A CIRCLE OF SISTERS: Alice Kipling, Georgiana Burne-Jones, Agnes Poynter and Louisa Baldwin. Hardcover - 2001

UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,3rd imp.[Complete number line 3.] FINE+/FINE.No owner inscrptn and no price-clip to dw/dj.Bright,crisp, clean,matt 2/3rds wrap-around colour pictorial artwork 'Green Summer',by Edward Burne-Jones,illustrated dw/dj,with gilt and b/w lettering; with negligible shelf-wear and creasing to edges and corners - no major nicks or tears present.A tiny snick/closed tear - without loss,to front,top corner of dw/dj,both head+foot of spine/backstrip of both dw/dj+boards minisculely bumped with reciprocal creasing.Top+ fore-edges though lightly aged/toned are bright and clean; contents bright,tight,clean - near pristine,with very light page edge toning - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corners,could appear unread - apart from my own collation.Bright,crisp,clean,sharp-cornered, publisher's original,plain dark green cloth boards with bright,crisp, blocked gilt letters to spine/backstrip and immaculate plain white endpapers.UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,viii-xxiiipp [paginated] includes contents list/table,illus list/table,acknowledgements,double-page Macdonald Family tree chart,a note on names,and an author introduction,Pts I-IV comprising 16 chapters+afterword in total,16pp contemporary,b/w facsimile illus+photographs in 2 blocks of 8pp apiece between pp104/5 and pp264/5 respectively,6 b/w illustrations throughout the text,notes,a select bibliography and an index.Plus [unpaginated] 2pp blanks,title page,and dedication.Author's debut book. They were four women of little fortune.In early Victorian England,what opportunities were there for the daughters of a poor Methodist minister? The Macdonald sisters - Alice,Georgiana,Agnes and Louisa - started life precariously stationed in the teeming ranks of the lower-middle class.They were denied the advantage of a traditional education,or the expectation of social advancement.Yet,as wives and mothers,they were to connect a famous painter,a president of the Royal Academy,a prime minister and a poet. Georgiana and Agnes married, respectively,Edward Burne-Jones and Edward Poynter; Louisa gave birth to Stanley Baldwin,whilst Alice was the mother of Rudyard Kipling. 'A Circle of Sisters' brings to life four women who lived at an exceptional and privileged moment in history.Their journey,in a single generation,from provincial obscurity to metropolitan and imperial grandeur symbolized the energy and vitality of 19thC Britain.This was a society open to talent and abundant with possibility,where four lowly born sisters could rise to become the intimates of politicians,princes and viceroys. Offering a rare glimpse of daily life in the nineteenth century - of how people lived and died,of how houses were run and children were raised - Judith Flanders prises open the secrets of a Victorian family. From their homes in India,America,London and the English countryside,the Macdonald sisters formed a network that - as their husbands and children triumphed and faltered,and the dramas of the outside world unfolded - uniquely endured.Judith Flanders tells their remarkable story with wit,authority and flair. Please contact seller @ rpaxtonden@blueyonder.co.uk ,because of the value of this item,for correct shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,3rd imp.[Complete number line 3.]FINE+/FINE.No owner inscrptn and no price-clip to dw/dj.Bright,crisp,clean,matt 2/3rds wrap-around colour pictorial artwork 'Green Summer',by Edward Burne-Jones, illustrated dw/dj,with gilt and b/w lettering; with negligible shelf-wear and creasing to edges and corners - no major nicks or tears present.A tiny snick/closed tear - without loss,to front, top corner of dw/dj,both head +foot of spine/ backstrip of both dw/dj+boards minisculely bumped with reciprocal creasing.Top+fore-edges though lightly aged/toned are bright and clean; contents bright,tight,clean - near pristine,with very light page edge toning - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corners,could appear unread - apart from my own collation.Bright, crisp,clean,sharp-cornered,publisher's original plain dark green cloth boards with bright,crisp, blocked gilt letters to spine/backstrip and immaculate plain white endpapers.UK,8vo HB+ dw/dj,1st edn,viii-xxiiipp [paginated] includes contents list/table,illus list/table, acknowledgements,double-page Macdonald Family tree chart,a note on names,and an author introduction,Pts I-IV comprising 16 chapters+ afterword in total,16pp contemporary,b/w facsimile illus+photographs in 2 blocks of 8pp apiece between pp104/5 and pp264/5 respectively, 6 b/w illustrations throughout the text,notes,a select bibliography and an index.Plus [unpaginated] 2pp blanks,title page,and dedication.Author's debut book. They were four women of little fortune.In early Victorian England,what opportunities were there for the daughters of a poor Methodist minister? The Macdonald sisters - Alice,Georgiana,Agnes and Louisa - started life precariously stationed in the teeming ranks of the lower-middle class. They were denied the advantage of a traditional education,or the expectation of social advancement.Yet,as wives and mothers,they were to connect a famous painter,a president of the Royal Academy,a prime minister and a poet. Georgiana and Agnes married,respectively,Edward Burne-Jones and Edward Poynter; Louisa gave birth to Stanley Baldwin,whilst Alice was themother of Rudyard Kipling. 'A Circle of Sisters' brings to life four women who lived at an exceptional and privileged moment in history.Their journey,in a single generation,from provincial obscurity to metropolitan and imperial grandeur symbolized the energy and vitality of 19thC Britain.This was a society open to talent and abundant with possibility,where four lowly born sisters could rise to become the intimates of politicians, princes and viceroys. Offering a rare glimpse of daily life in the nineteenth century - of how people lived and died,of how houses were run and children were raised - Judith Flanders prises open the secrets of a Victorian family. From their homes in India,America,London and the English countryside,the Macdonald sisters formed a network that - as their husbands and children triumphed and faltered,and the dramas of the outside world unfolded - uniquely endured.Judith Flanders tells their remarkable story with wit,authority and flair. Please contact seller @ rpaxtonden@blueyonder.co.uk ,because of the value of this item,for correct shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! ** N.B. ALL buyers please note,stocks' actual shipping/P+p costs are adjusted and any difference is refunded,after order's receipt and before the order's despatch,especially if the item(s) are offered either P+p included/FREE. ** N.B. US/Canada customers please be aware: Standard AIRMAIL postage from UK to these destinations can now cost more than the price of the book! If speed is not of the essence,then Economy rate is recommended - at approx. anything from a 1/3rd to 1/2 of the standard AIR quote/rate - sometimes arriving sooner than the 42 days - but not always.