Great Contemporaries

by Winston S. Churchill

$1,000 · Offered by Biblio

First edition

New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1937. First edition, first printing. Hardcover. This is a superior, jacketed first U.S. edition, first printing, of Churchill's much praised collection of insightful essays about 21 leading personalities of the day - including the likes of Lawrence, Shaw, and, most famously, Hitler. While not perfect, this is certainly one of the best copies we have encountered. Condition is near fine in a very good plus dust jacket. The blue cloth binding is square, tight, immaculately clean, and unfaded, with sharp corners. We note only some wrinkling at the spine ends and a faint, irregular vertical crease to the spine cloth which, since it is not straight and does not extend the full length of the spine, we presume is an original binding flaw. The contents are improbably bright and crisp. The book feels unread. The red topstain remains vividly bright. The untrimmed fore edges are likewise improbably clean, showing not even any appreciable age-toning. Only the endpapers show transfer browning – ostensibly from the pastedown glue. The sole previous ownership marks are confined to the front pastedown and contemporary, from the first owner. On the upper front pastedown is an inked “X Mas 1937” gift inscription to “Sallie H. Gayley” and, on the lower front pastedown, the printed bookplate of “SALLIE HARRIS GAYLEY” featuring a quote from American author and poet Caroline Wells (1862-1942): “They borrow books they will not buy, | They have no ethics or religions; |

• Publisher: G. P. Putnam's Sons
• Year: 1937
• Edition: First Edition
• Binding: hardcover

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