Moby Dick by Melville, Herman; Kent, Rockwell (Illustrator) - 1930

Princeton Review, 2000. Paperback. New. modern library edition. 851 pages. 7.75x5.00x1.50 inches.

Modern Library, August 1982. Hardcover. VG/Very Good. 1982 edition. used hardcover in a dust jacket. jacket is slightly worn about the edges, but with no tears and not price clipped. pages and binding are clean, straight and tight. there are no marks to the text or other serious flaws.

New York: Random House, 1930. First Edition Thus. Near Fine. First edition thus. xxxii, 822pp, [6]. Bound in publisher's original black cloth elaborately stamped in silver on the upper board and spine. Near Fine with silver stamping vivid and sharp. Bumped corners. Light foxing and soiling to textblock edges. Small bookshop inkless emboss on front front endpaper, contents lightly tanned with musty odor. A handsome copy of Melville's classic, illustrated by Rockwell Kent.

Tel-Aviv, Israel: M. Newman Pubilshing House Ltd., 1970. First Edition. Hardcover. Good cloth copy in a good if somewhat edge-torn (with some loss) and dust-toned dust-wrapper, now mylar-sleeved. Remains quite well-preserved overall; tight, bright, clean and strong. Physical description; 572 pages. Notes; First, Hebrew Edition. Rockwell Kent, Illustrator. Subjects; Herman Melville. Moby Dick. Hebrew translation. first edition.

New York: Random House, 1930. First Thus. Hardcover. Very Good. First edition thus. Publisher's black cloth binding stamped in silver. Near Fine with the silver stamping very sharp and bright; bump to bottom corner of front boards, pages toned, rear endsheet soiled. In a Very Good dust jacket with toning to the spine and chipping to the spine ends with short splits starting at the joints, rubbing to flap folds with several tape reinforcements made to the verso. A lovely example of Melville's classic illustrated by Rockwell Kent, with bright silver stamping and in a descent dust jacket.

New York: Random House, 1930. First Thus. Hardcover. Very Good. First edition thus. Near Fine with bump to top corner of boards, pages toned. Silver stamping rather bright and fresh, with just a hint of rubbing. Dust jacket with spine toned, a bit of chipping and loss, rubbed at folds, with tape and mending tissue repairs made from the verso with the front flap formerly completely detached and mended, else Very Good. A lovely example of Melville's classic illustrated by Rockwell Kent, uncommon with bright silver stamping and in the dust jacket.

New York: Random House, 1930. First edition thus. Near fine in very good jacket.. First printing of the Rockwell-Kent illustrated trade edition, with Melville's name omitted from the front cover in lieu of Kent's, a work that many consider Kent's masterpiece. A fine balance of philosophy and comedy like DON QUIXOTE but with epic Miltonic undertones, MOBY DICK was not only Melville's most ambitious work to date, but became one of his biggest flops. By his death in 1891, the book was out of print, and would have to wait until the 1920s for a critical resurrection, one solidified in no small part by this edition, beautifully illustrated by Rockwell Kent. Approached in 1926 by R.R. Donnelly to illustrate a classic of American literature for his Lakeside Press, Kent (very much in need of money) gladly accepted the commission, but eschewed more obvious choices in favor of the still relatively unpopular MOBY DICK. It proved to be an astute choice. Kent's art deco-influenced images perfectly captured… Read More

New York: The Lakeside Press, 1930. First Edition Thus. Near Fine/Very Good. First edition thus, limited to 1,000 copies. Three volumes in publisher's acetate jackets, in aluminum slipcase. Presentation copy signed by Rockwell Kent on the front free end paper of Volume I, "Inscribed with affectionate friendship to Putzie - Rockwell Kent, 1950." Volumes II and III bear Rockwell Kent-illustrated bookplates of Marie Luise Hinrichs. Near Fine. Narrow strips of sunning to spine cloth at ends, light rubbing to cloth at extremities and light abrasions to black topstains. Pages toned and with offsetting from illustrations. Acetate wrappers are wrinkled and shrunken with age, as is typical, and show a bit of chipping and edge wear, with some separation starting between the acetate and a paper flap on both volumes II and III; acetate on volume II with light staining. Aluminum slipcase is lightly worn, bumped at top and bottom edge. A stunning presentation copy, inscribed by Kent, and with bookplates designed… Read More