THACKERAY, William Makepeace.

£2,750 · Offered by Peter Harrington · No longer available

Vanity Fair. First edition in book form, handsomely bound. Thackeray's greatest work was his first book to bear his name on the title page and to win him reputation and fortune.The novel was serialized from 1847 to 1848 before being published in book form. Its immense success meant that the sheets were reprinted multiple times, and the early parts were already being reprinted in stereotype before serialization was complete. The many textual variations between the printings resulted in 210 variant readings by Shillingsburg's count. Given that variants both before and after stereotyping were not introduced in an orderly sequence, individual copies inevitably comprise a mixture of corrected and uncorrected sheets.This copy has the traditional points of first impression: first state title page, rustic type at the head of page 1, and the Marquess of Steyne woodcut on page 336. The point often given, "Mr. Pitt" (p. 453), is not indicative, as that reading was only changed to "Sir Pitt" from the second edition of 1853.

Found via Rare Books Intel, a search across rare-book dealers, auction houses and marketplaces worldwide.