[The Swallows and Amazons Series].

£2,250 · Offered by Shapero Rare Books

complete set - signed by the author in 4 vols A much-loved set, signed by the author in Swallows and Amazons, Swallowdale, Winter Holiday, and Coot Club. Arthur Ransome (1884 -1967) wrote on many subjects, including reporting to the British Government on the Russian Revolution. However, he is most famous for this series of children's books, which follow a number of resourceful boys and girls as they sail, camp, and have adventures, both real and imaginary. In these, Ransome celebrated the outdoor activities he loved and the places in England, especially the Lake District, dearest to his heart. The sixth book in the series, Pigeon Post (1936), won the first Carnegie Medal for excellence in children's literature; however, its successor, We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea (1937), is widely considered Ransome's masterpiece. (Encyclopaedia Britannica) Mixed editions, signed by the author in 4 vols; 12 vols, 8vo; all illustrated, map endpapers in colour, large childish ownership inscriptions, erased ownership signatures to a few vols, scattered foxing, one illustration in Swallowdale loose but present; publisher's green cloth, titles to spines gilt, titles to upper covers in gilt to first 2 vols, else in blind, cloth rubbed and marked and faded to varying degrees, some spotting to edges; a well-read set.

• Binding: Hardcover

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