Books

First editions, first impressions; 4 vols; 8vo (21 x 14 cm); [Justine] light spotting to prelims and endpapers, else unmarked internally; publisher's red cloth, gilt title to spine on pale blue background, blue topstain, light shelf wear to lower edge, mild spotting to edges, with the unclipped pictorial dust-jacket, edges slightly toned and foxed, light spotting to panels, spine slightly darkened, minor edge-wear; [Balthazar] light offsetting and a little spotting to endpapers; publisher's blue cloth, gilt title on a red background to spine, light shelf wear to edges, unclipped pale grey dust-jacket, light spotting, spine slightly darkened, a few small tears along joints; [Mountolive] slight offsetting to endpapers, prelims a little spotted, publisher's yellow cloth, gilt title to spine on purple background, joints slightly rubbed, unclipped green pictorial dust-jacket, small hole to back cover, a little edge-wear; [Clea] publisher's red cloth, gilt title to spine on green background, unclipped typographic dustjacket, a little toning, minor edge-wear. The first editions, first impressions of Lawrence Durrell's acclaimed series of novels, The Alexandria Quartet, comprising Justine, Balthazar, Mountolive, and Clea. All in unclipped dustjackets. At the age of 11, Durrell, who was born in the North of India near Tibet, was sent 'home' to England to be educated. He disliked living in such a different country and culture and never fully adjusted to it, even after his father's early death in 1932 when his mother returned with the rest of the family to live in England. Later, in 1935, following his first marriage, Durrell moved with his mother and his siblings to Corfu, which he felt reminded him of India. While in Greece, he drafted a novel entitled The Book of the Dead, a predecessor to his first volume of The Alexandria Quartet. However, it was only much later, in 1952, after his return to the Mediterranean, Durrell began actually writing Justine. During the 1940s he had worked for the British Information Office in Egypt. He was separated from his first wife, Nancy Myers, and in Alexandria he met Eve Cohen, a Jewish woman on whom the character of Justine is loosely based and who became his second wife. Durrell would eventually complete the quartet in France.

Mountolive is the third volume of The Alexandria Quartet series by British author Lawrence Durrell. Set in pre-World War II Alexandria, Egypt, Mountolive is part of a sequence of novels that tell a complex story of passion, politics, and betrayal. The series is celebrated for its rich and intricately woven narrative and exploration of modern love.