Sylvie and Bruno. (Offered with) Sylvie and Bruno concluded.
London: Macmillan and Co., 1889, 1893. Two volumes. 8vo. xxiii, [i], 400 pp., plus 3 pages publisher’s advertisements and a “Specimen page” from Alice’s adventu. FIRST EDITIONS. Laid into Volume II is a printed leaf entitled “Advertisement” which is an announcement from Carroll dated Christmas, 1893. With 46 illustrations by Harry Furniss in each volume. Each frontispiece with tissue guard. Original publisher’s red cloth, gilt illustration on each over, title in gilt on spines, which are both slightly darkened, all edges gilt. Overall a fine set. Item #18558
First editions. These are the last full-length novels by Carroll during his lifetime. Sylvie and Bruno is more of a social novel treating many of the Victorian-era issues such as morality, religion, and society in general.
“There is hardly any plot: Sylvie and Bruno, after living with a Warden, Sub-Warden, Professor, Beggar, Gardener, Uggug (the young artist) and others, are conducted by the Gardener into Elfland, ride on a lion, visit Dogland, and so on.” The second part is written in the same style as the first, being in fact a succession of scenes with slight connexion or sequence, such as Bruno’s lessons, fairy music, Bruno’s picnic, the Professor’s lecture the pig-tale. There is more of serious tone than before, and some real tragedy ... but the humour is well sustained ... The preface is of great interest, for Dodgson defines the limitations under which he conceives of fairies, their powers and forms, and of psychical states of huan beings, showing how carefully chastened his apparently riotous imagination was.”
The books were poorly received, as commentators deigned that the stories and humor were not typical of Carroll.
In the laid-in advertisement, Carroll describes his annoyance at the illustrations of the 60th thousand of Through the looking-glass: “most of the pictures have failed so much, in the printing, as to make the book not worth buying”. He therefore begs owners to return them for exchange.
Williams, Madan, Green, 217; 250 (and 249 for the single-leaf advertisement).
Price: $2,150.00