Search Results: Titles starting with R from Swan's Fine Books

New York: A Peter Weed Book / Beaufort Books Publishers (1987), 1987. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/fine. Gorey, Edward. First printing of the first trade edition, duodecimo size, 64 pp. "A book that challenges even the most accomplished page-turner" (from dust jacket), a delightful Gorey piece that changes as one answers questions on each page differently, directing you to a different page - not a book to be read in the traditional consecutive order. ___DESCRIPTION: Decorative paper boards, plain endpapers, "First Beaufort Edition" stated on copyright page; oblong, 6.5" tall and 8.5" wide, unpaginated with 32 leaves. Dust jacket shows the original price of $9.95, mirrors the book's boards on both front and back panels, front panel has quote cited above, back panel states simply "Edward Gorey is the author of works too numerous to mention" with the publisher's address at the bottom. ___CONDITION: Fine overall, with clean boards, straight corners without rubbing, a strong, square text block with… Read More

New York: Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation, 1943. Hardcover. Very good +. Quarto size, 1324 pp. While the heydey of the railroads may now be waning, many of us fondly remember both the experience and the romance of travel by rail. Now largly a commercial enterprise, it continues to fascinate and its history studied. This volume truly is a comprehensive Encyclopedia of everything one needs to know to fully understand the workings of the railroad. Replete with photographs and diagrams of trains and rail cars, this volume is a thorough source of information for all things trains, with a lengthy dictionary of the terminology found in the field. With the prior owner name of Kirke W. Comstock on the front pastedown, with the date of 2/1/44 (shortly after publication). While we cannot be certain, this may be the Kirke W.Comstock (1905-1947) who was "known nationally among builders of model railroads" and to whom, therefore, the details on railroad cars and trains would be of utmost importance… Read More

[London]: Published by The Great Western Railway, Paddington Station, W.2., In the Centenary Year of the Company [printed by Wyman & Sons Limited, Reading], 1935. First Edition. Hardcover. Very good +. Robinson, W. Heath. First printing, quarto size, 96 pp. William Heath Robinson (1872-1944) was an exemplary book illustrator and cartoonist, "the only British illustrator to become a 'household name' " (Houfe), a contemporary of acclaimed illustrators Arthur Rackham and Edmund Dulac, best known for his cartoons portraying elaborate and whimsical machinary made to complete simple tasks. In fact, his fame was such that the term "Heath Robinson" was used in the United Kingdom to refer to such machinary, much as the term "Rube Goldberg" was used in the United States. The Great Western Railway, founded in 1835, asked Robinson to produce a series of illustrations concerning railways, which he did in his inimitable style. While this work is listed in Appendix A in Beare, there is no description; however, a… Read More

New York: Atheneum, 1967. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/near fine. First printing, large octavo size, 256 pp., signed by Cecelia Holland. Cecelia Holland (b. 1943) has written, to date, over twenty historical novels which span both the globe and time. In addition, she has authored a multitude of other fictional series, as well as short stories, children's books, and non-fiction. She was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1981-1982. This work, "Rakossy", her second published historical novel, is set in the early sixteenth-century where she follows the adventures of Rakossy, a Hungarian aristocrat, who fights the Turkish invaders in 1526. Note that we have several other volumes of Holland's historical fiction, many of them signed; if you are searching for a particular title, please do let us know. ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in quarter red cloth with grey paper-covered boards, the title blind-debossed on the front board, gilt lettering stamped onto the spine, top edge stained green, green endpapers,… Read More

New York: The Neale Publishing Company, 1917. First Edition. Hardcover. Near Fine. Twelvemo size, 235 pp. Written after the author had passed 88 years of age, this important early work follows his decision as a young man to leave his home in the East to seek gold in California in 1850. The book chronicles their travel westward and their life in San Francisco, as well as recollections of early Sacramento, Salinas, Native Americans encountered, fighting off attacks by wolves, and even travels in Arizona: a fascinating and somewhat scarce glimpse into early pioneer life in California. ___DESCRIPTION: Orange cloth with gilt lettering on front board and spine, plain endpapers, author portrait as frontispiece with tissue guard; pagination: 235 pp. ___CONDITION: Overall near fine with a strong, square text block, solid hinges, straight corners with a minimum of rubbing. There is very minor soiling to boards, very minor wear to head/tail of the spine, prior owner name in a flowing script on the front free… Read More

Boston: Walker, Wise, and Company, 1862. 2nd Printing. Hardcover. Near fine. Second printing (first printing was in 1861), duodecimo size, 131 pp. One of many voices calling for an end to slavery in the United States, Moncure Daniel Conway (1832-1907) writes an impassioned plea for the emancipation of slaves in "The Rejected Stone"; a minister and an ardent abolitionist, Conway spent his life writing and propounding equality and liberty for all. "The Rejected Stone" uses both logic and heart-felt language to convey Conway's purpose and reflects the divided and scarred landscape of the American Civil War. This second edition was published just before the Emancipation Proclamation was issued, and in his preface to the book, Conway praises the work done by Abraham Lincoln and the White House leading up to it. ___DESCRIPTION: Full aubergine pebbled cloth, gilt lettering and ruled borders on the spine, brown coated endpapers; duodecimo size (7.75" by 5"), pagination: [1-7] 8-131. ___CONDITION: Volume… Read More

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1963. Hardcover. Near fine/very good. Religious Orders in England" [three volumes, complete] offered with "The Monastic Order in England"; quarto size, approx. 2060 total pp. "The Monastic Order in England and the three volumes of The Religious Orders in England together constitute one of the great works of English historical scholarship, providing an authoritative, sympathetic and eminently readable account of the achievements of the English monks, canons, and friars from the tenth century to the dissolution of the monasteries, six hundred years later" (n.b., from the jacket flap of the Monastic Order in England). ___DESCRIPTION: "The Religious Orders in England": Vol. I, "The Old Orders, 1216-1340", "The Friars 1216-1340", "The Monasteries and their World", pub. 1960, approx. 350 pp.; Vol. II, "The End of the Middle Ages", pub. 1957, approx. 407 pp.; Vol. III, "The Tudor Age", pub. 1961, approx. 522 pp.; and "The Monastic Order in England", pub. 1963, the… Read More

Cambridge University Press, 1999. 1st Edition. Hardcover. Fine/fine. Quarto size, 295 pp. Anthony Hobson (1921-2014) was the Director and Associate of Sotheby's, President of the Association Internationale de Bibliophoile, Honorary President of the Edinburgh Bibliographical Society, and a past President of the Bibliographical Society. This book studies, and compares, two sixteenth-century libraries. Jean Grolier's collection was a bibliophile 'cabinet' of fine books; Diego Hurtado de Mendoza's was a much larger and more scholarly collection, a catalogue of the latter's printed books provided here for the first time. The final chapter studies the principal binding shops in Venice in the mix-sixteenth century. This edition includes 87 illustrations, the late H. M. Nixon's list of Grolier's bindings classified by workshop and eleven other appendices, indices, and a bibliography (n.b., info from dust jacket). ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in full burgundy cloth, gilt decorations on the front and rear… Read More

Winona, Minnesota: Sutton Hoo Press, 2002. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine. One of 136 copies, quarto size, 24 unnumbered pp. Anthony Deaton works for the U.S. Department of State as a Foreign Service Officer and has served in Italy, Syria, and Namibia; this volume is his first book of poetry, a beautiful fine press book printed by the Sutton Hoo Press. Some of these poems have appeared in journals including the Paris Review, the Gettysburg Review, The Nation, and Virginia Quarterly Review. He is the recipient of the Nation/Discovery Award and the Campbell Corner Prize in poetry. ___DESCRIPTION: Blue, navy, and white marbled paper boards with navy blue paper case tabs pulled outside of the boards, fore- and bottom edges rough cut, decorative blue running border at the top of each page; hand-set Bulmer type, Somerset paper, quarto size (10" by 6.5"), pagination: 24 unnumbered pages, one of 136, unnumbered. ___CONDITION:  A fine copy; the covers clean, the corners straight, the binding tight with… Read More

San Francisco: The California Historical Society [printed by Andrew Hoyem, Printer], 1977. First and Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine/good +. Dixon, Maynard. One of 1300 copies, quarto size, 160 pp., inscribed by Kevin Starr to Edith Hamlin, with prospectus and contemporary review. Lafayette Maynard Dixon (1875-1946) is internationally known for his artwork, which focused on the American West. He had been sickly as a child and spent much of his time listening to stories of "the old west", which fueled his imagination. He received a bronze medal for work he exhibited at the PIE; the list of his solo exhibitions is long and impressive. What many do not know is that Dixon also wrote poetry; this work the first publication of the entire body of his work (164 poems), as only a few had previously been published in magazines. With a "lengthy and beautifully composed introduction [by Kevin Starr], almost a dissection, of how the poems relate to Dixon's artistic career and how they reflect those deep… Read More

Hodder & Stoughton, The Open University, 1991. First Edition. Softcover. Very good +. First printing, quarto size, 447 pp. From the back cover: "The Scientific Revolution has been described as the most significant event in human history since the rise of Christianity...[this] book carries the reader through many of the major developments in asatronomy, the biological and physical sciences, and chemistry...[and] looks at the way in which a scientific consciousness arose at different times and in different areas of Europe..." ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in decorated cardstock covers, quarto size (10 7/8" by 8 9/16"), pagination: [i-iv] v-ix [1, blank] 1-437. ___CONDITION: Very good, the covers with modest overall wear and light soiling, a strong, square text block with solid hinges, the interior is clean and bright, and entirely free of prior owner markings. ___POSTAGE: Please note that this is an unusually heavy volume and additional postage may apply; please inquire for details. ___Swan's Fine Books… Read More

Santa Fe, New Mexico: The Press at the Palace of the Governors, 2008. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine. Van Stone, Mark. Number 6 of 65 copies, folio size, [32] pp., signed by both authors, with prospectus. A collection of twenty prose poems written by two prominent poets of New Mexico. John Brandi (b. 1943) is an American poet and artist, known for poetry about traveling the American West. Renée Gregorio (b. 1955) is an American poet whose work is informed both by the landscape of her home in New Mexico and her travels abroad. A beautiful, collaborative homage to the people, places and history encountered in Chiapas. The book was designed by Monica Meehan, graphic designer for the Museum of New Mexico; its title page features a glyph created by calligrapher and Mayanist Mark Van Stone, Tom Leech and James Bourland printed the book from polymer plates, and Santa Fe bookbinder Rosalia Galassi completed the binding. ___DESCRIPTION: Original quarter iridescent orange cloth with marbled paper… Read More

Camden, Maine: Down East Books, 1998. 1st Edition. Hardcover. Near Fine/Near Fine. Kent, Rockwell; Muniak, Susan (Photography). Octavo size, 96 pp., inscribed by Scott Ferris and Ellen Pearce. Inscribed by co-author and Kent specialist Scott R. Ferris to Riette Kahn, who with her husband, Albert, is mentioned on page 86 of the book as owners of "From Palmer Hill" and friends of Rockwell Kent; included is a TLS by Scott R. Ferris presenting the book to Riette Kahn. Also signed by co-author Ellen Pearce (Rockwell Kent's granddaughter). Rockwell Kent (1882-1971) was an American painter and illustrator who bridged the artistic gap between Victorian and Modern art; highly regarded, he is perhaps best known today for his illustrations, particularly in books such as "Moby Dick" and "Beowulf". He developed sympathy with the social and economic welfare of the working man and became increasingly supportive of Soviet-American friendship, thus becoming a target of Joe McCarthy and even having a travel ban… Read More

[San Francisco]: [San Francisco Center for the Book], 2018. Limited Edition. No binding. Fine. Olson, Rik. No. 7 of 9 copies, signed and numbered by Rik Olson. This lino-carved art, a take-off of "The Wizard of Oz", was printed by a Buffalo Springfield Steamroller at the San Francisco Center for the Book's annual Roadworks Steamroller Printing Festival. The black lines on each piece were printed on the street using the linoleum cut and the steamroller; the coloured highlights were added, by hand, by the artist Rik Olson afterwards, when he signed and numbered each print. A California native, Olson has studied under master painters and wood engravers such as Richard McLean, Barry Moser, and John DePol, and his work is exhibited around the world; his prints shows an attention to detail and colour that captures the fantastic essence of his subjects. Olson is the only artist who has participated in Roadworks every year, creating exquisitely detailed relief prints of varied subjects, often incorporating… Read More

[Paris]: Kickshaws, 1989. Limited Edition. Wraps. Fine. One of 95 copies, oblong duodecimo, [28]pp., signed by Sheila Bourne and John Crombie. A lovely fine press book designed and written by John Crombie, who runs the Kickshaws Press with Sheila Bourne. Founded in 1979, the artwork (much of which is created by Bourne) is "designed to harmonize with the typography of the books and to illustrate, or decorate, the text", very much in the style of a French livres d'artiste (n.b., quote from Wiki). Per the colophon (facing the title page) this volume no. 39 of the edition of ninety-five copies, signed by both Crombie and Bourne. Scarce in the marketplace, as of this writing we see only one copy online, located in France. ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in white stiff paper wraps with a design on the front wrap with the title having a mirror image below, similar design but in a different type font on the title page, the story line follows the "rolling stone" through an amazing variety of adventures with colour… Read More

[San Francisco]: [Printed by John Henry Nash for John Vaughan], 1924. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Very good. One of 500 copies, unnumbered, quarto size, 14 pp. A "tale" wherein the development of empty land into houses and neighborhoods is told; several LA-area neighborhoods are mentioned, including Wilshire Vista (founded in 1921), Beverly Vista, and Fairfax-Melrose. This "tale" would have appealed to many who at the time were involved in the booming Los Angeles housing industry; as set forth in one section: "...[the] 'Romance of Dirt' had become an actual reality & not a mere matter of present decision. As such, he saw what romance really is - a vision of possibilities fabricated info facts. His vision was of many gardens bearing many blossoms." ___PROVENANCE: From the library of F.C. van Deinse (b. 1876), resident of Pasadena (whose house, designed by Wallace Neff, was featured in the January 1925 issue of Architectural Digest), a member of the California State Mining Board, at times the General… Read More

n.p.: Bergamot Press [1999], 1999. Limited Edition. Wraps. Fine. Naragon, Brad. One of 126 copies (unnumbered), square sixmo size, 22 pp. With images by Brad Naragon which were originally sumi ink paintings. C. Mikal Oness, proprietor of the Sutton Hoo Press is a poet in his own right. The title of this volume, Runian, is from the Old English verb meaning "to whisper". ___DESCRIPTION: Softbound in heavy ivory paper wrappers, white paper label on the front with black lettering, embossed image as a frontispiece of the first pen and ink image in the volume, with seven full-page images by Brad Naragon plus a small image at the very end, opposite the colophon; type handset Lutetia, printed on Johannot, square sixmo size (approximately 6.5" on each side), unpaginated with 11 leaves; per the colophon, printed in an edition of "approximately 126 copies". ___CONDITION: Fine, as new from the publisher. ___POSTAGE: International customers, please note that additional postage may apply as the standard… Read More

Munich: Orchis-Verlag, 1922. Hardcover. Very good +. Masjutin, Wassilij. Folio size, 68 pp., in German. Russian poet and novelist Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (1799-1837), considered the founder of modern Russian literature, wrote "Ruslan and Ludmilla", an epic fairy tale filled with adventure, magic, and love; it tells of the knight Ruslan who goes on a quest to rescue Ludmilla, a princess of Kiev, after she is kidnapped by an evil wizard. The story is told in verse and divided into six "Songs" and one epilogue; it was later adapted into an opera by famed Russian composer Mikhail Glinka (1804-1857). Accompanying the poem are illustrations by Wassilij Masjutin (Vasily Masyutin) (1884-1955), a Russian-German artist who illustrated numerous books by Russian authors such as Fyodor Dostoevsky and Nikolai Gogol; for Pushkin's verses he creates full-length portraits of the characters, and each is hand-coloured by R. Müller (per the colophon). The prologue of the poem describes a cat walking around a… Read More

Paris: Chez Saintin, 1811. First Edition. Hardcover. Very good +. Twenty-fourmo size, 234 pp., in French. The biblical story of Ruth and Naomi, two women who leave the land of Moab to return to Naomi's native land of Bethlehem, is a story of love, devotion, and loyalty; it is a story of strength, as the two women must make a life for themselves together after their husbands die. This little volume, printed entirely in French, has engravings of scenes from the story at the opening of each chapter, and contains remarks by the comte de Keratry Auguste Hilarion (1769-1859), a French poet, critic, and politician who offers an analysis of the characters and motifs of the story. This volume features a lovely contemporary calf binding, smooth and supple, four lovely steel-engravings, and has advertisements from the publisher at the rear of the book. ___DESCRIPTION: Full contemporary marbled calf, gilt decorative borders on the front and rear boards, gilt decorations, ornaments, and lettering on the… Read More