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1HugoDumas
One of the key questions in collecting is do we replace existing leather books with DLEs? It's a no-brainier with Hugo and Dumas with Victorian illustrations ranging between 150 to nearly 500. After reading Crusoe, the Grandville illustrated edition is worth it; and I just bought it. Which brings me to one of my favorite books Great Expectations at $360 in 2 volumes. The DLE has only 24 illustrations. I looked at my handsome oversized Franklin edition with 27 illustrations by the great artist John MacLenan. Pretty much the quality of the B&W art in the DLE.
I love this book, but cannot justify replacing an already excellent illustrated edition with a very expensive set. What are your opinions, especially those who took the plunge with either this set or Tale of Two Cities (I am mystified why this small book is in 2 volumes also with a modest number of illustrations)?
I love this book, but cannot justify replacing an already excellent illustrated edition with a very expensive set. What are your opinions, especially those who took the plunge with either this set or Tale of Two Cities (I am mystified why this small book is in 2 volumes also with a modest number of illustrations)?
2astropi
I don't think you should go by number of illustrations. EP released a wonderful DLE Aesop's Fables (NOT the Detmold edition) which was in two volumes and originally published in the late 1700s! I could never actually locate an original (not for purchase, I just wanted to learn more about the original edition). Although it did not have a great deal of illustrations, I very much enjoyed the arguably rather "simple" illustrations and it was overall just a lovely lovely edition! Which I later traded with someone :)
3jroger1
>1 HugoDumas:
I wouldn't replace a book I'm happy with just to get a DLE. We've had some recent examples where the DLE simply replaces a Famous Editions issue (e.g., Ring Trilogy) or an LEC (e.g., Captain Cook) with the same illustrations. The paper and binding might be a little better but not enough to justify several hundred dollars. The most outrageous example is the recent Howard Pyle DLE of King Arthur, which actually looks inferior to the earlier edition.
When the choice is between modern illustrators, who are usually stingy with their illustrations, and the classic ones, I usually (but not always) choose the classic ones, provided of course that the reproduction quality is high.
I wouldn't replace a book I'm happy with just to get a DLE. We've had some recent examples where the DLE simply replaces a Famous Editions issue (e.g., Ring Trilogy) or an LEC (e.g., Captain Cook) with the same illustrations. The paper and binding might be a little better but not enough to justify several hundred dollars. The most outrageous example is the recent Howard Pyle DLE of King Arthur, which actually looks inferior to the earlier edition.
When the choice is between modern illustrators, who are usually stingy with their illustrations, and the classic ones, I usually (but not always) choose the classic ones, provided of course that the reproduction quality is high.
4treereader
Conversely, I wouldn't buy a DLE of something if I already have a good standard EP/FL/LEC/etc copy of it. In the case of the title in this thread (Great Expectations) I already have a complete Dickens set that I wouldn't want to break up or distract with the DLE version.
5astropi
3: You're confusing The Journals of Lewis and Clarke with Captain Cook. Also, it's important to point out that DLEs are often larger than other books, which seems to matter to people here :P
6jroger1
>5 astropi:
You're right about Lewis & Clark instead of Captain Cook and that the DLEs are sometimes larger, though not always as in the Howard Pyle set. There can be other differences too, but my point is why would you spend hundreds to upgrade if you're happy with what you have?
Speaking of the Captain, I recently picked up an as-new copy of a 1997 FS edition of his Journals for $45 on abe.com. It has 17 beautiful color plates and 37 black and white illustrations together with a modern typography that is a pleasure to read. I would have paid $580 to be a passenger on one of his cruises but not to buy his memoirs.
You're right about Lewis & Clark instead of Captain Cook and that the DLEs are sometimes larger, though not always as in the Howard Pyle set. There can be other differences too, but my point is why would you spend hundreds to upgrade if you're happy with what you have?
Speaking of the Captain, I recently picked up an as-new copy of a 1997 FS edition of his Journals for $45 on abe.com. It has 17 beautiful color plates and 37 black and white illustrations together with a modern typography that is a pleasure to read. I would have paid $580 to be a passenger on one of his cruises but not to buy his memoirs.
7astropi
6: If you're happy with what you have then that is good! However, some like all the bells and whistles. I'm limited financially, but I do want to get the Cook DLE. "127 views and portraits and 26 maps"! Freakin' awesome. Plus, I'm not really all that excited about modern typography. I like these books from the Golden Age of Bookmaking with all their nuances and idiosyncrasies!
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