CHURCHILL, Winston S.

£3,500 · Offered by Peter Harrington · No longer available

La Seconda Guerra Mondiale. (The Second World War.) First Italian editions, limited issue, the first two volumes only, inscribed by Churchill to his literary agent on the first blank of volume I, "Inscribed for Emery Reves by Winston S. Churchill, 1948"; numbers 12 and 13 respectively of 30 sets signed by the publisher. Reves was instrumental in promoting Churchill's pre-war international profile by the worldwide syndication of many of his prophetic articles during the late 1930s. Their association blossomed again when Reves negotiated the sale of the US rights for The Second World War, and purchased the international rights himself, selling serialization to 27 newspapers across the globe and securing book rights in 11 European countries. Churchill said of this feat: "I am sure that no one could have done it except Reves who buzzed around the world for nearly a year making contracts." They subsequently worked closely together on the book itself, Reves having what Martin Gilbert has described as "considerable editorial input". Mondadori, in keeping with both his anti-Fascist stance and his eye for commercial opportunity was one of the first to sign an agreement with Reves, and published just a week or so after Houghton, Mifflin put out Volume I in the USA, some three months ahead of Cassell's UK edition.The total print run comprised just 1,030 sets.

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