Poetry and Plays and Music Scores

The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyan – Peter Pauper Press

A lovely little production by the superb Mount Vernon, Peter Pauper Press printed delightfully on rag paper.

The Edward Fitzgerald translation illustrated by Jeff Hill. No date but likely 1970′s

Unpaginated but 62 pages with 9 full page illustrations, the verses printed crisply within decorative borders. Decorated paper covered boards the design of which carries over to the dust jacket. Very good condition albeit a little ageing to the jacket.

The Rubaiyat should require no introduction .. every library should have several versions of which this a special one.

The Rubaiyat by the special Peter Pauper Press.

$40.00

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Rasmie’s Buddie [Shetlandic Poetry] – Haldane Burgess

This is the fourth edition of this most curios collection of “Poems in the Shetlandic” by Haldane Burgess illustrated by Frank Walterson.

Published in beautiful Lerwick, Shetland by the local publishing company. Octavo, xxii,104 pages including the useful if not essential comprehensive glossary of Shetlandic words at the end. Very good condition in a like dust jacket.

First published in the 19th century the work comprises forty seven poems which follow a very good biographical memoir of the poet by Manson and a preface by expert Lawrence Graham.

There are smatterings of English .. “The Shetland words are rather tough, – And there are folk you’d reach – Who’d like the “’Buddie” right enough; – But can’t make out the speech. – I have knocked about the world, – Seen and read a thing or two – And picked up some plain English, – Which I’m pretty sure would do”

But the fun in this work comes with the translation and the relaxing island style.

Shetlandic poetry – what a way in to a beautiful dialect ..

$35.00

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Covent Garden Drollery: Printed at The Whitefriars Press for the Fortune Private Press 1927

A seriously special book. Octavo, vi,2,123pages bound in quarter cloth over paper boards, in pictorial speckled paper dust jacket. Illustrated frontispiece, facsimile title from 1672 first, decorated with vignettes. A lovely reprint of the original work. Couldn’t be a better copy.

Subtitled .. A Collection of all the Choice Songs, Poems, Prologues and Epilogues, Sung and Spoken at Courts and Theaters, never printed before. Written by the refined’st Witts of the Age. And collected by A.B. With explanatory notes at the end. Edited by Montague Summers (1880-1948) author and clergyman, who wrote on the occult.

This book is numbered 342 of a limited number of 575 copies. All printed on English unbleached handmade paper … absolutely lovely paper.

Drollery from the past still amusing in the present and beautifully presented

$70.00

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Don Giovanni – Mozart [In English by Edward Dent]

A smashing little reference … a libretto [little book]. Published by the Oxford University Press in 1948. Perfect bond soft cover, xix and 72 pages.

Very good Preface by the translator describing the movement in language, so to speak, in Opera and the difficulties of good performance in English and German. The a good introduction to Don Giovanni, Voyager’s favourite.

The translator points out that the words are there to be sung not just read out and “if the reader discovers in these pages any line that they can call poetry, they may be sure that is has been stolen from some respectable – and, I hope, non-copyright author” …we will not tell!

Now we don’t have to watch the subtitles and miss the action!

Understandable Don Giovanni by Dent.

$20.00

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The Day of Fire [Suggested by the Life of Arthur Rimbaud] – James Ullman – First Edition 1959

First Edition published by Collins, London in 1959. Octavo, 638 pages. A little sign of age, dust jacket chipped at head, still a very good copy of a special book.

The author had been working on this book for a number of years and provides a nice foreword about Rimbaud, He thanks New Directions for quotes from their “A Season in Hell”, possibly Voyager’s favourite book.

No wonder the author invested so much time, Arthur Rimbaud was an extraordinary individual and apart from his poetry and writing led an extraordinary life, not always on the right side of the law.

Based on the life of Arthur Rimbaud and a colourful life that was.

$30.00

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The Blue Dahlia – A Screenplay – Raymond Chandler – First Edition 1976

Published by Elm Tree Books – Hamish Hamilton, London in 1976 a first edition. Produced from the only then existing copy of the screenplay used in the movie production kept in the University of California collection.

Large form octavo, v, ix, xxiii, 129 pages (the screenplay) plus 11 page appendix. Complete dust jacket … a near fine copy.

A well put together book with a lengthy Memoir “Lost Fortnight” by John Houseman and neat Editorial Note re anomalies in the script. After the screenplay, which is illustrated from movie promotional stills, an Appendix … Chandler on Hollywood; Movies made from Chandler’s Plays and Screenplays written by Chandler (almost as prolific as Graham Greene .. but not quite).

Many think Chandler the greatest crime writer of the 20th Century. Hollywood needed a script in a hurry for Alan Ladd to continue his rise. Chandler had a half finished book … the Blue Dahlia .. he was commissioned to adapt what he had complete the plot etc. He immediately hit a bout of writers block … his remedy was to write whilst blind drunk for a fortnight … hence the title to the memoir. He finished … it was a hit … he got sober.

Chandlers Dahlia wrapped up for Hollywood.

$60.00

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The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyan – Peter Pauper Press

Rasmie’s Buddie [Shetlandic Poetry] – Haldane Burgess

Covent Garden Drollery: Printed at The Whitefriars Press for the Fortune Private Press 1927

Don Giovanni – Mozart [In English by Edward Dent]

The Day of Fire [Suggested by the Life of Arthur Rimbaud] – James Ullman – First Edition 1959

The Blue Dahlia – A Screenplay – Raymond Chandler – First Edition 1976

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