Portraits I. Criticism. Experience. by MACCARTHY, Desmond - 1931

London: Putnam 1931; 1932; 1935, 1931. Three volumes. Limited editions, signed by the author. 8vo (220x140mm). pp. Vol. 1 (Portraits I), xii, 294; Vol. II (Criticism), xii, [1], 312; Vol. III (Experience), xix, 312. Publisher's blue buckram, upper cover decorated in gilt with the MacCarthy crest, spine lettered in gilt. Cream dust jacket with title and author and details of the contents printed in black on the upper covers. Title and author printed in black on the spines. The dust-jackets have Each of these limited editions are printed on cream wove parchment. Portraits I is number 98 of 150; Criticism is 38 of 100 and Experience is 19 of 100. Experience is signed by MacCarthy "to An Unknown Purchaser, 1935". This is explained by a note tipped in to the ffep explaining that the author had sailed for America by the time the book was printed but that he would sign copies returned to the publisher or any bookseller. Newpaper cuttings and reviews loosely inserted in volumes II and III. Volume I has a portrait of MacCarthy tipped in. Portraits I is inscribed (on a tipped in note) "To Elizabeth and Wayland, from K. In memory of Uncle Desmond. 1953". "K" was the first Lord Kennet, and Elizabeth and Wayland were his children. MacCarthy was one of the most stylish and entertaining essayists of the twentieth century and this is a very nice, attractively produced, limited edition set bringing together writings on a huge range of subjects from biography, literary criticism, snobbishness, boxing, cats and literary booms. "The titles of Desmond MacCarthy's books must have seemed to him unassailably offhand – Remnants, Portraits, Experience: titles nicely in tune with his well-known view of himself as a chap who could surely have done better. One of his favourite lines of poetry was Hartley Coleridge's 'For I have lost the race I never ran' and early on in his career he got used to being spoken of as having squandered a great gift. Part of MacCarthy's charm was that he had no serious quarrel with this view. In 1932, he decided – was persuaded – to issue a selection of the book reviews he had been turning out for the New Statesman and the Sunday Times. It was typical of the man that he should call it, simply, Criticism." (Ian Hamilton LRB, August 1990).