THE SPORTING NOVELS OF R.S. SURTEES, BEAUTIFULLY BOUND AND ILLUSTRATED

SURTEES, Robert. The Novels. London; New York: Eyre & Spottiswoode; Charles Scribner's Sons, 1929-31. Twelve volumes. Octavo, contemporary three-quarter blue morocco gilt, raised bands, marbled endpapers, top edges gilt, uncut. $4500.

Lovely limited-edition set, number 31 of only 976 sets produced, richly illustrated with over 100 hand-colored plates after John Leech, Henry Alken, "Phiz," and others, and hundreds of black-and-white in-text illustrations. Handsomely bound in morocco with gilt sporting emblems by Stikeman.

Surtees' novels "deal mainly with the characteristic aspects of English fox-hunting society, but his vivid caricatures, the absurd scenes he describes, the convincing dialect, and perceptive social observation distinguish him from other writers of this genre" (Drabble, 950). This lavishly illustrated set is notable for the magnificent color plates after originals by Leech, "a pencil draughtsman without rival among English humorists," and Hablot K. Brown ("Phiz"), illustrator of many of Dickens' works, including The Pickwick Papers, whose title character was inspired in part by Mr. Jorrocks of Surtees' Handley Cross. Includes facsimiles of the original title pages for each novel. Sparrow, 202.

A lovely set in fine condition.