Books

First edition of Donne's collected poems, issued two years after his death, and representing the first printing of some of the greatest poems in the English language, including "A Valediction Forbidding Mourning", "The Good Morrow", "The Sunne Rising", and "The Flea". It is here bound in contemporary calf with the second edition of his Paradoxes and Problems, published the same year as the first. Though his poems were widely circulated in manuscript in his time, Donne rarely published them in print, and regretted the few small pieces he did: "the fault that I acknowledge in my self, is to have descended to print any thing in verse" (Donne, Letters to Several Persons of Honour). Donne wrote most of his poems in the 1590s, when he was in his twenties; in his later years, as Dean of St Paul's, he was anxious to emphasize that those early works were "written by Jack Donne, not by Dr. Donne" (ibid.), the youthful libertine, rather than the mature divine. Despite Donne's own reported attempts to destroy his work, the poems were, in Isaak Walton's phrase, "scattered loosely (God knows too loosely)", and after his death the surviving manuscript copies of his work provided the basis for this edition, for which the original compiler made use of more than one group of scribal copies. The 1633 edition remains "the best text" of the poems, and "has more authority than any other in print" (Keynes). Notably absent is Donne's more explicitly erotic elegy "To His Mistress Going to Bed", which the licenser refused to include, and which was not printed until 1669. The book closes by printing a clutch of Donne's letters along with a group of elegies by, among others, Izaak Walton, Henry King and, most notably, Thomas Carew; the latter's contribution to the volume is "considered by many to remain the finest example of literary criticism in verse, imitating Donne's style in order to encapsulate and celebrate his achievement" (ODNB). This copy has the leaf Nn1 (page 273) in the uncorrected state, with 35 lines of text instead of 30 or 31 and with the omission of the usual running headline. It is bound without the two preliminary leaves "The Printer to the Understanders" and the publisher John Marriot's "Hexastichon Bibliopolae", which were "inserted only in a portion of the edition" (Keynes). Several lines on pages 330-31 and 341 are left blank, as usual. Donne's bibliographer Geoffrey Keynes concludes that various corrections in the text do not differentiate earlier and later states, but occurred "by chance" in the preparation of the text. The present copy is bound with the suitably contemporary edition of Paradoxes and Problems - re-titled Juvenilia and published the same year as the first - displays of wit which were not published during Donne's lifetime. READ MORE Small quarto (192 x 142 mm). Contemporary calf, sympathetically rebacked, recornered, and relined, red morocco label, spine ruled in blind and gilt, twin blind rule to covers, board edges rolled in gilt, red edges. Housed in a custom brown quarter morocco folding box. Woodcut printer's device to title page of Juvenilia, woodcut head- and tailpieces and initial letters throughout. Occasional faint damp stains to lower margins, discreet repair to upper outer corner of final leaf, contents otherwise remarkably fresh. An attractive, well-margined copy. ESTC S121864; Grolier, Langland to Wither, 286; Hayward 54; Keynes 78; Pforzheimer 296.

"Poems" by John Keats, published in 1817, marks the initial foray of the celebrated Romantic poet into the literary world. This collection encompasses a diverse array of poems that encapsulate Keats's exploration of themes such as nature, beauty, love, and the transient nature of life. Among the notable pieces in this collection are Keats's renowned odes, including "Ode to a Nightingale," where he delves into the contrast between the immortal beauty of art and the transient nature of human existence. In "Ode on a Grecian Urn," he muses on the eternal nature of art and its ability to capture moments frozen in time. The collection also features his sonnets, showcasing Keats's skill in capturing complex emotions and sentiments in a concise yet evocative form. Poems like "On First Looking into Chapman's Homer" express his awe and exhilaration upon discovering Homer's works through the translation by George Chapman. Keats's appreciation for the beauty of the natural world is evident throughout the collection. His vivid descriptions and sensuous imagery in poems such as "To Autumn" paint a captivating picture of seasonal beauty, showcasing his ability to intertwine the human experience with the splendor of nature. The themes of love and desire permeate several of Keats's works in this collection. Poems like "Bright Star" express his longing for enduring love and immortal fame, while "La Belle Dame sans Merci" explores the enchantment and peril of romantic entanglement. "Poems" serves as a testament to Keats's remarkable poetic talent, displaying his mastery of language, vivid imagery, and profound exploration of universal themes. Although this collection initially received mixed reviews and modest recognition during Keats's lifetime, it has since solidified his reputation as one of the most influential and revered poets in English literature. His rich and evocative verses continue to resonate with readers, captivating them with their emotional depth and timeless beauty.