Four new Letterpress Shakespeare volumes

Much Ado About Nothing
The Taming of the Shrew
Romeo and Juliet
The Merchant of Venice

http://www.foliosociety.com/book/LS5/letterpress-new

Argh.

Suh-weet! I think they tried to deliver Romeo and Juliet yesterday. I got the little slip in my mailbox that a FS parcel is awaiting me. Of course they tried to deliver it in the one timeslot that no one was home. Champing at the bit for the post office to open...

Those are absolutely gorgeous, but forever beyond my reach, I think... however much I long for a decent set of Shakespeare to replace my old, dilapidated single volume college text. At least they are, when purchase of the regular FS editions @ $40 or $50 hurt my finances, and ones like Scott's Last Expedition for $79.95 are an extremely rare occurrance. But, the Scott's volume does tempt me. I hope it's in the next big sale at a huge discount...

I do think there is a slot waiting to be filled in between the ultra-beautiful but ultra-expensive Letterpress editions, and the omnibus editions such as published by FS and the RSC. I have both of the latter, but would love to have a set of individual plays in good quality bindings. Sometimes think about trying to collect the old FS editions (the ones with the quills on the cover), but difficult getting a complete set in mint/ veryfine condition, and am not interest in anything less. Anybody any suggestions?

I keep hoping FS or someone will publish a complete set of individual plays at an affordable price... something less than $50 per book... Spread out over several years, I might be able to scrape up enough $$$ to afford them.

>5 Willoyd:

I want Folio to republish that set. I lost the chance of buying a Mint condition complete set of these on eBay, and I regret not putting in a outrageously high bid, say $1000 US--the only problem being I don't know how I would have paid for it if someone bid almost up to my limit. A complete set in mint condition seems very hard to find, as I think most sets get broken up by the sellers who want to realize a whacking great profit by selling the Dali-illustrated As You Like It to the highest bidder.

Addendum: Incidentally, a similar situation exists with the LEC 37 volume set of the plays: I see on eBay someone is selling the Arthur Rackham-illustrated A Midsummer's Night Dream for $900 US. This is only a few hundred dollars less than I paid for my complete set.

I wonder when my copy or Romeo and Juliet will arrive. Delivery to Holland usually takes quite a while, but with Limited Editions, shipping can be quite fast sometimes. It's a world full of surprises ;-)

I recently completed purchasing the other four tragedies in the Letterpress series (the first "batch" they did), and was just starting with the comedies. I decided to purchase the R&J now, just to keep the tragedies complete. I will probably slowly continue with the other comedies now. It'll take me ages to complete this series, but I think they are well worth it. These editions are true treasures in my bookshelves. If only they didn't take so much space...

>5 Willoyd: I have thought a lot about this, as well for my own collection. The FS Letterpress books are completely out of my current price range, but I have an unwieldy Complete Shakespeare that is simply not a pleasure to read. What I have decided to do (for a change), is to give up my usual obsession with completeness and, instead, pick up nice, near mint editions of the plays I actually will read again from the many various Shakespeare editions published in the past, including the LEC, the FS from the 1950s, and Macmillan's Tudor Shakespeare from the 1920s rather than try to put together complete sets from any of these individual publishers. The reality is that not all of the plays are great (Peter O'Toole says only 8 are great, I would be much more generous), and there are a number I likely will never reread (i.e. Pericles, Prince of Tyre).

I'm sure everyone has their own list, but certainly Richard II, Henry IV parts 1 and 2, Henry V, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Hamlet, Lear, Othello, The Tempest, and Midsummer. Many of the comedies are more fun to watch than read, but I would probably pick up As You Like It, Much Ado about Nothing, Twelfth Night, Love's Labor's Lost, and Merry Wives of Windsor (but I'm not in any rush). Julius Caesar has great speeches, but is actually a bit dull. Merchant of Venice and The Taming of the Shrew have their obvious problems. Whether I buy them or not might have more to do with the illustrations or the quality of the editions.

>10 pm11:

pm11, did you mean Richard III (Crookback)? Although Richard II has some good lines, I can't see putting it in the same category as the others on your list of 11. But then I'd also put Julius Caesar on my "must-have" list.

> 11: I feel the same. The Letterpress books seem stunning (I say "seem" as I have never held one), but are far too pricey for me. It would be great if the Society would create affordable editions of the individual plays.

Sounds like a great way to go about it pm11. I too struggle with the bibliobsession of completeness. In a funny way, I would be happy if the FS decided NOT to publish any but their favorites in the Letterpress edition. Then one could have a more realistic ability for "completeness" than if they do all 39 plays.

Then again, having the FS letterpress edition of one of my favorite plays does not keep me from acquiring other editions of the same play if there is something unique about it.

Take poor Pericles, for instance. I don't know if anyone would put that in their "favorite" list from the standpoint of the play itself. It's not one I would necessarily have gone out and hunted down; I can read it in my own Riverside Complete Shakespeare for my college days. However, the fact that the Simon Brett has created over 100(?) illustrations for the Barbarian Press edition has me trying to figure out how to cook the book budget to fit it in. Might need help from some of those AIG accountants on Wall Street! 8^P

Thanks, Django. Typing too fast.

>13 jveezer:. I definitely agree that the right illustrations would put less desirable plays higher on the list.

I had a day out in London during the week, pottering around secondhand book shops. I visited one in the knowledge that they had a Limited Editions Club 1933 edition of Hamlet; designed, illustrated and signed by Eric Gill. At £150 I thought it may be a viable alternative to the FS Letterpress Hamlet. Having seen the book, the condition wasn't quite what I was hoping for - I have an LEC volume from 1929 which is amazing - and the number of illustrations was quite disappointing (although their quality certainly wasn't) so I decided to go away and "have a think". A bit later on I was in Charing Cross Road and a slipcased copy of Hamlet caught my eye. The volume was printed in red and black, in a bitingly sharp letterpress, on a fine quality paper and was illustrated throughout with Valenti Angelo linocuts. The publisher was Peter Pauper Press, Mount Vernon NY and there was no date. The price for this lovely volume (in immaculate condition) a whopping £12.50. It is now sitting on my shelf and I have quite happily removed both LEC and FS Letterpress Hamlets from my wants list.

http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/virt-exhib/shakespeare/20century/index....

Wow Huxley! Just from looking at the one page in the link I can tell that would have gone home with me as well for that price. I love finds like that.

What a great find! I see from abebooks that there are a number of reasonably-priced Peter Pauper Hamlets around, though the cheaper ones don't seem to be in as good condition as the one you got. At least one of the booksellers gives a date of circa 1950 for the edition.

I'm tempted - if I wasn't so broke I'd be ordering one of these like a shot!

Just for fun, I went searching on abebooks for Peter Pauper Press volumes, pre-1960 - some of them look amazing. The most expensive?

New Poems, 1942
Book Description: Mount Vernon, N.Y., Peter Pauper Press 1942., 1942. Hardcover. Book Condition: Fine. 1st Edition. First edition, deluxe issue, signed by 32 contributors. Edited by Oscar Williams. Illustrated with 30 portraits. Bound in full modern green morocco, white watered silk doublures, a.e.g. by Asprey. Fine, fresh copy. No other signatures or bookplates. This is one of the 32 contributors copies; there were also 26 copies for sale. Includes signatures of: Dylan Thomas; Robinson Jeffers; W.H. Auden; Conrad Aiken; C. Day-Lewis; Stephen Spender; Wallace Stevens; Robert Penn Warren. Signed by Author(s)

A snip at £8,300!

Peter Pauper Press made some absolute gems before they turned to publishing calendars and assorted stationery items. Affordable and desirable are their editions of Candide with illustrations by Fritz Kredel and their limited edition of Aristophanes' The Clouds.

wow Huxley, that was serendipitous!

Re: Peter Pauper Press

If anyone is looking for the (very rare, and hitherto unknown) Rubricate of Omar Khayyam, by Edward Fitzgeral , have a look here: http://cgi.ebay.com/The-Rubricate-of-Omar-Khayyam-Peter-Pauper-Press_W0QQitemZ14...

The slipcase, mind, is in poor condition. It is, however, still together and will protect the book for years to come. (Notable foreseeing talent, I say!)

Oh, but I am mean.

>21 BorisG:

I couldn't help but be amused by your remarkable find on ebay. A very rare edition indeed.

I think it was part of a limited edition set with Woolworth's 'Prelude' and Tennyson's 'Come into the Garden Mud'.

I've uploaded a few images of Hamlet on Photobucket if anyone is interested in seeing them:

http://s901.photobucket.com/albums/ac220/HuxleyTheCat/Hamlet/?albumview=slidesho...

The password is my username here.

That's a lovely edition, Huxley. I'll be on the lookout for Peter Pauper Press in future. And what a bargain!

That slideshow is beautiful! I see from the last page that they used specially commissioned paper - it certainly looks like wonderful quality even after 60 years.

This is a cool edition. I will definitely think about this one. I have a PPP edition of the Rubiyaat of Omar Khayam and love it.

By the way, HuxleyTheCat, Valenti Angelo has done beautiful versions of Song of Songs which are Solomon's and Salome for Heritage Press.

I'm jealous.

> 23

Beautiful edition, very stunning. I like the simplicity of the illustrations. I love rambling in the bookshops on Charing Cross Road - it's a great feeling when you make a find.

One of the books I requested in the Folio survey was a "cheaper" Shakespeare. Much as I love the Letterpress editions I do not have the money or space to collect them all. I would love a Folio Shakespeare in a single or two volume set.

My favourite edition of Shakespeare is still the humble Penguin series edited by G B Harrison and published during the 1950s (they may have started earlier and finished later). They had plain black and white covers that carried a woodcut of WS, and the play's title in (I think) red. They also, rather surprisingly, had dust jackets (exactly reproducing the covers). The text was legible and uncluttered, and there were adequate notes and a glossary. It was their very simplicity that was appealing, a perfect match of form and content. Unfortunately I lost my copies in a house move in the 1970s, and wasn't as taken by the replacement New Penguin Shakespeare series (although I did like David Gentleman's witty engravings for the cover designs).

>29 Quicksilver66:: I too asked for a cheaper Shakespeare in the survey. But like others here I think single-volume editions of each of the plays would be great in affordable form. I have the 8-volume Folio set and like it but would prefer more handy volumes.

>31 khaa9481:

I still say the older Folio versions of the individual plays--the ones with the feather design--are the handiest and most attractive version of all.

Just ordered the FS King Lear with illustrations by Noguchi, based on Django's recommendation. I will let you know.

>33 pm11:

I'll be interested in your opinion, pm11. The King Lear is perhaps the most unique volume in the series. Noguchi's designs for costumes and scenery are idiosyncratic and non-traditional (to say the least), and must have been quite bewildering to the audiences who saw the production.

Thanks Huxley for pointing out The Tragedy of Hamlet done by Peter Pauper Press. I just got my copy from Abebooks and love it!

As far a set of Shakespeare that's not unwieldy or expensive, you could do worse than this:

http://www.amazon.com/World-Shakespeare-Complete-Sonnets-William/dp/0143104802/

I own them. They're sturdy, fit nicely in the hand, and each one comes with a ribbon.

These aren't luxurious volumes, but they're really great for reading a single play at a time.

>35 Tanglewood:

Excellent!

36. >> Almost exactly what I have been looking for. Would have liked a little bit of luxury too, but one can't have everything, I guess. The ribbon bookmarks are a nice touch. I have other volumes with ribbons bound in, so I know those work quite nicely and they don't get lost!

Now, to find shelf space for another 38 volumes... and this when I can't find enough shelf space for the books I've already got on hand! Oh well... maybe I'll consign the books I've read in the last couple of years to boxes... as I am not likely to re-read the same books in the next couple of years.

What really sold me though, was the photo put up by one of the third party vendors showing Macbeth open. I could read the text in his photo, so I'm certain the text is even better in the actual book.

38: The books are thin (of course, since each one has only one play and the notes), so you may need less room than you might think.

But I understand the bookshelf problem! We're doubling up, which I hate, and are planning to move within a year, and we don't want to buy another bookshelf until we do.

I've been doubling up on my book shelves too... and yes, I hate it. I never know what's hidden, for one thing. And if I did know, and want to retrieve one of the hidden books, it's a big hassle... umm just which book (or two or three) is hiding the one I want to retrieve? ...and that's for starters.

I'm looking forward to this new collection of Shakespeare's work. It will be so much better than what I currently have... one of the old and heavy hardbound single volume collections. It was a college text book in it's day...

I so want to move out of this tiny apartment, but my husband doesn't want to pay more rent, even though we've about decided we want twice the amount of space we have here... and, of course, unless he suddenly gets a big promotion or I get a real job, we couldn't afford the increased rent...

I've been watching the pricing on the World of Shakespeare set on Amazon for a couple of years. As a consequence of Amazon's vaguely-creepy, suspiciously-sinister dynamic pricing model, you'll see the price dip down periodically below $60 for the complete set. Sometimes it will hang for $99 over a couple of weeks, and then spontaneously jump to $299. You'll notice many reviewers talking about the vicissitudes in pricing.

It has nothing to do with inventory management. This happens to be one of the Amazon products that is subject to pricing experimentation.

Pricing notwithstanding, it's a very nice set. If you can get it for under $100, it's even better.

41.>>> I didn't wait for the pricing to change. I've ordered the set... about $178.00 including shipping. Saw one listed for $425.00 but no way would I ever pay that much! I'd get an FS set if I was going to pay so much.

If the price dips enough in the next 30 days to make it worth my while, I'll phone Amazon and make them give me the lower price...

Enjoy it in good health; it's a wonderful collection.

Yeah, it is... but me being cheap, I didn't pay extra for shipping so I won't take possession for a week or two yet. :) That's okay. I will not be here the next few days to accept the package if I had paid for expedited shipping...

It's a heavy box. Free shipping is the way to go.

40: One thing I've done when doubling is putting my sets in the back. But I keep one item from the set in front.

It's a lot easier to remember where the sets are, and since one is in front, I can find it. Still a pain to take out the book I want, of course.

41: I got the Shakespeare set under $100, but it'd be worth twice that, I think.

45. >>I always take free shipping when it's offered.

46. >> Sets in the back would be the way to go if I had more of them. I've only got a few though, and one of those (Aubrey-Maturin) is not yet complete. The other sets are just 3 or 4 volumes for the most part. Well, until my Shakespeare volumes arrive, anyhow.

46 >

You've definitely scored. I've picked-up the set unwittingly for $250. It's worth every penny, but one reviewer claims he bagged the set for $45.

I've since learned to diligently price-track Amazon. It has paid off for me; I was able to buy the 20-volume OED for $420.

48. >> My biggest problem is a need for immediate gratification. I don't have the patience to wait very long, unless prices are very high. I insist on very good or better if buying from third party merchants; could have paid about $160 if I was able to accept only good condition... but too often, what others call "good" condition isn't good enough for my standards.

I probably would not have paid $250 for the set, as I don't have THAT much available $$$... but yeah, I should have been reading the reviews... I probably could have waited a bit.

49 >

We're kindred spirits. I share your inveterate proclivity for immediate gratification.

>34 Django6924:
It took a ridiculously long time to get it from the UK, but my Lear arrived yesterday with the Noguchi illustrations. I absolutely love this book. The illustrations are not really illustrations, but costume and set design sketches. They are well-executed, but you definitely have the feeling of looking at a designer's sketchbook. Not to mention, the book looks great lying on top of our Noguchi coffee table.

Thanks, as always, Django!

I just got my copy of the Peter Pauper Hamlet based on the discussion here, and I have to agree that it's a treasure. An absolutely beautiful book!

Does anyone have copies of Eric Gill's illustrated Shakespeare volumes? I'm having a hard time finding pictures of any of the various editions and thought I could get some good tips from those more knowledgeable.

Incidentally, I was talking to one of my colleagues today; he used to work for a liturgical press and it turns out they were offered the plates for Eric Gill's Four Gospels some years ago. They had planned a very limited edition and costed it out at around £700 per copy. The deal fell through, however, as some felt that it was inappropriate to use Gill's illustrations considering his risqué work elsewhere. When I sent this colleague the link to the FS copy, he seemed quite impressed that FS could produce such a high quality book for that price.

> 52 Well done spoonfed - sometimes it's nice to be an enabler!

>53 HuxleyTheCat:
Your enabling is very much appreciated in this instance! I've been meaning to buy this book for ages but couldn't find a copy in decent condition. Mine wasn't quite the steal that yours was, but I'm still quite happy with it.

I can't remember if I mentioned this elsewhere, but Peter Pauper still exists. They make mostly somewhat cheesy gift books, but their journals are really lovely. I especially like their artisanal journals which aren't leather but are a nice alternative and are quite durable for carrying around. They feel special, but aren't so expensive as to be intimidating when it comes down to actually using them! They also make good gifts for vegetarians.

Unfortunately, though the press exists in name, the presiding genius Peter Beilenson (the Peter Pauper) is no longer with us. He not only designed books for his own press but many other classics such as the LEC editions of Barchester Towers, Moll Flanders, and The Mill on the Floss and the 2 volume Heritage Press Les Miserable. I'd still like to find an affordable copy of his Leaves of Grass with Boyd Hanna's illustrations.