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The Worm and the Ring
by Burgess, Anthony
- Used
- Fine
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Fine/Dust Jacket Included
- Seller
-
New York, New York, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
London: Heinemann, 1961 First edition, first printing. Publisher's maroon cloth, spine lettered in gilt; dust jacket with illustration by John Rowland. A fine copy with previous owner's bookplate to front pastedown; in an unclipped dust jacket with very slight toning to the spine, light soiling to the rear panel, and a tiny tear to the upper front panel. An excellent, and extremely bright near fine copy. The Worm and the Ring, published in 1961, is set in Banbury Grammar School, the dreary provincial school Anthony Burgess taught at in the early 1950s. The book is structured after Wagner’s opera Ring Cycle. The plot follows a teacher in an unhappy marriage, and a young girl’s stolen diary which contains depictions of erotic fantasies about the headmaster of the school. The book was pulled from the market shortly after its publication because of a libel lawsuit, making first edition copies very rare. The suit was brought by the school’s secretary, Gwendoline Bustin, who had been written into the book as an unmarried gossip who lusted for the headmaster. Bustin’s suit was successful, and the revised book was released in 1970.. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Dust Jacket Included.
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Details
- Bookseller
- B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- AB005
- Title
- The Worm and the Ring
- Author
- Burgess, Anthony
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Fine
- Jacket Condition
- Dust Jacket Included
- Edition
- First Edition
- Publisher
- London: Heinemann
- Date Published
- 1961
- Weight
- 0.00 lbs
- Bookseller catalogs
- 20th Century Literature; Modern Firsts; Fiction; British Literature;
Terms of Sale
B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
~ All items are guaranteed as described. We recommend requesting pictures prior to purchasing. ~ Any items may be returned within seven days of receipt and in the same condition as originally sent. ~ We ship with FedEx, UPS and USPS. Please let us know if you prefer another shipping. ~ New York State are required to add 8.875% sales tax.
About the Seller
B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
Biblio member since 2006
New York, New York
About B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
Selling First Editions and Rare Books from all centuries. Specializing in 19th and 20th century literature, modern first editions, signed and inscribed books, early children's literature, and poetry.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Bookplate
- Highly sought after by some collectors, a book plate is an inscribed or decorative device that identifies the owner, or former...
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