Rare books from Bromer Booksellers

London: Cyril Beaumont, 1918. Tijtgat, Edgard. Octavo. (iii), 16, (1+16)ff., frenchfold. From an edition of fifty copies, this is one of ten printed on chine and signed by the artist. This is the story of Little Red Riding Hood, with woodcut text and illustrations by Belgian artist Edgard Tijtgat. Sixteen illustrations, hors texte, appear in two states: color and bistre. Tijtgat's illustrations are bold and expressionistic in style, and also deceptively innocent: things do not end well for Red Riding Hood in Charles Perrault's moral and more sinister version of the tale. Floral motif on the endpapers and repeated throughout the book. Tijtgat is associated with the Brabant Fauvists, a Belgian movement focused on pure, bold colors and simplified lines, similar to the Fauves led by Henri Matisse in France. During World War I, Tijtgat set up his printshop in England, where this book was published. Light foxing to upper margins of a few pages, some faint offsetting from prints, short closed tear to spine… Read More

Kyoto: Geisodo Yamada Naosaburo, 1911. Seiho, Takeuchi. Small folio. Folding album consisting of twelve ink wash and color prints on thirteen sheets, each bearing Seiho's chop mark. One of the key figures of modern Japanese painting, Seiho (1864 - 1942) absorbed elements of European-style painting—Impressionism, in particular—and successfully fused them into traditional Japanese styles, especially those of the Maruyama-Shijo School. The present work, which is considered a masterpiece of Shijo artistry, clearly demonstrates this harmony between styles. Seiho was awarded the first Order of Cultural Merit in 1937. Two small holes on the front blank, else a bright, clean copy in original paper-covered boards, which show light edgewear and abrasions to front cover. Housed in a rough cloth folding case with bone clasps. (See Hillier, The Art of the Japanese Book, pp. 991-993).

London: David Nutt, 1914. First edition. From an edition of 1,000 copies, this is one of 200 in the sixth binding state. This was one of two binding states that were done by the Dunster House Bookshop in 1923 in Cambridge, MA when the remaining first edition sheets were sold off by Simpkin Marshall. Signed by Frost on the front endpaper, dated "Amherst 1924," and with a notation as to the name and location of the cottage in England where Frost wrote the poems for this, his second book. A fine copy in leaf-green cloth, gilt-titled. Book label from the Hampshire Bookshop of Northampton, MA on rear paste-down. (Crane A3, Binding F).

NY: Knopf, 1931. Second edition, third binding. This edition contains fourteen new poems, while dropping three from the original edition. The complete printing of the second edition consisted of 1,500 copies, which were bound over a period of thirteen years. This copy is inscribed by Stevens on a preliminary blank. The inscription reads: "The basis of poetry is response" and is dated "Sept. 14, 1943." If one could condense Stevens's particular approach to literary creation into a single sentence, this could certainly be it. For Stevens, the pursuit of the real in poetry -- his Supreme Fiction -- is rooted in its immediacy: "Part of the res itself and not about it. / The poet speaks the poem as it is, / Not as it was." Poetry, in Stevens's view, is language used in response to life as it is lived, making this an extraordinary inscription. Stevens signed very infrequently, and inscriptions appear even less often. As a basis for comparison, the Neville copy of this edition, which sold in 2004, was… Read More

1952. Holograph manuscript on two leaves of white wove, three-holed, loose-leaf paper measuring 9 1/2 by 6 inches. At the bottom of the second leaf, in Frost's hand, the work is inscribed "Robert to Fred" (i.e. Frederick B. Adams, Jr.). A life-long bibliophile, Adams was the director of the Pierpont Morgan Library from 1938-1969. This poem first appeared as Frost's Christmas greeting for 1952 and was not actually released until July 4, 1953; it was later published in Frost's last collection, In the Clearing. Adams's label on the front cover of his archival folder dates this manuscript to November 1952, and there are sufficient variant readings to suggest that Frost was still revising the poem when he presented these leaves to Adams. Of particular note is line 3, which reads: "That was to make the New World newly great"; in the published version, this was changed to "That should have made the New World newly great", removing at once the undertone of potentiality in Frost's stanza about the original… Read More

Paris: Jacques-François Chereau, 1747. Coypel, Charles-Antoine. Large folio. (1), (25)ff., plates. A reissue or reimpression published after the artist, Charles-Antoine Coypel, was named "Premier Peintre du Roi" in 1747; this series of twenty-five engravings was first presented as a deluxe portfolio in Paris, in 1724. The engravings were done after a series of paintings illustrating scenes from Don Quixote that Coypel had designed for a popular set of tapestries, which were woven continuously between 1714 and 1794. Coypel supervised the portfolio's production, and, according to the title page, the engravings were done by "les plus habiles artistes en ce genre." These artists included L. Surugue, F. Joullain, C. N. Cochin, and eight other engravers, who sign the plates. Coypel's depictions of scenes from Don Quixote differed significantly from previous illustrations of Cervantes's classic in that they were less focused on humor, and were more courtly and sophisticated, taking into account the… Read More

Adelaide, Australia; Westport, CT, 1952. Two typed letters, (3)ff., (2)ff., signed by Helen Keller, plus (1)ff. autograph note, signed, from Keller's assistant and companion, Polly Thompson., and a typed transcript of that note. As a world-famous speaker, author, and advocate for persons with disabilities, Keller traveled to more than forty different countries in her lifetime. These letters relate to a trip that she and Thompson took to Australia in 1948, as part of an international tour. The first letter, dated July 10, 1948, was written on stationery from the South Australian Hotel in Adelaide, and is addressed to Ewen Waterman, one of Keller's hosts during her stay in the city. Keller expresses gratitude to Waterman for the "unexpected, dazzling" birthday party that he hosted for her, "so full of warm Australian hospitality and delight!" She writes, "Really I felt like Cinderella riding to the King's palace in a coach and six. Not only did you honor my natal day, you graced it with the company of… Read More

Boston: Riverside Press, 1900. Allen, C.E.. Octavo. (iv), 92pp. Although not stated, this is one of 250 copies printed, of which 150 were for sale. Number 32 in the Young of Heart series, translated from the original French by Mary B. Richards. Illustrated with black & white images of the titular two cats by C. E. Allen. Laid into this copy are the original pen-and-ink drawings for all eight illustrations, and the cover, in addition to proofs for all illustrations except the cover. Not much is known about Allen, whose illustrations show great technical competence. A touch of offsetting to title page, else a remarkably fine and bright copy in publisher's green cloth, gilt, and with the original glassine dust wrapper. T.e.g.

(Watertown, MA): Anne and David Bromer, 1977. Kunikata-Cockram, Midori. (24)pp. The text is printed on Japanese paper with ornamentation in green. Wood engravings by Sarah Chamberlain, as her first miniature book commission. This is the first miniature book published by the Bromers. Midori Kunikata-Cockram captures the whimsical nature of the text, which was the first English poem for children intended for sheer amusement. The front and rear boards of her designer binding are covered with parchment, on which the artist has hand-drawn the insects and small animals attending the feast amongst a pattern of vines and flowers in crimson ink. Delicate onlays of black morocco create the silhouette of a vine climbing up the book's burgundy morocco spine. Inside, endpapers printed with oak leaves and cut-out leaves with hand-drawn shading in pastel reference the oak tree in the poem, beneath which the revels were held. Housed in a suede-lined box, the exterior of which is covered with paper hand-tooled in a… Read More

Petersham, MA: Lone Oak Press, 2005. Esser, Mark. Oblong quarto. 89pp. From an edition of fourteen deluxe copies and 70 standard copies, this is one of five deluxe copies chosen to be specially bound for the international traveling exhibit "InsideOUT: Contemporary Bindings of Private Press Books," and as such, it does not include the extra suite or block as listed on the colophon. The exhibit, organized by British binding society Designer Bookbinders, married the works of nine private presses with the artistry of 59 binders from the United Kingdom and the United States. The text consists of selections from Henry David Thoreau's journal, which describe the vernal pools of New England that serve as breeding habitats for all manner of amphibians. Accompanying the text are twenty-eight engravings by Lone Oak Press founder Abigail Rorer, some of which are hand-colored by the artist. The detailed drawings brilliantly capture the teeming life and varied textures of these small pools. The book was designed… Read More

(N.p.: Michael Mar Press, 1977. Small quarto. (16)ff. One of twelve copies, hand-produced by jewelry designer Michael Dorsa and bookbinder Margaret Rhein. With twelve color illustrations. The text and images were both from an original work written and drawn in 1964 by Mike Dorsa and Tom Warner, age nine. In the story, the turtles Betty and Brickred defeat the deadly monster on Turtle Mountain, which is "said to be 6 feet tall and to shoot poisonrings that make you die for 66 years." After tossing the body in the lake, the turtles and their offspring celebrate accordingly with a picnic and fireworks. Corrections to the text have been marked in red pen, adding punctuation and fixing spelling, and providing an editorial eye to a work of youthful legendary genius. This copy is inscribed in pencil to papermaker Douglas Howell: "The inspiration required to get this project together came from my meeting with you, Douglas Howell. Thank you, Michael Dorsa." Howell was instrumental in the revival of hand… Read More

Sierra Madre, CA: Bernhardt Wall, 1946. Wall, Bernhardt. 34pp. Number one of 200 copies, signed by Wall, who etched the entirety of this book, including the text and illustrations, and printed and bound the edition. The book is printed in several colors of ink on a variety of papers and includes numerous illustrations of Lincoln and historical elements around his famous Gettysburg speech. The book is accompanied by two letters from Wall to his close friend Natalie Williams, both bearing color etchings by Wall and in their original envelopes. Lincoln's Gettysburg Speech and Addresses of Abraham Lincoln, published by the Kingsport Press in 1929, are referenced in the letters and were included in the envelopes when they were mailed. The first letter, 2ff., dated September 25, 1939, discusses Wall's recent marriage (his second) to a widow, Doris Morey. He talks about his reasons for remarrying and how Doris had helped him in his home and work. He gives his thoughts on the progress of his Following… Read More

Esslingen: J. F. Schreiber, 1920. An unusual unused booklet with "magic leaves," which reveal a picture when lightly passed over with a pencil. For obvious reasons, it is especially rare to find such as this with a clean interior. Oblong 32mo. (8)ff. Bound in pictorial wrappers featuring an old-fashioned horse and buggy and the caption "Schnellzeichner". Minor soiling to exterior, else fine.

East Barnard, VT: Hand and Spoon / Diane Meaker, 1971. Meaker, Diane. Oblong 48mo. (9)ff. One of twelve copies. Inscribed by the artist at the front flyleaf, "for Georgia with love/from Diane". Meaker's four glossy prints pair color spectrums and repeated images of stars, flowers, and menorah-like trees with the lines of Sandburg's hopeful poem. Some natural offsetting of from prints onto pages, minor toning to exterior, else near fine in plain wrappers.

London: Frederick Warne and Co, 1905. Potter, Beatrix. First edition. Potter's comforting tale of a young girl who finds both her pocket handkerchief and a friend in the maternal hedgehog, Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle. Color illustrations throughout offer agrarian quaintness paired with pastoral adventure, a combination common to Potter's stories. Benjamin Bunny and Peter Rabbit make cameo appearances, and Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle is herself a sort of cameo, since Potter cared for a real-life hedgehog of the same name. The other main character, the girl Lucie, is derived from a happy meeting between Potter and a vicar's daughter while on vacation in Cumbria. Bound in brown paper over boards with titling embossed in silver and Potter's illustration of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle inset at center of upper cover. Slight splay to upper board, faint foxing at edges of text block, else near fine. In extremely scarce original glassine dust wrapper, somewhat chipped at corners and with few instances of mild staining. Laid in is a gift… Read More