The Great Gatsby, LE (10.iv.2025)

Regarding the upcoming Limited Edition The Great Gatsby, further details of the production are as follows:

Featuring a new, exclusive afterword by bestselling author Chuck Palahniuk and 13 full colour, full page illustrations by award-winning illustrator Yuko Shimizu, this delicately crafted edition captures the dazzle and desolation of the Jazz Age, diving into the shadowy corners of Jay Gatsby’s world.

This edition is designed to be treasured, with a leather cover blocked in gold foil, gilded edges, Sirio Pearl Cocktail Blue Moon endpapers, and a ribbon marker, all beautifully presented in a clamshell box. The first edition text will be typeset in LTC Kennerley and printed in black and gold inks on Dolce Vita paper. Each book will include a limitation label signed by both Shimizu and Palahniuk.

Yuko Shimizu‘s illustrations will be showcased in the upcoming exhibition, “The Art of Folio” at the Society of Illustrators in New York, opening on May 1, 2025 and running until July 12, 2025. She will be one of 91 artists featured in this joyous celebration of Folio book illustrators.*

PRODUCTION DETAILS

1. Limited Edition: 500 copies
   
2. Full bound in goatskin leather blocked in two foils with an exterior design by Yuko Shimizu
   
3. Set in LTC Kennerley with Inbox Thin as display
   
4. 236 pages of text printed on Dolce Vita Ivory paper
   
5. Printed in black and gold with 13 full color, full page illustrations
   
6. Sirio Pearl Cocktail Blue Moon endpapers
   
7. Gilded on 3 edges
   
8. Head and tailbands
   
9. Ribbon marker
   
10. Limitation label printed letterpress
    
11. Presented in a clamshell box, covered in cloth which is screen-printed and foil blocked with a design by Yuko Shimizu
    
12. Display box lettering commissioned from Atelier Olschnsky Grafik und Design OG, Vienna
    
13. Printed and bound by Graphicom, Italy
    
14. 246 x 156 mm | 9.69 x 6.14 inches
    

... and I also see a price listed: $500, as below:





Source:
https://theartsshelf.com/2025/02/21/the-folio-society-launches-100th-anniversary...

*On the subject of the exhibition "The Art of Folio:"

The exhibit will be held across two floors. The ground floor will showcase the contemporary artists working with Folio today, including the dreamscapes of Sam Weber (Dune), the cutting-edge designs of Anna and Elena Balbusso (The Handmaid’s Tale), as well as Jamaal Barber (The Underground Railroad), and Mu Pan (Monkey). Among more than 100 artworks arranged thematically by genre, visitors can enjoy the fantasy realms of A Wizard of Earthsea and Game of Thrones as well as contemporary historical fiction such as The Color Purple and Wolf Hall.
...
Also, on the ground floor, in honor of 100 years since the first publication of The Great Gatsby a special area will be dedicated to Folio’s new edition with a designated space for original artwork and a more detailed look at the construction of a Folio Society book. This edition features illustrations by award-winning New York-based artist Yuko Shimizu.

Source:
https://www.finebooksmagazine.com/fine-books-news/folio-society-celebrates-decad...

Best guess on the size of the enclosure? If the book is 25cm, visually I’m thinking between 30-32cm for the case?

$500 is a slight surprise since it implies £400-ish in the UK. The materials on this sound much better than some recent LEs in the £400 range…

>2 cyber_naut: Hmm, I think I previously guessed the solander at 13–14 inches high, but I might amend that down to ~ 324 x 234 mm | 12.75 x 9.2 inches.

What's the betting on this LE?
Perdido Station took 42 hours to sell out. The Hobbit tokk 15 minutes.
How long will the Great Gatsby last?

>4 wcarter:

Not like it hasn’t had many prior treatments. I don’t see it being super-fast, but the better quality materials may prove to be a draw.

>6 LT79: I think it's a separate release to the GAN survey as the initial email sent out advertising it stated it was to celebrate the 100 year anniversary since it's publication.

>7 assemblyman: That's right - Gatsby wasn't a GAN finalist. They were Moby-Dick, Huck Finn, Grapes of Wrath, Lonesome Dove and Gravity's Rainbow.

>4 wcarter: I think the lower price point, leather binding and Shimizu art will propel this to sell out faster than Perdido, so I'll go with 12 hours just to throw a number out there.

Maybe this will be one that doesn't have an SE (sorry, Core Edition) ?

>11 red_guy: You could be right. The previous SE is still selling on the website. Another Lord of the Rings scenario.

>11 red_guy: If it sells well, I suspect it will, but I don't think it's one of those situations where Folio is re-using the same book block for the SE.

I like the sound of the goatskin binding. I'll go with HonorWulf's guess (post 10), around 12 hours. I already have a very nice Folio version of Gatsby so this one won't be tempting me.

>14 folio_books: That's surprising Glenn. I thought this LE would be something you would be tempted by.

>15 assemblyman:

A couple of years ago I would have been, Brendan. The problem these days is a severe lack of bookshelf space. Non-Folios have been banished to the loft or the charity shop and I still haven't managed to shelve the two SEs I bought from the Spring catalogue. I'm having to severely slash SE and LE purchases and it is causing some heartache, I can tell you.

The Library of America recently published an Annotated 100th Anniversary Deluxe Edition of Gatsby. Unlike most LOA books, this one is full size and, in addition to the copious annotations, is illustrated with numerous period photos and artwork, a scholarly introduction, and a selection of letters between Fitzgerald and his editor. For those who want to do a deeper dive into the Jazz Age and/or are not inclined to spring for the FS LE, this may be a good option. (About $30 on Amazon.)

>17 amp123: That does look superb.

>17 amp123: Thank you -- just ordered this. Looks delightful.

Thinking this one may be my first LE purchase in a while. If the USD 500 price translates to £350-ish in the UK I’ll probably bite.

>20 cyber_naut:

I suspect it won't be sub-£400, given the full-leather binding, but always possible, I suppose.

Some screenshots from the below Instagram video of Yuko Shimizu discussing The Great Gatsby:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DIJkfjrNF7e/

She's right, it's canonical across high schools in the USA. Also, it really is a wonderful novel, I've read a few times and it doesn't get old.

Aside: could not get into the 2013 movie. Really wanted to like it, but using hip-hop and other contemporary music to a story that takes places during the Jazz Age is just dumb in my opinion. Again, I wouldn't call it a "bold move" or anything like that, just dumb (no offense intended to anyone that enjoyed the film).

>21 stubedoo: I was working backwards from the USD 500 mentioned in the OP. Comes to £390 at straight exchange rate and assumed the US premium might bring the UK price down to around £350.

Will find out in a few days I guess but I agree it's 'cheaper' than I'd expect given some recent LE's price/materials propositions.

And the link is now up!

£350 UK | $500 US | £400 ROW

https://www.foliosociety.com/uk/the-great-gatsby-limited-edition.html

Wow, a £350 UK price tag, despite not being a substantial volume in terms of page count, for a full goatskin binding of those dimensions it's is almost vintage level LE pricing. I also notice they're now giving dimensions in metric, a little ironic that the first time they're apparently doing so is for an American title.

At that price along with Yuko Shimizu illustrating it I’m throwing my bet in now that it'll be gone in around 6 hours.

I think this is the first time I've seen a numbered copy on the limitation label in the website photos. I wonder if someone will receive the famous number 4?

>27 cyber_naut:

Wow, sensible pricing! I wasn’t expecting this. Well done, Folio.

A mere 11% surcharge (of unexplained origin) for North America. Lowest I have seen in a long time. Of course that surcharge was significantly higher before the dollar began crumbling...

>29 astropi:

Don’t they have to collect import duty for the USA?

>30 stubedoo: There is no import duty for books in the U.S.

>31 coynedj:

Ahh, OK. I know with most of the ROW countries, the price uplift is just the GST/VAT/duty.

I guess, as has been discussed before the uplift for the US is probably down to increased costs associated with product rejection.

>32 stubedoo: It has been discussed as often as it has been ignored. Which is to say, quite often.

This is a great looking edition - will absolutely be picking this up at $500

Was camping at the page and noticed it went live at 3:55 and managed to snag one early though I doubt there'd be any semblance of numerical order.

Stunning edition. Got my copy

Does look lovely. Ordered.

Fyi, the counter on the site isn't updating in real-time. There's about 312 copies left after 15 minutes.

266 left after half an hour

160 after an hour

Forgot this was happening but checked my emails and got myself a copy, was at 109 when I ordered.

Eleventy-one left now.

Edit: crossed posts.

I really like the overall package though I am not tempted to get it. The standard version is enough for me in this case. I am also a bit wary of the foil applied to LEs released in the last number of years. The tooling on my older LEs feel far more permanent and I don't feel as cautious handling them. I have no idea if its a different process used now to do it but it just looks different to me.

It's selling well with 63 left on the counter. Sixteen up on eBay already which I think is more than usual at this point. All very keenly priced of course.

Gone.

Edited:
I love the website counter. Now it's saying 11 left.

Bought mine when there was only 35 left probably sold out soon.

>43 assemblyman:

Sticking with my standard edition too. I like it very much.

Sold out pretty quick. A little over two hours. Wow!😮

Definitely a win-win. Hopefully, it encourages Folio to publish more editions with this quality and price point.

I missed it by a few minutes. I guess I can pick it up at a huge increase on the secondary market in a few days.

>46 folio_books: Yes I really like it too. It also seems like one of the few remaining books bound in buckram that FS still sells, which is a pity as I do like it as a book binding material.

Huge number already listed on Ebay

wonder what % of buyers are just doing it to re-sell

>52 howtoeatrat:

10% probably for resale within year, 40% purchased because they think it will likely go up in value over time and will never open it other than a quick check for faults on purchase, 50% because they genuinely want the book. It is the nature of artificial scarcity.

Since I live in Minnesota where F. Scott Fitzgerald was born makes it even more interesting. I plan on seeing the exhibit they have in Saint Paul at the Minnesota History Center which runs through May 31st.

>49 hamletscamaro: Could’ve picked it up at a huge increase on the secondary market even before it went out of stock lol.

>55 What_What: Yep it’s even ready to buy even if the seller hasn’t gotten the product in stock yet. 😂

I show six sold on ebay (USA) already.

Cheapest went for $583.65 + taxes and shipping (this was from UK and my estimated cost is $54!).

Most expensive went for $648.49 + taxes and shipping (also coming from the UK in this case).

Easily a $100+ premium, the same day as it sold from FS.

Received my copy today and initial impressions are very positive indeed.

Ordered slightly before the official launch and received a copy in the 300s so can confirm no change there in respect of earlier orders getting lower numbers!

The solander box is nice and sturdy and quite striking really. The only minor critiques I can think of are the lack of author/title on the spine (this feels like one made to be displayed front-on) and that the book insert inside feels a tiny bit flimsy. But I’m being picky with both of these points.

The book itself feels somewhat diminutive compared to the size of the box but, that aside, my copy appears flawless and is a nice size for reading. Lovely supple leather that smells great (if you like the smell of leather)! Foiling on the binding is very well executed but no recessing - same for the spine title - so may be prone to rubbing over time?

Inside is all as expected: the artwork is top notch and, while I’m no real judge of paper, I’ve no complaints in that regard.

I have only a few Folio LEs but I’m confident in saying this is the first where I’ve felt the cost entirely justified. Great job Folio!

I received my copy yesterday as well. I agree with the above comments - I love the artwork. I’m no expert on paper quality either, but I would say the quality of the paper on Shakespeare Complete Plays is of a higher standard based on initial impressions. It’s still a good quality paper so I have no complaints.

My copy did arrive with a slight imperfection. And I actually wanted to get a second opinion. Would you personally reach out to the customer service about this?. It seems every limited edition I’ve bought from Folio has had issues (even the replacements) and I’m just leaning towards looking past it on this occasion. What do you all think?

>59 foliolibrary: My copy of The Book Thief had two small areas to the t.e.g. of missing silver near the headband. I just couldn't bring myself to contacting Folio over it.

>59 foliolibrary: I wouldn't but I also don't buy LEs, so my quality/cost viewpoint may be different from yours.

>59 foliolibrary: Would do you all think?

Doubtless some others will tell you that paying an LE price entitles you to expect perfection. If that were my copy I'd shelve it and forget all about the very minor imperfection.

>59 foliolibrary: The half a dozen small indentations? To be honest that would bug me. It looks like someone hasn't handled the book carefully. If I lived in the UK I would share the photo with customer service.

>59 foliolibrary: I'd say it depends on how you feel. Is it the #1 thing you focus on and it ruins the value of the entire book for you, or is it something that's mildly annoying but doesn't ultimately bother you enough to go through the replacement process for?

If it ruins the book for you, then I'd get a replacement, but if it ultimately doesn't bother you enough to start another chat with Folio and you're still happy with it, then I would just keep it. I remember when I bought the Casino Royale LE the cover foiling had some similar spotting/damage but I had contacted FS so much within the span of a few months that I preferred to just be happy with my copy instead of going through the replacement process again lol.

At this point in my FS journey, the specific imperfection in your LE wouldn't bother me too much personally, but if you feel differently, then asking for a replacement would make sense. To be fair, I may also just be getting lazy and preferring to tell myself that the imperfection is just the book having character XD

That’s honestly very minor. Almost every book I own that has gilded/painted edges has some kind of imperfections on it.

Thanks for all the replies. I agree that it’s quite minor. The balance of opinions reflects my thoughts. Sorry to derail the thread!

>64 BooksFriendsNotFood: haha yes, that's kind of where I'm at.

>59 foliolibrary: I would most definitely request a replacement.

The litmus test, for me at least, would you sell that without posting an image of or describing the damage?

If I bought that 'brand new/as new' on Ebay I'd expect that damage to be listed.

Side by side beside a brand new undamaged copy - which should be expected - yours most definitely would be the flawed copy.

My copy just arrived, I wish Folio would move their LE release windows to earlier in the week, a little annoyed it didn't arrive on Saturday, but oh well.

In all it's simply a fantastic production. The illustrations by Yuko are just phenomenal. The size and weight is just about the upper limit for handling without the need for a cushion or lectern/cradle. The leather is also a lovely choice, a very smooth grain and soft to the touch. The typesetting/layout is also very easy on the eyes, not surprising given it's not a particularly long book so they could afford to space things out, so in all it's one that makes for a great reading experience, both for the eyes and fingers. Luckily no significant Q&C issues with my copy, just some rather light scuffing that's barely noticeable. At 350gbp I'd say this is definitely a home run from FS, and I'd put it up as one of Folios all time greats.

Full gallery of illustrations here: https://imgur.com/a/GMjEkxB

>68 wongie: Great photos. As usual it looks better than the official FS publicity photos and although it wasn't for me its nice to see it up close.

It certainly seems to be very popular with resellers as I see over fifty either for sale or sold on eBay.

I received my Gatsby and it's very lovely.

Also, the size difference between the box and the book have gained new meaning for me now that I actually have this in hand —
• Big box: the idea of the American Dream
• Opening the box to reveal the book which is not nearly as big as the box: the reality of the American Dream

😂

Received my copy overall great presentation and excellent art work. Would say it’s one of my top favorites in my limited edition collections.

Here is some pics from my copy. https://imgur.com/a/2s80AE5

Mine arrived as well and is an amazing production. My only complaint would be for Folio to use some sort of peel off sticker or masking tape for the paper wrap so one can easily remove it without damaging the wrap. I like to wrap my books back up as new. The scotch tape is just a pain. Folio did use a sticker that was easy peel on some past editions. Masking tape would keep scissors and knives away from the books.

My copy arrived in good condition and its a stunning book, way more illustrations than I was expecting too.

My copy also arrived! The book looks great but the box I received definitely has some major defects in the stamping. Much of 'The Great Gatsby' has been fallen off and the black/gold lights streaming from the car are extremely muddled together. I am contacting FS to hopefully get the box replaced. But I agree that this is an awesome production overall!

>68 wongie:

1. Were all these scratches and stains to fore edge gilt there when you got the book?
2. Isn't the spine a bit too tight causing the boards to flare out?

>76 EPsonNY:, yes they were, should have clarified the light scuffing i mentioned was the gilt edge. The spine does feel a bit tight when opening up but I wouldn't say it's excessively so, nothing a good reading session won't loosen up I imagine.