Metroland [Otis Skinner Blodget's copy]

London: Jonathan Cape, 1980. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. First Impression ("First published 1980") of Barnes's first novel. Crown 8vo (197 x 125mm): 176pp. Publisher's steel-grey cloth, spine stamped in silver, grey end papers; black typographic dust jacket (priced-clipped) printed in metallic silver and white. Signed book plate of Otis Skinner Blodget (1930-2007), only child of actress and author Cornelia Otis Skinner, laid in. Virtually pristine and apparently unread, a very fine copy. Rees A1a. In 1980, after a prolonged apprenticeship (on staff at the Oxford English Dictionary, reviewing books for the Times Literary Supplement, and as literary editor of the New Statesman), Barnes published this short novel, a charming Bildungsroman centered on a young man growing up in London's northern suburbs (in 1956, Barnes's family moved from Leicester to Northwood, a suburb served by London Underground's Metropolitan line and thus the "Metroland" of his title), obsessed with France (where Barnes spent a year as an English teacher in Rennes), and his coming to terms with life. Winner of the Somerset Maugham award, given to an outstanding first novel. Filmed in 1997 with Christian Bale and Emily Watson. N. B. With few exceptions (always identified), we only stock books in exceptional condition, with dust jackets carefully preserved in archival, removable mylar sleeves. All orders are packaged with care and posted promptly. Satisfaction guaranteed. (Fine Editions Ltd is a member of the Independent Online Booksellers Association, and we subscribe to its codes of ethics.).