Look what came in the mail today!

We need an "I just got..." thread

The Prisoner of Zenda by Anthony Hope. From Reader's Choice 2354

The book has a copyright date of 1999, so this probably appeared in some other series. Many illustrations; both color and b/w. Very nicely done.



Here are some other pics. You may want to open this slideshow in a new window :)

http://tames.smugmug.com/photos/swfpopup.mg?AlbumID=13220907&AlbumKey=XG5ni

Hey, WE want to look at what came in your mail today, too! Please post some pictures when you get a chance. SilentinaWay has already started a brilliant thread specifically for the Reader's Choice volume pictures. I don't think Prisoner of Zenda is up there yet.

By all means post them here (or wherever) -- please!! -- because I own the Famous Edition copy of the book (which I think is nearly identical to the Reader's Choice copy). I'd like to compare the two editions before commenting on them.

Added pics to >1 bumblesby:. Didn't have time to do the fancy stuff that SilentInAWay does... The pics in the slideshow are a sample of the illustrations in the volume, but not all of them.

Wow, those are some great pictures, thanks so much! I really like the way the offset RED page numbering and titles look, and the illustrations seem very nice and numerous as well. I would say this is one of the finer-looking RC editions I've seen so far.

Isn't this a reprint of the Heritage Press edition of "The Prisoner of Zenda"?

undoubtedly

That looks a beautiful volume. I have been contemplating the Readers Choice volume of She.

Ok -- other than the series description on the title page, this edition appears to be identical to the one that until recently was available (at a considerably higher price) in the Collector's Library of Famous Editions. It even has the same cover!! The shocking thing is that EP was offering both books (at different prices) at the same time!

I know this for a fact because I recently returned a "Famous Edition" copy that I had been shipped, months after the series was cancelled (I returned it because I bought a really nice copy of the Famous Edition on eBay and hadn't told EP because I thought the series was gone for good). Had I realized that the Reader's Choice copy was identical to the one being sold as a Famous Edition, I may never have bothered with the eBay copy...

Congrats on the great pickup -- this is a beautiful book. The vibrant colors and style of the illustrations to Zenda remind me of those in the EP edition of Gone with the Wind. Funny that both your photo from The Prisoner of Zenda and the page shown in EP's advertisement for Gone With the Wind depict a similar scene...

> 10 I have the two volume special edition of Gone with the Wind. I will have to check that out!

@tames: could you please post some pictures of the 2v gone with the wind? I was contemplating on buying that but was wondering if it is worth it.

Ha! We are on the same "page". Just thought about doing that today. I placed them under the Easton Pics 2 thread.

The color illustrations are remarkably similar in style.

http://www.librarything.com/topic/87418#2132669

>13 bumblesby: The color illustrations are remarkable similar in style.

Good -- I wasn't imagining it.

I was so taken by the similarity, I double-checked my copies of these books to see if the illustrator was the same.

These look like the same illustrations in the single volume edition of Gone With the Wind. Aren't they?

Thanks tames! Pictures look gorgeous! Now I'll have to buy myself an early B'day present :)

EP is mailing!

Today I received my first book from the Greatest Adventure series: Captain Scott's Last Expedition by R.F. Scott

And all 6 books of the Tarzan series.

I will try to get some pics of the Scott book. There are some maps and photographs. I need to get the cover as well. No one has uploaded one.

Wow that sounds wonderful. I would love to see pics of the Scott book

> 17

Great. I have subscribed to the Adventure books and would also love to see some photographs of the Scott - and Tarzan.

Today I received The Essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson from the 100 Greatest collection. My this is a large format book. There are no illustrations except for a portrait of Emerson on the frontispiece. The book also has rather large type. I think the design is overkill for something of this nature. A more normal size book would have been just fine.

Yesterday was payday for me. All at once, I received:

From the Reader's choice series:
A Separate Peace
Moll Flanders
The Mysterious Island
The Razor's Edge

And From Ebay:
Foundation's Edge
Foundation and Earth

Ok, I have got to lay off the ordering for a while, especially since those foundation books are 100 bucks a pop now that EP discontinued the series.

I see you are picking up RC editions that are still in stock from previous years. I am thinking of doing the same thing before the 2010 collection comes out. I have the 2009 collection (1 left to go). 2010 collection - wonder when that will be announced? It is almost September!

Yeah, well I don't want to miss any of them! According to my rep, I'm getting the last copies of a lot of these older books. I know that the Reader's Choice 2007 books are pretty much sold out unless you have already put in a preorder. I didn't even get them all in time.

But the Foundation books....my oh my. Probably not worth what I paid, but as the books are brilliant, they are worth it to me. Only one frontispiece illustration per book, and no other features, forwards, prefaces, introductions, or anything. But they look very good on the shelf next to the trilogy I already have.

Today received Planet of the Apes RC 2354-010 and
Arabian Sands GAB 1872-006. These were both in the same color leather. It is the lighter brown color which I really love.

The Arabian Sands book is very nice. Several b&w photos, maps, and a large pull out map that was inserted at the front of the book.

It's been awfully quiet around here the past several days. Is everyone broke?

> 25

Almost - but that won't stop me.

Yesterday I received the Count of Monte Cristo. A gorgeous, fat book with beautiful illustrations. I immediately fell in love with it.

You will hear nothing from for three weeks now. I am going on holiday in Thailand. I won't be taken any EP books. Only a paperback copy of a Suitable Boy by Vickram Seth, which I have been meaning to read for years.

I received two from EP recently:
--Soul Mountain in SMC last week
--Rob Roy in RC-IV a couple of days ago.
I am expecting two more within the coming week.

I'm still waiting on some. It's like waiting for Christmas to arrive. I'm still waiting on And Then There Were None (RC) and the Famous Editions. It has been a month for the FE & they are not yet charged to my card.

FE was charged to may account on 9/24. So they are mailing!
Also the new RC 2010 was charged.

Received today:

Lord Jim Part of the 100 greatest series. Illustrations by Lynd Ward; Library of America just released a 2 volume set of his works in woodcuts Ward Set

Goodbye, Mr. Chips Readers Choice 2629-003. First book from the RC V collection. Strange that it did not start with 2629-001. When I received RC IV, it was in order. This book has a EP copyright of 2010. A very short book at 126 pages with large type and a frontispiece.

@tames: Could we get pictures for the first RC-2010? :)

>31 Technogeekus:
I will relinquish that honor to SilentInAWay. He/she has a very nice thread going on with the RC books. I am sure it will be posted soon. :)

Silent's RC Thread

Absolutely (and thanks for the vote of confidence!). According to EP, my copy shipped the week before last -- hopefully it will arrive today or tomorrow...

Received The Water Babies by Charles Kingsley. Famous Editions Readers Choice 2655-009.

I received "Good-bye Mr. Chips" today. It is bound in brown leather with gold decorations, in the center of which is a small mortar board. The mortar board is repeated on the spine. It has a color frontispiece by Richard Sparks. It can be read easily in one sitting.

Received Raquel Welch's "Beyond the Cleavage". Its actually the first purple leather book I've ever seen from Easton. Signature inlaid on the front of the book with scrolls and a rose on the spine. Very handsome volume.

Yesterday, received RC And Then There Were None, and today received FE series Perrault's Fairy Tales. I was kind of hoping to get the Tom Sawyer first, but Perrault has beautiful illustrations & is a lovely volume.

Last month I finally subscribed to The Masterpieces of Science Fiction. I requested the current list of titles, crossed off those I don't want/need and returned it. Today I received my first book, The Gods Themselves. I have an old paperback copy and I was slightly surprised to find it has three two-page illustrations. Overall I am pleased with the E/P edition and look forward to reading it.

.37 indigosky, do you like your copy of Perrault's Fairy Tales? I was thinking about that one.

Today I received my Andrew Lang's Lilac Fairy Book, as well as Rime of the Ancient Mariner. The Andrew Lang books are just fun, and my kids like the stories, although some are a bit hard for them to follow, and some quite gruesome. The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is actually a lot larger than I thought. I guess I never paid attention to the dimensions, but it is a great book and the Dore illustrations are beautiful. I'll try to post some pictures when I have a chance.

Are the Fairy Books still in print? I put of subscribing for quite a while and thought I missed the boat.

I just received Spencer's Faerie Queene as well as the Classics of Enchantment series. Beautiful books. Probably the last books to arrive in my mailbox for a while too because I'm going to be paying for them for a few months...

>40 acidneutral: acidneutral, I started my subscription a while back, so this was the 10th of 12 books that I received. They are not accepting new "subscribers" from my understanding. Sorry about that. However, if you really want them you can still paste together most of the Folio Society books. I think they have only issued approximately the first 5 or 6. The illustrations are not original but the quality on those is very high. I picked up the Green Fairy Book at a used book store on a whim just for comparison sake.

42: I'm a fan of the FS Fairy Books. I think they are simply stunning! Although I love EP, I personally prefer the FS books in this case. The FS commisioned artists to illustrate the Fairy Books, whereas EP uses vintage illustrations. Don't get me wrong, both editions are beautiful. However, I definitely give the upper-hand to FS in this case. One main reason being their size. The EP books are much smaller than the FS books. Sometimes, it is nice to save space, but in this case I go by bigger is better :)
Check out the Blue Fairy Book here:

http://www.foliosociety.com/book/BFB/blue-fairy-book

39: I am very pleased with Perrault's Fairy Tales. The illustrations are by Dore, and they are stunning. I also have the Harry Clarke version of Perrault's Tales by EP, which is very nice w/ some illustrations in color, but I think I prefer the Dore illustrations. If you need photos, just let me know.

On the Lang Fairy Books: I have to agree with astropi. The FS Fairy Books are magnificent. Probably the most beautiful books I own, at least in my view. The covers are gorgeous as well as the inside illustrations. Even the spines are stunning sitting on the shelf. I have pink, yellow, blue, and red. I lack green. They are very soon publishing violet & brown, and there are some people on the FS message board saying olive as well. It seems certain they will publish the whole series as they are very, very popular. Currently, you can get all they have published so far, except for pink.

>44 indigosky:, yes I would love to see a couple of photos when you have a chance.

I am torn on the FS vs. EP Fairy Books. Being the traditionalist that I am, I like the original illustrations of the EP copies, but agree that the adornment of the FS copies is great, and the color illustrations are beautiful. To be honest, I am trying to stay away from Folio Society due to my impulsive nature and that would just be a Pandora's box. Also, by the time I found out about the FS Fairy Books I already had 8 of the EP series. I can't afford nor rationalize collecting both series.

I'll try to get those photos up tomorrow or Friday.

I actually like the EP fairy books much more than I thought I would after seeing some pics on ebay & somewhere else, but the EP catalog did not show them off very well. In general, I like EP better than FS, and I like the fact that you can buy the entire series. Whereas, with FS, you're never really sure if they are going to publish the entire series or not.

I know what you mean. I find it hard to have self-control when it comes to buying books because EP always has something I want - several somethings - and I'm so afraid if I don't get them all right now, I'll miss out. The books I wanted and missed out on are on ebay for $100 apiece (or more).

The EP Fairy Books have their own charm, but I was simply blown away by the FS in comparison. They (FS) do plan to publish ALL the Fairy Books, but it will be a few years before they are done. EP did use the vintage illustrations, but in this case I do prefer the newer FS illustrations due to their large and beautiful presentation.

By the way, I had both the EP and FS Fairy Books (although not the entire EP Fairy set) and decided to keep the FS books. I think the FS just republished their Fairy Books. When there were out of print for a few months, people sold copies of the Fairy Books for around $200 a pop (and they sold)! Just goes to show you how well received they are.

I received "Goodbye Mr. Chips" today from the RC 2010. I absolutely love it. Its smaller and thinner than most of my EP books, which will certainly add variety to the shelf. But I did buy the book for its contents, a novel that was cherished by one of my favorite professors in college. Its a very attractive little volume.

44: I know little about FS because I have been staying away from it so far. But I am interested in their version of the Fairy Books. Can you tell me why the pink one is not available anymore? Is it too old? Are they going to print it again or will I have to find it on ebay?

49: FS normally has books in stock for a year, maybe two years, I think. When they're gone, they're gone. I don't believe they republish them typically. The first fairy book was blue. Then they did red, yellow, and pink. Green was the most recent. Because they are so popular, they republished red, blue, and yellow. I've no idea why they didn't republish pink, but a lot of people are hoping they will. FS usually listens to customers. In my opinion, it would be wise of FS to republish the entire set once they are finished with all of the colors, to give everyone an opportunity to get the whole set.

I think it was the blue fairy book that caused me to join FS originally. I renewed mid-year later on, because they offered me red, yellow, pink, and blue as a renewal offer, an offer too good to pass up. I like FS, because from them I can get books I want in a fine edition that EP does not publish. Books like The Name of the Rose, My Cousin Rachel, Lord of the Flies, Waverly by Sir Walter Scott, The Black Tulip by Alexandre Dumas. Their illustrations are usually very good. I haven't been a member for a few years, but I'm renewing this year to get the new fairy books.

Thanks for the precisions. I have been lurking into the FS messageboard to try to understand how it works before I join. Maybe I haven' read enough yet but one thing confuses me: One their website they say that when you join you're only obligated to buy 4 books and have a full year to do so. But when I go to the checkout page as if I wanted to register, it says on there that I have to buy 4 books in 4 weeks! I find this deadline very tight. Did I miss something?

Yes, that deadline is very tight. I emailed them today, & they said they will work out a payment plan of 5 monthly installments. You have to call this number to get the installment plan: 1-866-255-8280 (toll-free).

I thought in the past that you had the whole year to buy the 4 books, but maybe that is only if you are already a member. I don't know.

Thanks for the phone number, the installment plan is good news.

Woohoo! Frankenstein and Odd John came in. I have a bunch back home but these are the first ones I have received my first shipment to my barracks so these are really the first ones I've been able to enjoy. :D One thing of interest is Frankenstein came in through my horror classics subscription, but on the inside page says The 100 Greatest Books Ever Written. Is that normal?

Curse you people for all this FS talk! I'm already committed to EP and now I'm being tempted to with a whole other company. You'll be the death of my bank account.

I believe its the same book. What I don't like about it is the price difference. The same book cost $44 if you buy it with the 100 Greatest and more if you buy it as part of the Horror series. I wish they would differentiate, but I don't believe they do.

In my book the cover design is the more floral like design, I've seen pictures where the design looks like stitches. The inside page says introduction by Edmund Lester Pearson, Illustrations by Everett Henry, and frontispiece art by Patrick Jones and Dennis Lyall

56: The stitches design is an older version that they no longer print. I have a feeling that several of the Horror Classics books are identical to the 100 Greatest because the covers look exactly the same. Frankenstein, Tales of Mystery & Imagination, Dr. Jekyll & Mr Hyde covers all look identical to my 100 Greatest versions.

I'm currently reading Frankenstein-- thought it'd be a good seasonal book. I read Dracula last October.

The editions for the 'Horror Classics' collection each contain unique, color, frontispiece artwork instead of the author portrait that is the standard for the '100 Greatest' series. Otherwise, I believe the editions are duplicates. I wish E/P would at least create a new title page as well but in many instances they do not.

Just checked my account and found that the new RC5 release in on the way--The Mark of Zorro--should have it later this week.

A small EP bonanza was waiting for me on my return from a three week holiday yesterday. I impatiently ripped the plastic wraps from each volume, not caring that by doing so I was devaluing each volume by a thousand dollars.

The Tomb of Tutankhamun - beautiful smooth light brown leather on the covers, just gorgeous. I look forward to reading these.

Le Morte D'Arthur - I could make love to this book. My favourite EP volume so far. Stunning.

South (Ernest Shakleton) - similar in presentation and feel to The Worst Journey in the World. A great book.

I just received She, which I requested as my first MoSF book, although E/P sent The God Themselves first. I am very pleased with it and hope to start reading it later this week. I also am looking forward to The Mark of Zorro, which I ordered and was charged to my credit card two weeks ago.

>60 Quicksilver66:
I thought we all agreed to keep the plastic wrap. I hope you did not discard it. ;-)

> 62

Tames,

In my haste I did discard it. I will live to regret it for the rest of my life !

> 61

I have not seen the Easton She, Lucas, but I have read it in paperback and it's one of my favourite books. On the subject of Haggard, I would like to pick up the Quartermain novels at some point. Does anyone have these?

Quicksilver, according top SilentInAWay it's almost the same as the recent Reader's Choice version. Silent wrote She up in this post (three titles down) on that thread. I'm looking forward to reading it even more because of your comments.

I am also interested in hearing about the Quartermain series.

Happy delivery day for me. Received my copies of Babbitt and The Old Man and the Sea. I am hoping to get the entire 20 volume set of Hemingway. I received this volume as my introductory, but of course I will want them all!

>63 Quicksilver66:. Quicksilver, I have all of those Quartermain volumes. They are a beautiful set! They only illustrations are the original dust cover art on the frontispiece but I've never needed illustrations to enjoy Haggard. I recommend the set. The gilded decorations are quite beautiful and give a cohesive look to the set.

> 66

Thanks acidneutral. Sold - as soon as I get my finances in order!

I got The Book of Job today. It was a long wait. This is the first one I've received that had the FE wreath, but no "notes from the archives" leaflet.

For the group subject, is there a way to delete a topic you created yourself? It is likely to be a big problem with groups with Easton if some topics are not removed once questions are answered and are no longer needed. The amount of topics has greatly increased and may take more time to search through all the questions and answers.

>69 EastonQuality: Not understanding your question. What do you mean by the "group subject" and the "page"?

Topics - meaning message threads cannot be removed except by LT admins. There are no group moderators if that is what you mean. I had asked that question recently.

Why would you want to remove topics? Someone else may have an interest in the question and the answer to that question.

Received today:

West with the Night by Beryl Markham. 1872-008. Part of the Greatest Adventure Series. This book does have b&w illustrations by Alan Phillips. I need to get the camera out and get some pics.

I bought 6 MoSF used and they arrived yesterday:
A.E. van Vogt “The World Of Null-A”
Clifton & Riley "They’d Rather be Right"
Edward E. Smith “Skylark Of Space”
Frederic Brown "What Mad Universe"
Henry Kuttner “Fury”
Ward Moore “Bring The Jubilee”

All are in fine condition, although only 2 have the collector notes. Now to find the time to read them.

I just received the six-volume "Scarlet Pimpernel" set. The books are very attractive and each one has a color frontispiece. I am looking forward to reading them.

The Republic by Plato

From the Greatest 100 Series 0001-073. I was surprised to find this book has and Analysis and Summary for each of the 10 parts along with margin notes.

I received "Babbitt" as part of the Great Books of the 20th Century collection. Its amazing how timely this book is with the current social/political/economic conditions. Its one of those books that I'm reading at just the right time in my life. Its been on my "to read" list for decades.

>75 acidneutral:
I hope EP keeps that series around for a while longer. I would like to start that one when my 100 greatest is done - I think in about a year.

Received today:

The Mark of Zorro by Johnston McCulley. From the Reader's Choice 5 (2010) 2629-002. A new offering by EP with a copyright of 2010. Very nice cover with the "Z" front and center. A frontispiece and sword illustration on the top of each page. Nice touch. SilentInAWay should have pics up soon on the Reader's Choice topic.

I received The Mark of Zorro today. I am very pleased with this book. The "Z" cover design is appropriate to the subject, yet tasteful. The sword illustration at the top of each page adds a rarely found charm. I also like the script font used for the chapter headings.

I received two very nice editions today.

The first was Wuthering Heights from the 100 Greatest Series. I am very impressed with this volume. The leather binding seems to be of a slightly higher quality and many of the illustrations, by Barnett Freedman, are in colour. Typeface, presentation and size are very elegant.

The second volume I received was the absolutely stunning Matisse illustrated Ulysses from the Greatest Books of the 20th Century collection. I love the binding design and size of this volume. I ordered this volume about three months ago - I think it has just come back into print.

The quality of EP books in these two series seems variable. Ulysses and Wuthering Heights seem better quality than The Count of Monte Cristo and Magic Mountain volumes that I received a few weeks ago. The leather bindings and paper seem better. In the case of Monte Cristo I imagine that EP had to make a few economies due to the sheer size of the book.

I love my copy of Wuthering Heights as well. Its quite handsome. Another quite attractive volume is Jude the Obscure (one of my favorite novels). It seems some of the bindings designs vary in quality. My least favorite, thus far, is the design on Don Quixote, yet the illustrations inside far make up for the exterior. Depending on the length of the book, they appear to use either Bible-thin paper or heavy, watercolor paper stock. I rather like the different papers.

I actually marked off Ulysses from my subscription due to the fact that I have never been able to get through it. Though knowing now it has Matisse illustrations might make it more alluring...though I am pretty particular in selecting only books i will read. But this might be the exception!

Thin paper has never bothered me because both thick and thin papers can be quality paper. Thin does not equal less quality.

I just received Man and Superman by Shaw from the old Famous Editions collection. I bought it from an online dealer. It is a beautiful book with many illustrations, some in color, some not. They don't make them like this any more.

I also received the Folio Society's LE of Ovid's Metamorphoses today. That is a magnifient book.

I received a further two impressivs EP volumes today, being War and Peace and Les Miserables.

I enjoy the way that many volumes in the 100 Greatest series are printed on different grades of paper. Les Miserables is printed on a creamy, opaque thin paper. The paper used in War and Peace is thicker and quite smooth to the touch.

For such massive books, both volumes seem very sturdy and I have no doubt that they will give years of reading pleasure.

Beautiful editions and highly recommended.

Received today

The Yearling by M Rawlings. 2655-003. This is from the Famous Editions Reader's Choice. A very handsome book with 15 full page illustrations by N.C. Wyeth.

tames, that is such a wonderful book! I read it last summer and was immensely moved. I have the Franklin Library edition with Wyeth's illustrations.

I received Vanity Fair. I asked to buy a copy in September and was told they would be available in November. I received it today. Its a lovely edition, with illustrations that are found in my beat up college edition. This is such a greater upgrade! :-)

I found a nice copy of A Thousand Miles up the Nile by Amelia Edwards, which arrived yesterday. This book is on the Famous Editions list, but I don't think it is really from there because it doesn't have the wreath logo or the Notes from the Archives. Does anyone know what series it comes from?

A Thousand Miles Up The Nile was part of a fifteen book collection called the 'Library of Travel Classics'. At least, that's what I call it. This is another of those collections for which I never saw official literature from E/P but that I have been able to piece together through years of collecting E/P books.

>87 wailofatail:: Thank you, wailofatail.

I received my copy of the 1611 King James Bible this week. Although hugs, I think it is a beautiful book. Since it is a reproduction of an original edition, this is less for reading and more for reference and the art of bookmaking. I'm glad I was able to get a copy.

The Leather-Bound Library of Travel Classics (1994 brochure, letter & reservation form)

>90 SilentInAWay: Thank you for posting that, SilentInAWay! That is really fun to see after all these years. Amazingly, I had each of the books correctly pegged ... but the finality of seeing it in print brings that certain peace of mind that is otherwise never fully realized.

SilentInAWay, do you just have boxes of old brochures! :) I never thought to keep these until I started lurking on LibraryThing and realizing that even if I didn't need them others might. Having resources like yourself, wailofatail, astropi and others is great. Thanks!

Thanks Silent. I wish they would bring that collection back!

I received my two volume collector's edition of Gone With The Wind today, a real treat. Even more of a treat since I found it second-hand, still in its shrink-wrap, at considerably less than I had been preparing myself to pay for it new!

94>

Ah -- that's a beautiful set.

I have a question, Ooshie: How deeply is the gilding on the front cover embedded into the leather, compared with other EP books you have received?

Can anyone give a comparison of the 2 volume Gone with the Wind and the single volume from the 20th Century collection?

>95 SilentInAWay:

Hi SilentInAWay, I would say it is not particularly deeply embedded; about the same as my 100 Greatest edition of Little Women.

The EP book I own with the most deeply embedded gilding is a Collector's Edition of Anna Karenina, it really has something special about it.

Anybody else receive the LE History of the Indian Tribes of North America? I just got mine today. I haven't opened them yet, but will in a little while...I've been pretty excited about these after receiving the LE History of the Crusades.

98: I have not yet ordered it, although it looks stunning! I would love to see some pics! By the way, if you want to compare it to the original printing let me know. My University has a copy of the original edition in their Rare Books Library, and I am planning on going in and taking some pics :)

98. I should be receiving mine today or tomorrow, ups willing.

I`d love to see some pictures as well, especially of the "Leonardo Da Vinci - Notebooks" that I assume has shiped now couse the "15 nov" tag is taken off their site.

I received my copy of A Christmas Carol today. A beautiful book! A tissue paper page covers each glossy color illustration, and I've never seen a ribbon like that one in an EP book before. White with gold edges.

>101 WinterGloaming:, Actually the Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci haven't started shipping yet. I asked this morning while I was checking on another issue and they said that they haven't started shipping yet, but should very soon. Or at least, that was what they said.

>102 indigosky:, I agree that A Christmas Carol is a great edition. I really like mine. Did your copy come with very smooth leather? Just wondering if it was my leather lot or what. No big deal, I like it regardless, I just wondered.

Also, congrats on this thread making 100 posts. Very common on the Folio Society threads, but not as common here on EPs threads. :)

103: Yes, it is a very smooth leather. I only have one other EP volume that is that smooth-- my copy of The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Annapurna by Maurice Herzog

Part of the Greatest Adventure Books. Mountain climbing in a southern range of the Himalayas. 6 maps and several b&w photos. Done in a very nice red.

1872-007

Received my first Easton Press edition today, a copy of Treasure Island which I won on ebay. It came extremely well packaged and in perfect condition. It also cost more for the postage than what I paid for the book, but worth every penny.

Now I am looking forward to hunting down and winning my sci/fi and fantasy favourites.

Congrats on your first book. I can't remember what my first one was, maybe Moby Dick.

Easton has done some really great Fantasy and Science Fiction titles, good luck deciding what to buy first.

A new catalogue arrived in the mail today, "Christmas Selections 2010". The cover is not on the website, but the new items are.

'Tis the season of bi-weekly catalog(ue)s...

(Fa-la-la-la-la la-la-la-la)

>109 SilentInAWay:
Ugg. I am getting so many catalogs from other publishers too like Oxford U Press. Too many books that I would like to have. Then, Folio Society added two more selections to the eight they were already offering for renewal - might go for that one in a couple weeks.

Today:
The Red and the Black by Stendhal

Part of the 100 Greatest 0001-072. A large beautiful book.

The Yearling came today. A little sooner than I expected. Beautiful illustrations! I wouldn't mind having a large version of the one with the whooping cranes to hang on the wall.

Two arrived today:
The 39 Steps from the RC5 series;
Magna Carta by Anne Pallister from The Books That Changed the World.

Argonautica part of the RC Famous Editions, 2655-002

I have the Heritage Press edition of this book which is in a larger format. I like the HP better.

Received The 39 Steps too, 2629-004.

First Footsteps in East Africa by Richard Burton
Part of the Greatest Adventure books series
Very nicely done with illustrations - 2 Volumes bound in one book. 1872-011

Madame Bovary by Flaubert
Part of the 100 Greatest Books. 0001-046
What can I say - gorgeous.

Inside the First Footsteps book was a brochure for the Complete Arabian Nights - why do they torture us like that!

The Mystery of Edwin Drood arrived today, which I only ordered a few days ago. They are delivering fast for Christmas. Does anyone have this book? Is it left unfinished or has someone else finished the story? It says edited by Vincent Starrett.

I'm hoping EP will publish more Dickens in 2011.

115: Dickens died before completing the story. There may have been a number of authors who "completed" the work, but I do not believe anyone could complete it in the way Dickens would.

116: Yes, but I was wondering if the EP edition in particular has been left unfinished, or finished by another author. Some editions of Edwin Drood have been finished by another author, some have not (or so I've been told), but what about the EP edition?

I have the Heritage Press edition, and I bet it is exactly the same other than the binding. The book ends with The Dawn Again. It has 4 appendixes: The Sapsea fragment, The original cover design illustration, Jasper's Gatehouse map, and A Selected Bibliography.

The HP edition that I have includes the Sandglass and quite a long introduction discussing many aspects of the book.

The Dante/Dore Divine Comedy LE arrived today by UPS. I am very pleased with it. Its appearance is similar to that of The Crusades LE and looks very nice next to it on the shelf. The type is quite large, similar to that used for the FE Idylls of the King. It was packed in two sturdy boxes, one inside the other. The slipcase is very sturdy.

Does it have beveled edges as the Crusades and Kelmscott has?

Glad to hear they have went back to packaging better than some of the later LEs.

>120 Wootle: They are not beveled.

>117 indigosky:

Anything up to the 23rd chapter (The Dawn Again) is Dickens. Looks like the BBC is coming out with a version:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/01/27/us-books-dickens-bbc-idUSTRE70Q1OJ2011...

It certainly was an aptly titled book to leave unfinished.

I just got the Rubaiyat and the Decameron both from the 100 greatest. Pleased with the former but think the latter could be a little nicer. Wish I'd got the white leather 2 volume folio version when I saw it second hand the other day instead!

What do you dislike about the Boccaccio; it's one of my favorite EP volumes. I own an early-1980's edition, but I assume that the interior is pretty much the same as it was then.

To be honest I haven't spent much time with it yet, I just opened the package, flicked through and then had to head to work.

I think after lookign at the amazing Szyk illustrations in the Rubaiyat the Decameron looked a little plain, and I'm never a fan of having more than one column of text to the page.

I like the binding, layout and Fritz Kredel's illustrations in the EP Decameron but I'm not thrilled with the translation. I much prefer the McWilliam's translation used by the Franklin Library. My favorite illustrations for the Decameron are from the Garden City edition illustrated by Rockwell Kent.

LipstickAndAviators, I too am a fan of Szyk's work. I think EP did a fine job reproducing the illustrations in their Rubaiyat. Szyk illustrated the Canterbury Tales for George Macy but unfortunately, EP decided to strip out all of the illustrations but one in their reprint (the LEC original is magnificent).

I got the Masterpieces of Science Fiction edition of Slan today.

Today I received The African Queen from the Readers' Choice series.

>128 Tom41:

Tom, what do you think about the Readers' Choice series quality-wise? I am not impressed. When I compare these books to the signed edition Double Helix by James Watson, the latter clearly wins. It has a heavier feel, more sturdy and rigid, the gold etching is far more superior and shiny.

>129 ironjaw: I moved my comment to the new thread on EP quality.

> 129, 130

I think the quality is variable across the EP range (and sometimes within a series).

The leather used on the 100 Greatest and 20th Century Classics volumes feels and looks great - but not quite as good as the leather on some of the more premium stand alone titles and series - such as the Tarzan volumes.

The nicest feeling and smelling leather I have had so far from EP are on the few Harvard Classics volumes I am collecting. They look, feel and smell absolutely gorgeous.

>131 Quicksilver66:

Oh, so you have subscribed to the Harvard Classics or are you buying them sporadically through ebay? The signed series and the Famous editions are the only ones so far I have seen that have higher standard leather, gold and fell to them. I have only one The water-babies and it is absolutely wonderful. I have today cancelled my subscription to Reader's Choice 2010 after 4 volumes.

> 132

I have not subscribed to the whole series, Ironjaw. I am taking 11 volumes which I think are the cream of the crop. I have started with the 3 volumes of English poetry (with the second volume free). These make up a pretty nice anthology of lyric English and American poetry up to the turn of the 20th century. My first volume arrived on Friday and I was bowled over by the quality - very nice indeed.

In addition to the poetry volumes I have ordered -

4 – Milton’s Complete Poems
5 – Emerson’s Essays
12 – Plutarch’s Lives
17 – Folklore and Fable
27 – English Essays
28 – Essays, English and American
39 – Famous Prefaces
49 – Epic and Saga.

They will come monthly. Good thing about EP is you can pick and chose what you want from most subscription programmes - as long as the books are not specefied as being delivered in a single consignment you can do this.

I think the quality of the Reader's Choice volumes is fine. I love my Reader's Choice I Ching. I also have Homage to Catalonia and Princess of Mars and they are nice as well - but not in the top notch of EP volumes.

Today I received Spartacus by Howard Fast from the Readers Choice 5 series. The only illustration is a color frontispiece. Does anyone know the differences between this book and Spartacus by Lewis Gibbon, published in the 1930s?

This is another one of the "books that inspired classic movies" volumes that have formed a "collection within a collection" within the Reader's Choice "series."

The 1960 film was based on by Fast's novel (1951), rather than the one by Gibbon (1933). The best that I can make out is that Fast "played fast and loose" with the historical details, whereas Gibbon's novel is based more strictly upon known historical facts...

I ordered the Master and Commander series. Its my first purchase since November of last year! I'm looking forward to my first book. Wasn't there a section here of "I just ordered/received"? I posted here, even though I haven't received anything yet. Nice to be back!

>136 acidneutral: Congratulations, that sounds great. I have been collecting the FS versions. I would love to see some pictures of the EP series. Please do enlight us about your experiences

Will certainly do, ironjaw. I vacillated between the FS and EP versions for over a year. Can you tell it takes a while for me to make up my mind? I finally settled on the EP due to their size, which I find most comfortable for reading....not to mention I think they are gorgeous, from the photos I've seen.

Got my Kelmscott in the mail Monday, Dante DLE Tuesday and now Midsummer Night's Dream DLE today. Yee-haw, it is like Christmas around here. Just waiting for Ovid now. EP really has done a fantastic job on these DLE's, they look, feel and smell very top notch.

I received my copy of Romance of King Arthur DLE today. I was going to hold off on this but after reading astropi's review among others I decided that I couldn't pass it up and ordered it as well. Just to show how random the LE numbered sequences are when shipped, I received copy 125 of 400 after this late date. Some of my LEs are high numbers, while others are very low. Always random, always a surprise. This is not a bad thing, just another mystery waiting for the reveal when you open the box.

Has anyone here received an edition

>140 hamletscamaro:, what are your thoughts now that you have it in hand? 'Value' for the dollars spent?

I've had mine for over a month (number 233 in keeping with the random number selection) and love it. I think it's a good value.

>140 hamletscamaro: thru 142: It is indeed an impressive production by EP, tho' I figuratively beat my breast with rage, sorrow and regret whenever I read posts that refer to the general excellence of the long-since famous Kelmscott, which I failed to acquire, having only come to the EP confraternity since a year ago - it's now way beyond my $$$ means from any secondary sources :-((

143> There are so many editions and sets that I have missed out on over the last 30 years, I don't even know where to start...

I received a flyer yesterday for a book not in the catalog or on the website. It is #2756, All the Money in the World, a book on "the art and history of paper money and coins from antiquity to the 21st century". It is 176 pages of mainly pictures with some narrative. Serious numismatists may find it appealing. The price is $43 x 3.

Looks like they added it to the website today.

>145 Tom41:: Is that Tolstoy? ; )

Today arrived Times Arrow by Martin Amis in the Signed Modern Classics series.

I have recently received Ovid's Art of Love in the Reader's Choice Series. A lovely volume - the illustrations are very elegant.

>148 Quicksilver66:: I see it on Ebay already. I have to say that I prefer the cover art of the previously released edition with the pattern of whimsical love birds stamped on the cover. I've always attributed it to the 'Famous Edition' collection, though it lacks the laurel wreath emblem typical of nearly all 'Famous Editions'.

Wootle: Did you get your DLE copies of The Canterbury Tales today?

No, did you? Did anyone? Did Legacy?

I haven't opened the box yet to see but the number on the outside of the box is #2767.

Thats the right number anyway.

Ah, I was wondering what that charge was....

they shipped early!!.

Received a copy of The Song of Hiawatha today. Wow! What a stunning book. This has to be one of Easton's best. Illustrations are fantastic, paper is thick and glossy. There are 68 illustrations and there are page decorations on every page.