We guarantee the authenticity and completeness of all items (unless otherwise described), and are happy to provide a certificate to this effect. All items can be assumed to be in good condition, with any defects being described in our description.
We guarantee the authenticity and completeness of all items (unless otherwise described), and are happy to provide a certificate to this effect. All items can be assumed to be in good condition, with any defects being described in our description.
Written by Roddy Newlands
For centuries, books have been written in an attempt to share knowledge, inspiration, and discoveries. From Dickens to Rowling, let us impart a few nuggets of wisdom from some of the most revered literary works to help keep you positive.
1. 'There will be little rubs and disappointments everywhere, and we are all apt to expect too much; but then, if one scheme of happiness fails, human nature turns to another; if the first calculation is wrong, we make a second better: we find comfort somewhere.'
– Jane Austen, Mansfield Park
2. 'It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that.'
—J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
3. 'There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humour.'
― Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol
4. 'The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land.'
―G. K. Chesterton, The Riddle of the Ivy
― Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina
—Benjamin Disraeli, Coningsby
– Herman Melville, Moby Dick
—Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince
—Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo
― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables
There are many collectable editions of Alice (the true true first edition of Alice in Wonderland was printed in 1865 but pulled due to Tenniel's unhappiness with the quality of the printing, with only a few copies escaping being sold for scrap paper - this is a seven-figure book today); the distinctive red cloth was maintained by the publishers Macmillan throughout the 19th century, but the variation in price between a first printing of the first published edition and even coeval reprints is enormous. Issue points plague both Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, so always prudent to talk to a specialist.
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Explore our Literature department for even more inspiration.
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A first edition of a rare or beautiful book makes a great gift, whether it is for an adult or a child. If you are looking for that special present for a birthday, wedding, anniversary, christening, Christmas or any other special occasion, please contact our rare books specialist Angus Robb and he will help you to find the perfect book for the recipient.
Shapero Rare Books is an internationally renowned dealer in London, specialising in antiquarian & rare books and works on paper, with particular expertise in fine illustrated books from the 15th to the 20th century, travel & voyages, natural history, modern firsts, rare children’s books, guidebooks, Hebraica & Judaica, Eastern European, and Islamica.
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