Books

London: Smith, Elder, & Co., 1878. First Edition, first issue of the title page to Volume 1 without the quotation mark after "A Pair of Blue Eyes". Sketch Map of the Scene of the Story as frontispiece of volume 1. Half titles in each volume. Octavo, rebound in 3/4 leather over marbled boards. Top edges gilt. Very Good, with light shelf wear, but the spine leather has dried out and cracked. Gilt lettering is legible.

The Return of the Native is one of Thomas Hardy's novels of character and environment, first published as a serial in the magazine Belgravia, a publication known for its sensationalism, and was presented in twelve monthly installments from January to December 1878. The novel follows the lives of people in the fictional Egdon Heath, a symbol of Hardy's vision of nature and human passions.