NO REST FOR BIGGLES 1^ST EDITION 1956 VERY GOOD

NO RESERVE – YOU WIN THE BID & IT’S YOURS

Payment is in £ sterling or U.S. $. CHEQUE PREFERRED but PayPal is accepted.

GENERAL CONDITION EXCELLENT! The PAPERCOVER IS PRICE CLIPPED, shows some wear top and bottom, and is foxed and aged. The case & papers; THERE IS CRUSH damage top right front board corner – (see pic) but, though aged, it is otherwise as new – see detail below.

PAPERCOVER – Take a real close look at the pic…

Okay, there is some natural aging. The rear white paper of the cover is barely foxed (oxidized) with age. It is price clipped on front flyleafs. The top and base are worn; see detail below & pic.

The top of the spine is worn, but it is intact WITHOUT CHIPPING. Most of the wear can be seen in the pic. However, THE TOP EDGE OF THE SPINE IS NOT AS IT APPEARS IN THE PIC! In fact it is complete and largely retains its ink surface to the top edge which is almost entirely intact. There is a small crease split ¼in down above the A & I in CAPTAIN. The wear is white at the top of the spine folds top left 1/8in down X ¼ MAX: top right same with patchy wear down to ¼in.

Translate: excellent but not Mint.

That’s it – amazingly good.

The base of the spine is intact bar one chip (1/16in up X 1/8) below the N in STOUGHTON. The base is white worn across the full width (see pic) 3/16in up. The base is TAPE REINFORCED on the rear. The  that’s it; VERY GOOD.

Otherwise the spine is excellent in all respects. The folds are white line worn but that is all. The rear is clean and untorn – but there is a TAPE REINFORCER at the base.

The top front and back have horizontalish creasing, but this is light; white paper is exposed on the front top in two VERY (pin end) fine crease marks 1 in (these do show in the pic) top left by the spine. The top right is surface worn (NOT CHIPPED) ¾in across from the flyleaf fold extending down ½in in a triangle (see pic). The appearance of chipping IS AN ILLUSION.

THIS CORNER IS WHERE THE BOOK HAS BEEN DROPPED. Or thrown – my guess is a boy owned it once; just a guess – don’t take me to court for sexism or ageism. His sister must have ducked out of his bedroom and the wall was in the way of it landing in the garden. The effect of this on the CASE – see below.

 The top of the front and rear both show rolling where the paper has rolled over the boards. The top of the paper is lightly aged.

The bottom front and back are almost entirely intact. The WORST first. The back bottom right of centre: a chip – this is the worst feature of the papercover – ¼in up X 5/16 across: this is an inverted V chip. The rest of the back base is intact with light rolling over the boards and some aging. The base of the flyleaf fold is THIN TAPE REINFORCED – a nice job, though I dislike tape. I suspect that the tape used throughout is INVISIBLE TAPE.

The front base has horiztonalish light creasing (see pic) with a vertical crease split (curved on the pic – actually the pic really shows it TOO WELL; the reality isn’t so white). It extends up 3/8in but no paper is missing. This crease split is THIN TAP REINFORCED. The flyleaf front crease at the bottom is lightly chipped 1/16in up. The flyleaf crease is fold lined very finely. It is quite clean.

 The front is OTHERWISE excellent. Nothing; no chips etc.

The back is dirty. There is a 5/8in diameter LIGHT tea? stain mark on the below centre right. Otherwise the back is nice and clean and clear. VERY GOOD.

The rear flyleaf is intact with a lightly-dirty horizontalish bend at the top. The base is similar. The flyleaf fold is creased, foxed or dirty.

The front flyleaf IS PRICECLIPPED with some LIGHT folding at the top. The flyleaf fold is creased. The flyleaf is very lightly aged with all (NONE PRICE) inkwork complete and nice. NOTE the top left corner is crush marked to match both the Case and the top right front. The folding (it does show on the pic) extends down the flyleaf fold 7/8in and across the top ½in in a rough triangle. No paper is missing. Pity that the wall was there and not the sister; less damage to the book. 

BE AWARE OF THE REINFORCING TAPE. If you wish to retain or replace it…

BUT THAT’S IT! A VERY GOOD papercover.

ON THE TAPE REINFORCERS: I don’t like tape myself. My instinct is to remove it and this can be done with care. A warm iron and brown paper perhaps? However, the existing damage would then need support. Invisible tape or a paper repair using wood glue could be done. But then, isn’t that what’s already on? Hence, I resist my instincts and accept tape as part of the history of the book, only fixing it (or getting it fixed) when necessary. (End of advice column for beginners.)

The professional quality papercover thin plastic protector will come with the book.

CASE & BOARDS

THE SPINE is EXCELLENT with NO chipping at top and bottom. Horizontal crease at the very bottom – from manufacture? where it’s stood? There is no crushing its more a crease. NO fading top/bottom; ALMOST as new.

THE FRONT: Take a look at the red top right corner on the pic. This is the worst aspect of the book.  The book has clearly been dropped/thrown at a sister (sadly it missed). The effect is 5/8in across X almost 1in down. Nothing is missing but the board was crush damaged – as you can see. Otherwise the front is as new – just Old Age. The lettering is clear, sharp & complete.  The cloth is immac.

THE BACK – see front; except slight crushing (if you look hard in the right light) top outer corner. Given the front board damage that is very good. Cloth immac.

THE PAPERS

THE ENDPAPERS are intact, original with even foxing.

The front & rear endpapers are complete, clean and intact. There is, of course a

FIRST ED 1956

top centre in pencil.

FRONTISPIECE – there is a FULL COLOUR frontispiece: crease top left corner on the white. The illustrations are FULL COLOUR, ALL present and intact.

The TITLE PAGE is present and intact. The rear confirms that this is a FIRST EDITION; it says –

THE CHARACTERS IN THIS BOOK ARE ENTIRELY

IMAGINARY AND BEAR NO RELATION TO ANY

LIVING PERSON

First Printed 1956

MADE AND PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN FOR

HODDER AND STOUGHTON LIMITED, LONDON

BY C. TINLING AND CO., LET., LIVERPOOL, LONDON

AND PRESCOT.

THE PAPERS are complete intact and smell of glorious age. They are evenly foxed – with foxing marks on the paper edges & dirt – especially at the top.

OKAY; NOW FOR THE EFFECT OF THAT MISSING SISTER GRENADE THAT didn’t kill her or dent the wall, or land in the garden. I remember going through the pages when I bought this one checking to see how bad bad was. I was surprised. The pages didn’t escape completely, but the frontispiece, endpaper are affected just in the top corner. Go beyond that and if you look VERY HARD in the right light you can just make out light folding. But that’s it.

SUMMARY

THIS IS A CRACKING BOOK.

More Biggles books will be added.  I am not a dealer, but a collector who is getting rid of STUFF. In anticipated answer to more emails I have MORE BIGGLES books to go, some late Steeley, Worrals and Gimlet, plus some of the ‘Space’ W.E. Johns and yes these are mostly for the orf.

Payment is in £ sterling or U.S. $. CHEQUES PREFERRED but PayPal is accepted.

Postage is at Post Office rates: U.K. 1^st Class Recorded £2.80: U.S.A./Canada/Australia International Signed for Small Packet £7.50. For other destinations email me. If you want faster postage that is fine - if you cover the cost I will sort it.