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THE FALLEN LEAVES. First [and only] Series. In Three Volumes

THE FALLEN LEAVES. First [and only] Series. In Three Volumes

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THE FALLEN LEAVES. First [and only] Series. In Three Volumes

by Collins, Wilkie

  • Used
  • first
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Seller
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Yarmouth, Maine, United States
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About This Item

1879. London: Chatto & Windus, 1879. Bound in three-quarter red morocco with gilt-paneled spines, red cloth boards, marbled endpapers.

First Edition of this novel about "fallen leaves... the people who have drawn blanks in the lottery of life... the friendless and the lonely, the wounded and the lost." The novel follows the fortunes of four women, all in one way or another 'fallen leaves', who are linked by their relationship with the hero, Amelius Goldenheart, and also by secrets from the past. Their histories are looked at from two perspectives: that of the ruthless capitalist society of England in which they live, and that of the Christian Socialism of the hero who has been brought up in a Utopian community in America. Collins modeled his description on the Oneida communities of New England, in which sexual relationships were not restricted to marriage but had to be sanctioned by the elders [Gasson]. Perhaps appropriately, Collins dedicated this book "To Caroline [Graves]", the woman with whom he lived, unmarried, almost continuously from 1858 until his death in 1889. The title pages read "First Series" because a second "series" was planned (which would have shown an unconventional marriage failing because of outside pressures); however the First Series did not sell well, so that idea was abandoned. THE FALLEN LEAVES was originally published in ivy-decorated mustard-olive (condiment-colored) cloth, but this copy is rebound in three-quarter red morocco with gilt-paneled spines, with red cloth-covered boards, by "Rivière & Son" (that 1832 bookbinding firm was so-named beginning in 1880 and ending in 1939). The first two volumes' half-titles are included in the rebinding, but the Vol III one is not, nor is the ad catalogue that typically appears in Vol II. Condition is fine and bright. This is quite a scarce title -- Sadleir ranked it 10th in scarcity among Collins's novels; this is the first time we have offered this first edition in our 40+ years in business. Gasson pp 59-60; curiously not in Sadleir's (XIX) collection; Sadleir (Excursions) p. 147; Parrish & Miller pp 110-112; Wolff 1351. Provenance: each volume bears the small leather bookplate of W.A. Foyle, Beeleigh Abbey: Foyle (1885-1963) co-founded with his brother Gilbert the legendary W & G Foyle Bookshop in 1903 (do the math), and became quite a collector as well.

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Details

Bookseller
Sumner & Stillman US (US)
Bookseller's Inventory #
14839
Title
THE FALLEN LEAVES. First [and only] Series. In Three Volumes
Author
Collins, Wilkie
Book Condition
Used
Quantity Available
1
Date Published
1879
Bookseller catalogs
Fiction (19th Century); Three-Decker Novels; Leatherbound Books;
Note
May be a multi-volume set and require additional postage.

Terms of Sale

Sumner & Stillman

30 day return guarantee, with full refund including original shipping costs for up to 30 days after delivery if an item arrives misdescribed or damaged.

About the Seller

Sumner & Stillman

Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Biblio member since 2009
Yarmouth, Maine

About Sumner & Stillman

Founded in 1980, Sumner & Stillman is a small family business providing personal service in the buying and selling of literary first editions of the 19th and early 20th Centuries. Member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America (ABAA) for over 30 years.

Glossary

Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:

Rebound
A book in which the pages have been bound into a covering replacing the original covering issued by the publisher.
Fine
A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
First Edition
In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
G
Good describes the average used and worn book that has all pages or leaves present. Any defects must be noted. (as defined by AB...
Leaves
Very generally, "leaves" refers to the pages of a book, as in the common phrase, "loose-leaf pages." A leaf is a single sheet...
Bookplate
Highly sought after by some collectors, a book plate is an inscribed or decorative device that identifies the owner, or former...
Cloth
"Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
New
A new book is a book previously not circulated to a buyer. Although a new book is typically free of any faults or defects, "new"...
Morocco
Morocco is a style of leather book binding that is usually made with goatskin, as it is durable and easy to dye. (see also...

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