Books

Three vols, 8vos; 303, 297, 320; advertisement in rear of second volume; brown cloth stamped in black and gilt. One of 1000 copies, this one in Sadleir's "B" binding (no priority), with double blind frame on rear boards and slightly larger spine imprint. A nice set of one of Hardy's most enduring novels. Frontispiece map in vol. 1 detached and loosely inserted; rear inner hinge of vol. 1 cracked; covers rubbed, especially at spinal extremities, and with faint marks to their front panel where it appears that labels may once have been affixed; some light, internal spotting; a presentable set.

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.