Some Letter from Abroad of James Elroy Flecker With a Few Reminiscences by Hellé Flecker and an Introduction by J. C. Squire
London: William Heinemann, Ltd, 1930. Octavo, charcoal-grey cloth, spine embossed with gilt lettering, back cover blind debossed with publisher's logo near tail end of spine, xiv, 190 pp., frontispiece, 16 black-and-white plates, one appendix included. Top end of spine bumped and rubbed, foxing on edges of text block, localised area of top edges of covers near corners rubbed, tail edges of front covers faded (less so on the back), light foxing on endpapers and some leaves within, dust-jacket lightly foxed, top and tail edges of dust-jacket worn and torn without loss of text; overall, a very good copy. First edition. A collection of correspondences from novelist, playwright and poet James Elroy Flecker, who died prematurely from tuberculosis at the age of 30, written during his time abroad in Greece and the Middle East. This collection was compiled by Flecker's wife, Hellé.
Flecker's writing was not well recognised by the public during his short life, however, in subsequent years it came to be lauded and often quoted. An inspiring passage from his seminal work The Golden Journey to Samarkand is still taught to new British SAS recruits, who must memorise it before they begin their training.
Flecker was a friend of T. E. Lawrence's, whose photographic portrait of Flecker is the frontispiece of this volume. Lawrence also wrote an essay on Flecker in 1925, which was eventually published in 1937. It is considered to be one of Lawrence's finest early works. O'Brien, F0349. Item #4854
Price (AUD): $200.00