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The Little Tales of Smethers: Available Copies

The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

The book has been read but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact and the cover is intact. Some minor wear to the spine.

240 pages. 7.80x5.08x0.59 inches. In Stock.

New copy - Usually dispatched within 4 working days. 306

BIC Classification: FC; FF. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 197 x 130. Weight in Grams: 270. . 2017. Paperback. . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland.

BIC Classification: FC; FF. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 197 x 130. Weight in Grams: 270. . 2017. Paperback. . . . .

In

Octavo hardcover (VG+) in d/w (VG+); all our specials have minimal description to keep listing them viable. They are at least reading copies, complete and in reasonable condition, but usually secondhand; frequently they are superior examples. Ordering more than one book will reduce your overall postage cost.

Lord Dunsany mixes reality with fantasy in this forgotten collection of modern detective stories. Some are macabre, others have a lighter and more amusing touch, but every story stimulates the imagination and reveals the acknowledged master of the short story at his very best. SMETHERS is a travelling salesman for Numnumo, who make a relish for meats and savouries. He shares a flat with an Oxford graduate called Linley, who fancies himself as a detective and to whom Scotland Yard is inclined to turn if they encounter a particularly challenging mystery. When a pretty young girl disappears and her lodger is suspected of murdering her, two bottles of Numnumo relish are the only clues, and Smethers is sent to gather more information . . . Amongst the hundreds of fantasy stories for which the Irish dramatist, poet and writer Lord Dunsany became deservedly famous there was one solitary little book of detective stories. Selected by Ellery Queen as an 'unequivocal keystone' in the history of crime writing, this quirky collection is a mixture of the masterful and the macabre, a book that lovers of detective stories and tales of the unexpected will want to savour.

Neuware - Lord Dunsany mixes reality with fantasy in this forgotten collection of modern detective stories. Some are macabre, others have a lighter and more amusing touch, but every story stimulates the imagination and reveals the acknowledged master of the short story at his very best.

1st Edition 1st Printing. Near VG; small stains on rear board and edge of spine. Very light foxing on page edges and endpapers. Otherwise a bright, tidy copy in tight binding. Lime green cloth with black lettering on spine. Used - Good. Good hardback (no dust jacket)

7.5 x 5", green textured boards, 232pp, spine ends bumped, extremities lightly worn, contents a bit toned but still a nice, clean copy in a rubbed and edge-worn, lightly soiled dustjacket. FIRST EDITION, Second State (green boards).

Collects 26 stories mixing fantasy and detective fiction. In Queen's Quorum 109. A first edition of Currey binding A (black cloth, spine lettered in gold), a later binding (Currey B) was green boards, spine lettered in black. Both free endpapers part-browned, a VG copy in a fairly good worn and torn (bright, unfaded) dustjacket.

First edition and first printing. Hardcover. 232 pages. A collection of 26 stories by Lord Dunsany. A near fine copy in green cloth boards with some slight tapping to the spine ends in a near fine price clipped dust jacket with some very minor wear.

THE LITTLE TALES OF SMETHERS, Jarrolds, 1952, first edition, first state black binding, light brown stain covered by front dust-wrapper flap on f.p.d., faint moisture stain to a small area of the r.e.p., ink number at base of r.p.d. near the gutter, else a vg/vg+ copy in like dust-wrapper. QUEEN'S QUORUM choice.

First edition, second state binding in lime green cloth, spine stamped in black, jacket by Val Biro. Contains 26 stories. London: Jarrolds (1952), 232 pages. Fine unmarked copy with sun fading at heel. VG Mylar protected jacket is price clipped and with some edge wear.

232 p. OU m. leichten Gebrauchsspuren, Seiten etw. nachgedunkelt; gutes Expl. Sprache: Englisch Gewicht in Gramm: 2100

[Modern Literature] FIRST EDITION, first impression, second state green cloth binding. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.232. Publisher's green cloth lettered in black to spine, illustrated dust jacket with printed price of 6/- to front flap. Toning to text-block with some spotting along top edge, slight rolling to spine, small very light brown mark to spine, toning to rear panel of dust-jacket. Very good. 'The Little Tales of Smethers' is a collection of 26 short stories, the first nine of which follow the detective Smethers. Some titles included in are 'Two Bottles of Relish', 'Once Too Often', 'The Lost Scientist', and 'The Shield of Athene'. Bleiler suggests that 'The Shield of Athene' is a particular highlight in the collection. Bleiler, 'The Guide to Supernatural Fiction', 591.

Octavo, green boards, spine panel stamped in black. First edition, second binding (apple-green boards). A collection of twenty-six stories including the macabre "Two Bottles of Relish" and eight other connected Smethers tales. Bleiler, The Guide to Supernatural Fiction 591. Schlobin, The Literature of Fantasy 902. Anderson I.90.a. Queen's Quorum 109. A fine copy in nearly fine dust jacket with mild wear at spine ends. (#159107)

Octavo, green boards, spine panel stamped in black. First edition, second binding (apple-green boards). A collection of twenty-six stories including the macabre "Two Bottles of Relish" and eight other connected Smethers tales. Bleiler, The Guide to Supernatural Fiction 591. Schlobin, The Literature of Fantasy 902. Anderson I.90.a. Queen's Quorum 109. A fine copy in fine dust jacket priced 6/- on the front flap. (#174535)

First edition, second state. Fine in second state green cloth-covered boards in fine, price-clipped dust jacket. Twenty-six tales each with the variety and originality of plot to not only stimulate the imagination, but also create a state of continuous excitement and anticipation. QUEEN'S QUORUM 109.

First edition, second state binding. (Currey). Octavo. Green cloth boards with black title to spine in illustrated dust jacket by Val Biro. 232 pages. Minor shelf wear, small stain on upper edge of text block, a very good copy in the original pictorial dust jacket, price clipped & very slightly soiled. A nice copy. Queen's Quorum No.109. Joshi & Schweitzer 1A.90.a.

First edition, first printing in second state green cloth binding. A Bleiler listed fantasy novel as well as a Queen's Quorum title. Dunsany (1878-1957) was "unquestionably one of the most important writers of heroic fantasy of the century; a writer of great originality and charm" (Bleiler). Octavo. Original green cloth, titles to spine in black. With dust jacket. An excellent copy.

Dust jacket: Original jacket by Val Biro. Slight rubbing to ends of spine and corners, otherwise excellent. Unclipped. Preserved in a removable jacket protector. Overall jacket condition is Very Good Plus. Book: First printing. First state binding of black cloth with gilt title to spine. Foxing to page edges. Endpapers with light tanning and very slight marking from the tape on an earlier jacket protector. Light staining to pages 148 and 149, text is otherwise very clean throughout. A Haycraft-Queen cornerstone. Includes the first appearance of the ever popular mystery 'The Two Bottles of Relish'. Overall book condition is Very Good. International postage will be less than the stated rate. Actual costs are Europe £12.00; USA £15.00; Oceania £16.00; Rest of World £16.00. A postage refund will be made after the order has been placed. Size: 5.25 x 7.5 inches (12.5 x 19 cm).

First Edition/Second State Binding with green cloth and black lettering (Currey state B); A Near Fine book in a Near Fine dust jacket with light rubbing to the board and jacket edges, a slight lean to the binding, mild chipping to the spine ends, and the lower corner of front flap clipped (price intact). SIGNED by Lord Dunsany's widow in 1958, indicating the book was from the Dunsany's personal library; the book was apparently given away after Dunsany's death. An exceptional copy of this title with the added enhancement of being Lord and Lady Dunsany's personal copy. Not remaindered, not price-clipped, not ex-library; in a protective Mylar cover and will ship securely wrapped in a sturdy box.