unaffected), and a few shallow ear marks. A couple of breaks throughout, with netting slightly exposed. Overall, a good copy.

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