Description

Oblong hardcover, in black paper covered boards, illustrated in blue and lettered in white, with art repeated on non price-clipped dust-jacket. Unpaginated [64 pages]. Illustrated throughout with gothic Victorianesque drawings by Edward Gorey. Plates printed on rectos, corresponding letterpress on facing versos. First edition, first printing with no additional printings listed. Billed on inner dust-jacket flap as “an opera book without libretto or score”, or as one review writes of the plot, “Jasper Ankle has succumbed to a passion for an opera singer Ortenzia Caviglia whose career skyrockets as Ankle’s life falls to ruin.” Intrigue, Operatic characters and murder, all the things one expects from a Edward Gorey story. No previous ownership marks. A square, tight and internally unmarked copy. Top edge shows spotting from dust and age. Dust-jacket shows only minute wear to front outer hinge and has the remnants of a small retail price sticker on rear panel. Still a quite nice copy in a complete and well preserved dust-jacket. Very good in very good dust-jacket.