LARKIN'S FIRST BOOK INSCRIBED TO NORMAN ILES
The North Ship
The Fortune Press, 1945.
First edition. Original black cloth lettered in gilt. Author's presentation copy, inscribed by Larkin to Norman Iles on the front free endpaper "To Norman from Philip October 1945." Larkin has made a manuscript correction to the final line of poem XXX, underlining "provisional" and writing "provincial" in the margin. A very good copy of a fragile production.
An exceptional presentation copy of Larkin's rare first book, inscribed for his closest friend during his first years at Oxford. Indeed, in 1942 Larkin wrote to Iles "I admire your courage, intelligence and honesty. To prove it I am quite willing to keep up a correspondence as long as you like... I don't care much if I lose sight of Kingsley etc. but I should be very sorry to lose sight of you" (28th July 1942). Iles was later immortalised as Larkin's accomplice in his great poem of Oxford reminiscence 'Dockery and Son', both before the Dean:
"Black-gowned, unbreakfasted, and still half-tight
We used to stand before that desk, to give
'Our version' of 'these incidents last night'"
The North Ship was printed in an edition thought by Larkin's bibliographer to consist of no more than 500 copies, only a fraction of which where issued on publication.
Presentation copies of Larkin's first book are of exceptional rarity. We can recall only three other copies being offered in the last 20 years, only one of which carried an association of equivalent weight.
Bloomfield A1a
Stock ID: 38770
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