PIERRE LOTI—Story of a Child—1st HC—‘A genius’—Fave of Henry James

Description: • For Your Consideration: • A truly scarce First Edition in HARDCOVER of: • “THE STORY OF A CHILD”(C.C. Birchard & Co., 1901) (Hardcover, First US Edition) • BY PIERRE LOTI • “Although largely forgotten today, LOTI was unquestionably the finest descriptive writer of the day.—KATHRYN GAUCI (BLOG) • “PIERRE LOTI was a 19th-century French writer who was admired by writers as various as HENRY JAMES, JOSEPH CONRAD, WILLA CATHER, and MARCEL PROUST, but is now almost totally forgotten. When LOTI was alive, HENRY JAMES considered his novels to be those of ‘a man of genius…one of the joys of the time…the companion of my own selection.’ WILLA CATHER said she ‘would swoon with joy if anyone saw traces of LOTI in her work,’ JOSEPH CONRAD used one of LOTI’s books for HEART OF DARKNESS, and MARCEL PROUST used another for SWANN’S WAY.” —ANDREW HOLLERAN, GAY & LESBIAN REVIEW • “Tell me, why do you so scorn LOTI? If anyone told me they saw a trace of LOTI in anything I had done, I’d swoon with joy. And here you are indignant at such a suggestion. I don’t know the new one you read but LE PÊCHEUR D’ISLAND[E], LE DÉSERT, LE ROMAN D’UN SPAHI, and a dozen more are surely among the most beautiful things in the world. They stir one up like music and steal your senses away in the same fashion.” —WILLA CATHER, 1909 (LETTER) • “A novelist, naval officer, scuba diver, world traveler, journal writer, art collector, amateur bodybuilder and acrobat, LOTI created an international in the early part of the 20th century. Born LOUIS-MARIE-JULIEN VIAUD, he was first called ‘LOTI’ in Tahiti, after an island flower; the actress SARAH BERNHARDT gave him the name ‘PIERRE.’ Although he has faded into obscurity, his peculiar world is still on display in the three-story house where he was born and lived on and off for most of his life, in the town of Rochefort, 250 miles southwest of Paris.”—ELAINE SCIOLINO, NEW YORK TIMES• “PROUST was an avid reader of the French novelist PIERRE LOTI when he was young. Contemporary accounts show that he was able to recite whole passages from LOTI’s work in public from memory.” —RICHARD M. BERRONG, STUDIES IN 20TH & 21ST CENTURY LITERATURE (JOURNAL*) *ARTICLE: “A SIGNIFICANT SOURCE FOR THE MADELEINE AND OTHER MAJOR EPISODES IN COMBRAY: PROUST'S INTERTEXTUAL USE OF PIERRE LOTI'S MY BROTHER YVES”• “A new French talent…. A man of action who happens to have a genius for literary expression…. His talent never falters…. He plays from his own bat, imitating no one…. The remarkable genius who has assumed in literature the name of PIERRE LOTI…. As an officer in the French navy, perpetually circumnavigating the globe, M. LOTI has spent most of his life…in strange waters and far lands…. To be such a rover of the deep, such a dabbler in adventure as would delight the soul of MR. ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON, and yet to have at one’s command a sensitive and expressive apparatus…is to have little need of ‘cultivating’ originality, as M. GUY DE MAUPASSANT the other day recommended us to do…. The English reader ought already to have been notified (the plainest good faith requires it and I have delayed much too long), that a good deal of what he has to tell us relates mainly to his successes among the ladies. We have a great and I think a just dislike to literary confidences on such points…and there is simply nothing to reply to any English reader who on ascertaining this circumstance may declare that he desires to hold no commerce with him; nothing, that is, but simply to remark that such a reader will lose a rare pleasure.”—HENRY JAMES, THE FORTNIGHT REVIEW, 1888 • “[LOTI’s works] are savoured to the point of intoxication, of delirium, of stupor, even, the bitter flavour of exotic love.” —ANATOLE FRANCE, WINNER, 1921, NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE• “A musician himself, LOTI had an ear for music, much like CATHER. He was very sensitive to the sounds of Arab tambourines, or of Asian and African instruments and their different scales. But his fine ear is also attuned to the complexities of silence in the wilderness he passes through…. To give a sense of the otherwordly South, his prose uses rhythm in a masterly way, much like CATHER’s.” —FRANÇOISE PALLEAU-PAPIN, WILLA CATHER NEWSLETTER & REVIEW• “At his best PIERRE LOTI was unquestionably the finest descriptive writer of the day. In the delicate exactitude with which he reproduced the impression given to his own alert nerves by unfamiliar forms, colors, sounds and perfumes, he was without a rival. But he was not satisfied with this exterior charm; he desired to blend with it a moral sensibility of the extremest refinement, at once sensual and ethereal. Many of his best books are long sobs of remorseful memory, so personal, so intimate, that an English reader is amazed to find such depth of feeling compatible with the power of minutely and publicly recording what is felt. In spite of the beauty and melody and fragrance of LOTI’s books his mannerisms are apt to pall upon the reader, and his later books of pure description were rather empty…. When all his limitations, however, have been rehearsed, PIERRE LOTI remains, in the mechanism of style and cadence, one of the most original and most perfect French writers of the second half of the 19th century.” —EDMUND GOSSE • “A record of impressions through the dim years of awakening…. All that LOTI is and has been is gathered up and foreshadowed in the child…. And the style?—dreamy, suggestive, melodious, flowing on and on with its exquisite music…. It is fortunate that the translator has caught the subtle charm of LOTI’s style, so difficult to render in another speech, in an amazing degree. This is peculiarly necessary here, for accuracy of translation means giving the delicate changes of color and elusive chords of music that voice the moods and impressions of which the book is made…. Let us read the revelation of this book not primarily to condemn or praise, or even to estimate and define, but to appreciate. If it be true that no one ever looked into the Kingdom of Heaven except through the eyes of a little child, if it be true that the eyes of every unspoiled child are such a window, take the vision and be thankful.”—EDWARD HOWARD GRIGGS, FROM THE PREFACE NOTE: • We try to avoid selling books whose cover-boards are in a process of detachment (or “starting” as the book term goes). (Please see below for specifics about that.) But we made an exception for this 1901 artifact because: A) of its rarity B) and out of respect for the almost weirdly high esteem that such souls as W. CATHER, H. JAMES, M. PROUST, E. GOSSE had for the author’s writing, and because: C) the brightness and cleanliness of book’s pages means that, despite its flaws, it remains very readable. • • For other details about this book, please see below. • TITLE: “THE STORY OF A CHILD” AUTHOR: PIERRE LOTI TRANSLATOR: CAROLINE F. SMITH PREFACE: EDWARD HOWARD GRIGGS TYPE: HARDCOVERPAGES: 304 PUBLISHER, LOCALE, & YEAR: C.C. Birchard & Co. (Boston), 1901 EDITION: First US Edition, First Printing* *RE: Matching dates (1901) on Title & Copyright pages—with no later editions listed. NOTE: This copy is NOT ex-library NOR a book-club edition. ISBN: Pre-ISBN CONDITION OF COVER-BOARDS (NOT ISSUED WITH A DJ): VERY GOOD.Corners are bumped & scuffed. Spine tips are rubbed & discolored. Light scratching on sides. Spine is lightly sunned. Crease running up along the spine on front. Overall: bright & clean with vivid Imagery & text. CONDITION of BOOK ITSELF: ACCEPTABLE PLUS READING COPY.Book is square. The cover is in the process of detaching from the inside hinge. (“Starting.”) Despite this, the spine is tight. The top text-block edge is gilt & has moderate scuffing. The two other (untrimmed) edges are age-toned but sharp. Endpapers are ghosted & there is a vintage inscription on the FFEP. Pages are moderately age-toned but also bright & clean—with no writing, no doodling, no tears, no stains, no foxing, etc. BONUS: No noisome odors! (Always a Plus in a Vintage Book.) SHIPPING NEWS: This book will be wrapped with care before being shipped in a cushioned and sturdy mailer. THANK YOU! ********************** /\___/\=•ᆺ•= “We believe it’s good business to be good to our customers.” *********** FLAPPINCAT’s HOUSE RULES ***********1. GENERAL TREATMENT. We enjoy treating FLAPPINCAT customers with honesty & respect & warmth because that’s how we like to be treated when we buy things on eBay.2. GENERAL ATTITUDE. We are grateful you choose to trust us with your business. We aim for that gratitude to permeate every part of how we engage with you.3. OUR DESCRIPTIONS. We describe every item we sell as clearly and accurately as we can. When it comes to describing condition, we tend toward being conservative. 4. PACKING & SHIPPING. We know from experience that items, when not thoughtfully packed, can be damaged during shipment. To avoid that real danger, FLAPPINCAT wraps & cushions your purchase(s) mindfully—and sometimes zealously—in a sturdy package. WARNING: In our zeal, we sometimes over-tape containers and you may need a penknife to unseal our shipments. NOTE: Though we often recycle shipping materials, we do NOT stint on protection. 5. OUR PRICES. We try to offer the lowest prices on eBay for items we sell. Even our most expensive offerings tend to be lower than what others are asking. “You could look it up!” —to quote baseball immortal JACK KEEFE. SUMMARY: We know you have many buying options on eBay. FLAPPINCAT tries to be distinctive by being accurate, mindful, and friendly. *********** How We GRADECONDITION ***********DETAILS. The condition of every item we sell will be described in detail.FLAWS. All discernible flaws will be noted, if not emphasized. Of course, the grading of condition can be subjective. And since no grader is perfect, it is possible that we may at times miss a flaw. It is also possible that we may miss some perfections! Should we make a mistake, you will find FLAPPINCAT eager to fix things with you. Just send us a note and we’ll get on it.GRADING SYSTEM. For books and magazines (and even other items), we use these terms (in order of desirability): VERY FINE or LIKE NEW FINE (or EXCELLENT) NEAR FINE (or NF) VERY GOOD PLUS (or VG+) VERY GOOD (or VG) GOOD FAIR ACCEPTABLE POOR “POOR.” Except in rare cases, for rare items, we tend to avoid selling items that are in utterly “POOR” condition. It is more likely that on a rare item, only one part of an item (out of numerous parts) will be described as “POOR.”RETURNS. We accept that you may wish to return a purchase because you genuinely think we haven't described and graded its condition properly. We accept that we our* imperfect. We also accept that people can see things differently—and still be civil! (*Get it?)POP QUIZ. Please feel free to ask questions at any time about condition (or anything else, except math). EXTRA VISUALS. Although we include multiple photographs in our listings, we usually have others we could share with you. (These extra photos also help to establish a paper-trial in the rare case that an item is damaged en route to you.)*********** SHIPPING ***********Every item is individually priced for postage. That price can be found in the listing, not here. UNITED STATES: In the USA, we ship books via MEDIA MAIL. Magazines are generally shipped PRIORITY MAIL; the Post Office does not permit magazines which carry advertising to be shipped MEDIA MAIL.INTERNATIONAL DESTINATIONS: To those international countries to which we ship (please see list), the cost of postage is calculated by eBay and individually listed with each item.EXPEDITED SHIPPING: In the United States, EXPEDITED SHIPPING is available if you request, and pay, for it BEFORE we ship your item. *********** HOW TO PAY ***********PAYMENT: As we ship promptly, we ask that you please pay promptly—via PAYPAL. With auctions, payments should be made before 3 days (72 hours) from the time an auction for an item closes. After 4 days—and independent of us!—eBay automatically begins a process for unpaid action. NEED MORE TIME? If you need more time to pay, PLEASE just contact us in advance of the deadline. We understand how life happens, so we don't mind being reasonable. Thank you!*********** LASTLY ***********What more can we say? Haven't we said enough? Well…we can always repeat ourselves. In summary:FLAPPINCAT is genuinely grateful for your patronage and we aim to express that gratitude in every way we can. Thanks for trusting FLAPPINCAT! *********** P.S. COMINGSOON *********** /\___/\=•ᆺ•= FLAPPINCAT’s BIG BARN SALE of RARE VINYL & RARE CDS Featuring the best from a long-running collection of psych, garage, folk, private press, blues, gospel, world, xian, & oddities. *********** ***********

Price: 23.99 USD

Location: Chapel Hill, North Carolina

End Time: 2024-08-30T13:21:49.000Z

Shipping Cost: 5.75 USD