The Adventures of Tom Bombadil and Other Verses from the Red Book by Tolkien, J.R.R.; Baynes, Pauline[Illustrator] - 1963

Houghton Mifflin Company, 1963. First American Edition/Fifth Imp. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. Signed by Illustrator. Tolkien, J.R.R. : The Adventures of Tom Bombadil and Other Verses from the Red Book. Boston : The Riverside Press Cambridge - Houghton Mifflin Company. First American Edition, 1963, Fifth Impression (thus actual date of printing is not 1963, but later). Illustrations by Baynes, Pauline. Tolkien was famously critical of those who tried to interpret his work in film or illustration – but he greatly appreciated Pauline Baynes’ illustrations of his stories. When preparing Tom Bombadil for publication in 1961, he wrote to her: “And I thought of you, because you seem able to produce wonderful pictures with a touch of ‘fantasy’, but primarily bright and clear visions of things that one might really see.“ (Letter dated 6 December, 1961, included in The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, selected and edited by Humphrey Carpenter with Christopher Tolkien.)Boston : Houghton Mifflin, 1981.Size is octavo (8vo), 9"/23cm h. Bound in publisher's pictorial matte color boards, black lettering to spine and front board, spine lettering reads from bottom up (reverse typical direction). Color matte DJ. Plain white endpapers. 63 numbered pp, plus final p not numbered. Preface plus 16 poems. Profusely illustrated by Baynes, mostly in b&w, several augmented with orange to form a color illustration (profusely: only 17 of the pp with text fail to exhibit at least a small illustration). Condition notes: Modest wear to boards/bottom edge shelfwear, but color nicely retained with no appreciable sunning; spine ends rolled, corners bumped, spine slightly cocked with slight bowing of boards. Top textblock edge exhibits small (1cm) discoloration/stain. Pages lightly tanning but clean. Unclipped dj ($3.75!), mylar-covered, shows wear at hinges but no chips or tears, no appreciable sunning. Rear pastedown features former owner's address stamp (1x4cm)- that of American poet Glenn Joseph Shea of Connecticut. Baynes has signed (only) below her printed attribution on the title page. A rare find indeed. We personally inspect every book we offer.