Books

Finnegans Wake inscribed by "P. L. Travers", the author of Mary Poppins on the first leaf. Joyce wrote the book over a period of seventeen years and it was published two years before the author's death. Joyce's avant garde fiction is significant for it's idiosyncratic language and experimental use of words. Original red cloth boards with gilt lettering on the spine. Bumped corners and spine ends. The book lacks the first free page. Inscribed on the front free page in ink with "P. L. Travers". Uncut pages and top edge coloured. A newspaper review of the book dated May 7th 1939 included on page 137 which has browned the page. The contents are clean and hinges tight. The unclipped dust jacket has chipped wear and small tears to the edges. 5 cm tear on spine top edge. Lightly darkened spine colour. 3cm piece torn on rear cover. 8vo 629 pp.

Finnegans Wake is a novel by Irish writer James Joyce. It is significant for its experimental style and reputation as one of the most difficult works in the Western canon. The book, Joyce's final and most avant-garde work, is structured as a sort of feverish dream containing multilingual puns, numerous literary and historical allusions, and a rich tapestry of themes.