You've seen me play this game before. A bookseller offers something seemingly too good to be true It's tantalizing, but without the benefit of a photo who knows what the item really looks like? I make an educated guess and, if inclined, I take the bait. I report on the results here.
T. S. Eliot died in 1965, so we know he couldn't have signed the 1982 edition of Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats. It's almost certainly got to be illustrator Edward Gorey who signed this hardcover edition, but could such a thing really be selling for just $15, even from an outfit called Half Price Books, Inc., of Dallas? The listing on AbeBooks furnished only a stock photo of an edition marketing this book as the inspiration for Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Cats: The Musical" (1981). Seeing, as they say, is believing, and I would have to see this one for myself. I placed my order.
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| Edward Gorey AbeBooks listing accessed June 15, 2022 |
The book arrived in yesterday's mail. Here it is:
The book is indeed signed by Gorey on an illustrated "Mystery!" bookplate, a nice one. I would have thought a book dealer would want to mention such a thing. Anyway, the book is well worth the price, I believe.
And I'm not alone. AbeBooks lists another copy, also bookplate signed. Check out the price:
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| Edward Gorey AbeBooks listing accessed June 21, 2022 |
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