MARGOT FONTEYN.

UK,heavy,thick 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,4th imp. [Complete number line 4.] FINE-/VG. Familial donor's gift presentation inked inscrptn+date to half-title,and a price-clip to dw/dj. Bright,crisp,clean,matt,subject's contemporary b/w portrait photograph as Odette in Swan Lake,illustrated front panel of dw/dj,with capitalised gold-lettered title and white-lettered author name,matt,white spine/backstrip with subject's thumbnail b/w photograph ballet step pose as Princess Aurora in Sleeping Beauty, at its head,capitalised gold-lettered title - as front - black-lettered author name and capitalised,black-lettered publisher's name to foot of same,rear panel with subject's repeated but enlarged,full cover b/w photographic ballet pose from head of spine/ backstrip's thumbnail.Negligible shelf-wear,bumping, creasing to edges and corners – a 1" closed tear towards head of spine/backstrip with resultant,concomitant creasing which has a slight curl to along the rear,top edge of dw/dj - but no other nicks,tears or splits present. Top edges with minimal sporadic foxing 'spots,fore-edges bright,crisp and clean; contents bright,tight,clean,solid and sound - near pristine, with exception of very minimal, random foxing spots - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corner tips,appears unread,other than my own collation.Publisher's bright,crisp clean,corners with age-acquired gentle pushing,original plain black cloth boards with bright,crisp,blocked gilt lettered spine/backstrip,a gold coloured headband,and immaculate repeated b/w photographic stage ballet scene illustrated endpapers.UK, 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,ix-xvipp+1-654pp [paginated] includes illustrations list/table,Acknowledgements,a Prologue,36 chapters and an Epilogue,24pp contemporary, b/w biographical photographs in 3 blocks of 8pp apiece, between pp176/77,pp336/37 and pp464/65 respectively, Notes,a 7pp Bibliography,and an Index; plus [unpaginated] half-title+title pages,a dedication,Contents list/table the latter two with a blank verso each,and to the rear 2pp blanks. Visually the exterior appearance is acceptable,and even internally,the book is also in a near exceptional condition/ state of preservation and presentation for a book of its age. It is only the mainly exterior faults described that prevents a slightly higher grading.Despite them,it really is still a more than acceptable readidable example for its overall cleanliness and brightness. The legend of Margot Fonteyn has touched all those who have danced after her.Anyone who saw her perform remembers her genius.Yet,until now,the complete story of Margot's life has remained untold. In this definitive biograohy of the most famous ballerina in the world,novelist Meredith Daneman,herself a former dancer,draws an extraordinary portrait of Margot Fonteyn - dreamed into existence by the architects of British ballet: Ninette de Valois,Frederick Ashton and Constant Lambert. Carried to fame on a wave of wartime patriotism,it was Margot's sense of duty rather than ambition that proplelled her - yet her gifts were such that her pre-eminence would come to eclipse the careers of subsequent generations. This compelling account chronicles Fonteyn's early years: her intense connection with her mother,'Black Queen'; her lovers in bohemian '30s and '40s London; her conquest of New York and years of glory as a proma ballerina assoluta with the Royal Ballet,as well as her late-blooming renaissance with a new partner,Rudolph Nureyev; and her final years in Panama with her husband,Roberto Arias. Based on more than ten years of research,Daneman's vivid and insightful work reveals the tru woman behind the myth. Daneman herself won a scholarship from her native Sydney to the Royal Ballet School.As a student there she danced at Covent Garden,before joing the Australian Ballet for its inaugural season. She is the author of four novels: 'A Chance to Sit Down', 'The Groundling', Francie and the Boys', and 'The Favourite'. Please contact seller,because of the heavier weight of this item - 1.25Kg unpackaged,for correct shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! N.B. ALL buyers please note,that stocks' actual shipping/P+p costs are adjusted and any difference is refunded,after order's receipt and before the order's despatch,especially if the item(s) are offered either P+p included/FREE. ** N.B. US/Canada customers please be aware: US Standard AIRMAIL postage from UK to these destinations can now cost more than the price of any inexpensive book! If speed is not of the essence,then Economy rate is recommended - at approx. anything from a 1/3rd to 1/2 of the standard US AIR quote/rate - sometimes arriving sooner than the 42 days - but not always. **