Northanger Abbey; and Persuasion
Price: $27,500.00
Hard Cover. London: John Murray, 1818. First Edition. Very Good.
Volumes I and II printed by C. Roworth, Bell-yard, Temple-bar; volumes III and IV by T. Davison, Lombard-street, Whitefriars, London. Four volumes. With "Biographical Notice of the Author" by Jane Austen's brother, Henry Austen, at the beginning of Vol. I. First edition, with half-title page to Vol. I, Vols. II-IV lacking half-titles. One of 1,750 copies. Finely bound in contemporary marbled paper-covered boards, turn of the century tan spines to style, spines lettered and ruled in gilt, and compartments decorated in blind. Very good set, with boards scuffed, corners rubbed to boards, clean and bright spines, some signatures slightly protruding but sturdy within spine block, spotting to pages, some damage to fore edge of half-title page in Vol. I, penciled annotations dated 1921 to pp. 163-164 in Vol. I, staining to margins of front matter and pp. [1]-161 of Vol. II, contemporary ownership signature by A. G. Stevenson dated in the year of publication, 1818, to title pages, I. B. Stewart, Delliefure [Scotland] ownership inscription dated 1921 to front fly leaves. Overall, a fantastic set of two beloved Jane Austen novels. Gilson A9. Published together six months after Jane Austen's death, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion are, interestingly enough, her first and last novels, both of which are set in Bath. Northanger Abbey, a satire featuring a young woman with a penchant for Gothic novels, was Austen's first completed work and was originally to be published under the title "Susan." In contrast, Persuasion, the story of two sweethearts' second chance at love, was a mature work, which Austen began shortly after completing Emma (1815). Jane Austen (1775-1817) is well-known for the social criticism she weaves into her novels, using irony and realism to highlight gender roles in marriage and society. The novels that Austen published within her lifetime referred to her, the author, anonymously, her only identifier being her gender and the other books she had written. It was only upon the posthumous publication of Northanger Abbey and Persuasion that a biographical note written by her brother identified Austen as the author of her first four novels, which have since earned their place as cornerstones of British literature. Item #JA039
