Richard Doyle's Journal, 1840

John Bartholomew & Son Ltd, in association with British Museum Publications, Edinburgh, first edition, 1980. Cloth, 4to, 27 cm,. xvii, 156 pp, ills. From the blurb: "Richard Doyle rapidly established himself in the public eye as an illustrator through his work for the newly-formed Punch. His early success there led to a commission, at only 20, to provide some of the illustrations for Dickens' Christmas Books. With more commissions of that sort and growing responsibilities at Punch, it was not long before he was recognised as one of England's principal illustrators. Even in their early, struggling days the Pre- Raphaelite brotherhood always set aside money to buy Punch for the sake of his work. This journal pre-dates, but also presages, his fame. Kept by Richard throughout 1840, when he was 15, it is largely a record of his daily life, but not purely - or even principally - a written record. The sketches are a crucial ingredient. Most are of quite 'ordinary', casual scenes, and interesting now for precisely that reason; a few are in rather a different key: those of Queen Victoria's wedding drive, for instance. But whatever the subject, the ability of the future illustrator for Punch, Dickens. Ruskin, and Thackeray, to name but a few, is abundantly clear. And as an informal, unselfconscious glimpse of life in early-Victorian London his Joumal, reproduced here in facsimile, is unrivalled." Introduction and notes by Christopher Wheeler. Very Good in dustwrapper.