A Childhood

London: Leonard and Virginia Woolf at the Hogarth Press, 1937. Cloth. Very Good. FIRST EDITION. 8vo, pp. 187, [1] + seven b/w wood engraved headpieces by Enid Marx. Original blue cloth, spine lettered in gilt. Gentle bruising to extremities, some edges rubbed, stain to heel of spine. Scatter of fox spots to edges and endpapers, gently toned, else, pleasingly clean and tight. In the classic Enid Marx-designed dust jacket: toned, spine darkened and rubbed at joints, loss to head of spine, numerous closed tears, including a flap to spine and an arc to front panel, amateur taping to reverse. Still, a lovely, bright copy of Allinson's autobiographical novel, unusual, especially in the rare Enid Marx dust jacket. Very good/ good+ With a printed dedication to her partner Judith Wogan, am actor and owner of Grafton Theatre, London. One of only 1210 copies. Francesca Allinson (1902�1945) was a folk musician with roots in the labour and pacifist movements. A polymath and multi-stringed creative, she was also a puppeteer, conductor and historian of English folk songs. In a sorry later parallel with her publisher, Allinson drowned herself in the River Stour in East Grinstead in 1945. Like Allinson, Enid Marx (1902-1998) was a multitalented artist engaged by vernacular forms (as well as industrial ones). Celebrated for both her book and textile designs, the latter for London Transport, she was a contemporary of Edward Bawden, Barnett Freedman, Barbara Hepworth and Eric Ravilious at RCA. Woolmer 404