My Early Life.
London: Thornton Butterworth Limited, 1930. First edition, first printing, first state, second binding state. Hardcover. This is the first edition, first printing, first state of Churchill's autobiography in the extravagantly rare dust jacket. My Early Life sold very well at the time and has seen a great many editions since, many of them collectible in their own right, but of course a premium attaches to first editions. Regrettably, the plum-colored binding of this edition proved especially vulnerable to fading, soiling, and wear; nearly all copies are considerably spine faded. Moreover, the contents proved quite susceptible to spotting. Condition is a challenge. Dust jackets are a true rarity. Whether because this popular book appears to have been widely read, or the thin, fragile jacket paper that easily brittles, only a precious handful of first edition dust jackets seem to survive.
This is one of those few, a bright copy retaining its damaged but nonetheless notably present original dust jacket. Bright copies in substantially complete dust jackets now command $ five-figure sums. This copy presents a rare opportunity to secure a jacketed first printing at a lesser price.
There are two states of the first edition, first printing, with either 11 or 12 Churchill titles in the boxed list of "Works by the same author" on the half-title verso. With 11 titles on the half title verso, this copy is first state. There were also a number of first edition binding states, bound in either a coarse or a smooth plum colored cloth, with the title stamped on the front cover in either three or five lines. This first edition, first printing, first state is the second binding state, denoted by five lines on the front cover. Per Cohen (A91.1.b, Vol. I, p.330) and our own experience, first state copies with a five-line front cover and smooth cloth are less common than those bound in coarse cloth. This is such a copy, bound in the smooth cloth.
The volume itself, in very good plus condition, is strikingly bright as only jacketed copies can be. The binding is square, clean, bright, and tight, modestly sunned only to a shallow strip at the spine heel, a faint, narrow line at the spine center, and an irregular triangle at the upper right spine head, corresponding to dust jacket losses. Bumped upper corners and wrinkling at the spine ends are the only appreciable wear. The contents are mildly age-toned but far less affected by spotting than normal; trivial spotting appears quite light and substantially confined to the text block edges. A striking illustrated bookplate is tipped onto the front pastedown. Tipped onto both sides of the front free endpaper and the following blank and the recto of the final free endpaper are clippings from original, contemporary newspaper reviews of the book. Tipped onto the rear pastedown is a contemporary, clipped, newspaper reproduction of a Churchill portrait.
The dust jacket's first and foremost virtue is mere survival. Condition is only fair. The jacket is fully split along the front joint, with losses to the upper two thirds of the joint, an irregular loss at the spine head to a maximum depth of 1.75 inches claiming part of the title print, and a shallow strip loss at the spine heel. The jacket spine is inevitably toned and also shows a horizontal split at the center. The front and rear faces of the jacket show irregular toning, the front face with significant loss at the upper corners, the rear face with lesser corner loss and a shallow strip loss at the top edge. Both flaps retain all of their print and unfaded color, but show minor loss to extremities. The jacket is protected beneath a clear, removable, archival cover.
One can hardly ask for more adventurous content than the non-fiction (well, mostly) between the covers of My Early Life, which remains one of the most popular and widely read of all Churchill's books. The factual experiences of Churchill’s early life compete with any fiction, and any liberties taken are true to the book’s wit, pace, and engaging style.
Reference: Cohen A91.1.b, Woods/ICS A37(aa), Langworth p.131. Item #008655
Price: $4,500.00