The Hunting of the Snark by Lewis Carroll, Deluxe Limited Edition, 170 of 395

The Hunting of the Snark by Lewis Carroll

Illustrated by Henry Holiday

Deluxe Limited Edition, 1981, 170 of 395

Signed by Roderick Stinehour, Martin Gardiner, Charles Mitchell, and Selwyn Goodacre

Includes Separate Suite of Illustrations

FINE Condition

This is a rare deluxe limited edition of "The Hunting of the Snark” published by William Kaufmann, Inc. in cooperation with Bryn Mawr College Library in 1981 with a limitation of 395 copies this being number 170. The best summary and review that I uncovered was from an anonymous source, “'One of the most unusual poems ever written, "The Hunting of the Snark" is the uncontested masterpiece of nonsense verse. The verbal richness and flexibility of the English language are exploited to the utmost in this riotously funny, formally perfect, and delightfully absurd narrative poem about a strange assortment of characters out to hunt a fearsome creature known, among other things, for its habit of getting up so late that it breakfasts af five-o'clock tea and dines on the following day. No review can do justice to a work as original and extraordinary as this one, written more than a century ago to entertain Victorian children, but read now mostly by grownups. This is the very pinnacle of British humor, soaring far above even Monty Python's most inspired moments...Gardner's annotations and introduction set the stage for the reader, putting the composition of the poem in its proper context in Victorian England, and in Lewis Carroll's life. And as with "Annotated Alice," the annotations are fascinating and amusing in their own right.'

Measuring approximately 11” by 8.5”, the book is bound in quarter red quarter leather and linen (buckram boards) with a gilted spine and matching endpapers. The book comes with the original shellcase, together with an extra suite of forty-four plates, loose in a portfolio and suitable for framing. Extensive archival research has uncovered original drawings and the different proof states of the plates. The Introduction was written by Martin Gardner together with a Preface by Lewis Carroll. 'The Annotated Snark' by Gardner provides commentaries on the text, a bibliography of Snark editions, and even a listing of Snark clubs. A final section delves into the history of illustrations to the Snark, including a few sketches by Lewis Carroll. The book was designed by Roderick Stinehour of the Stinehour Press, and is signed by Martin Gardiner, Charles Mitchell, the author of the essay on Holiday, Selwyn H. Goodacre who wrote the sections on the illustrations and the bibliography, and Roderick Stinehour. This is copy 170 of 395 copies.

Originally in shrinkwrap, the edition was opened in order to take photographs of the contents. Everything is in FINE condition.

Numerous photographs of the shellcase, the book, the signature and limitation page, the portfolio of illustrations, and some of the artwork from the book appear below. Please note that although the photographs appear digitized as thumbnails, they are viewable in the photo viewer by clicking your mouse on the thumbnail.