FOUR DAYS WONDER

London: Methuen & Co., Ltd, 1933. First printing. Very good plus in very good jacket.. Inscribed first edition of this meta murder mystery novel by the author of the Pooh books, with a wonderful 10-line original poem by Milne to a close friend about how little he is paid as the author of the book. This copy is inscribed to Vincent Seligman, a close friend of Milne's with whom he carried on a decades-long correspondence, as well as regular visits for tea or playing golf. An author himself, Seligman dedicated his book OXFORD ODDITIES to Milne in 1923, one year before Milne was launched to fame as the author of WHEN WE WERE VERY YOUNG, the first Pooh book. The inscription reads: "When I ponder / On the beauties of Four Days Wonder / And realize / That this copy, which may cost him 7/6 (net). is his / Out of which, God willing, / I may get as much as a whole shilling, / Then I see that a murder / Has been made about Four Days Wonder, / And that in the case of a first-class book like this / the real sin is / In not offering it as a couple of guineas." The poem accurately reflects the price of the book upon publication (the original dust jacket price here shows "7/6 net"), and it also plays upon the subject matter of the novel: a murder mystery. An amusing inscription, of interest to book historians as well as Milne collectors. 7.5'' x 5''. Original orange cloth double-ruled in gilt, gilt-lettered spine. In original unclipped (7/6 net) brown typographic dust jacket. viii, 319, [1] pages. Inscribed by Milne with 10-line original poem on fly leaf; a pencil notation facing the inscription reads "[inscribed for Vincent Seligman]." Jacket with a few short closed tears repaired with tape on verso, touch of sunning to spine. Book with spine lean, faint spotting primarily to text block edges. Cloth fresh.