Typhoon, and Other Stories
Price: $650.00
Hard Cover. London: William Heinemann, 1903. 1st Edition. Very Good.
First edition, first printing. One of 1,500 copies. Publisher's dark gray cloth, with an illustration of a lifebuoy surrounding the title lettering to the front board in gilt, spine lettered in gilt. Very good plus, with some light wear and rubbing to the extremities, light rippling to the panels, lacking the terminal publisher's catalog, spine lightly cracked inside the rear cover, otherwise sturdy and intact binding, former owners' inscriptions to the front endpapers, minor toning to the free endpapers, otherwise bright and clean interior. Overall, a pleasing and attractive copy. Wise 13. Typhoon is a collection of four short stories: "Typhoon," "Amy Foster," "Falk: A Reminiscence," and "To-Morrow." Each of the stories has a nautical setting and draws inspiration from Conrad's tenure in various merchant navies; "Typhoon," tells the story of a ship captain's struggle against the powers of nature. Additionally, Conrad's experience of exile from Poland manifests itself in the themes of isolation and migration found throughout the text, especially in "Amy Foster" and "To-Morrow." "Amy Foster" tells the story of an emigrated Pole adjusting to her new life in England, and "To-morrow" tells of the homecoming of an aging sailor's long-lost son. Similarly, "Falk" is about a tug-boat master whose dark secret prevents him from properly courting the woman with whom he is in love. Interestingly, the eponymous story "Typhoon" was originally published in a separate edition in the United States in 1902, but there was no English equivalent until 1912, making this its first appearance in book-form in England. Item #JC039
