Literature: Russian and neighbours

Image for TOLSTOY, L. War and Peace - first two parts, first publication; Moscow, 1865-66. #2

War and Peace before War and Peace

TOLSTOY, Lev

Tysiacha vosemsot piatyi god [The Year One Thousand Eight Hundred and Five]

£4,750

TOLSTOY, Lev, Tysiacha vosemsot piatyi god

The very first publication of any part of Tolstoy's masterpiece 'War and Peace'.

Image for GOGOL, N. Mertvye Dushi [Dead Souls]. St. Peterburg, 1900. #2

The best illustrated edition of the novel

GOGOL, N[ikolai] V[asilevich]

Pokhozhdenie Chichikova ili Mertvye dushi: Poema [The Adventures of Chichikov, or Dead Souls: A Poem]

£2,500

GOGOL, N[ikolai] V[asilevich], Pokhozhdenie Chichikova ili Mertvye dushi: Poema

The most lavish illustrated edition of Gogol's masterpiece, in its original binding.

"For adults" as printed on the title page

TOLSTOY, Lev

Vlast Tmy [The Power of Darkness]

£1,250

TOLSTOY, Lev, Vlast Tmy

Tolstoy the playwright, with a play forbidden for the stage during some years. A fresh example of the first edition.

Image for NEMIROVICH-DANCHENKO, V. Slazki deistvitelnosti. First edition, Tsarskoe Selo copy. #2

Imperial copy

NEMIROVICH-DANCHENKO, Vasilii Ivanovich

Skazki deistvitelnosti [Tales of Reality]

£2,750

NEMIROVICH-DANCHENKO, Vasilii Ivanovich, Skazki deistvitelnosti

First edition of these great realistic Russian novellas: the Tsarskoe Selo copy.

Image for CHEKHOV and others. The Cherry Orchard, and other writings. First publications, 1904. #2

First publication of the Cherry Orchard

CHEKHOV, Anton, Ivan BUNIN, Maksim GORKY and others

Sbornik Tovarishchestva "Znanie" za 1903 god [Collection of the "Knowledge" Society for the year 1903].

£2,500

CHEKHOV, Anton, Ivan BUNIN, Maksim GORKY and others, Sbornik Tovarishchestva "Znanie" za 1903 god

First Chekhov, first Bunin, first Gorky, first Andreev....A fine example of the uncommon two-volume Collection, with the first publication of 'The Cherry Orchard', among other firsts.

Image for LOMONOSOV, TREDIAKOSVKII, SUMAROKOV. Choix des meilleurs morceaux de la littérature russe. First edition, 1800. #2

Better than thought

LOMONOSOV, Mikhail Vasilievich, Vasilii Kirillovich TREDIAKOVSKII and Alexander Petrovich SUMAROKOV

Choix des meilleurs morceaux de la littérature russe, à dater de sa naissance jusqu'au règne de Catherine II

£950

LOMONOSOV, Mikhail Vasilievich, Vasilii Kirillovich TREDIAKOVSKII and Alexander Petrovich SUMAROKOV, Choix des meilleurs morceaux de la littérature russe, à dater de sa naissance jusqu'au règne de Catherine II

Attractive example of the first French anthology of Russian literature, with some of the best authors of the 18th century.

Image for SOLZHENITSYN, A. Odin den Ivana Denisovicha. First edition, Flegon, London, 1962. #1

With the rarest cover variant

SOLZHENITSYN, Aleksandr Isaevich

Odin den Ivana Denisovicha [One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich]

£4,750

SOLZHENITSYN, Aleksandr Isaevich, Odin den Ivana Denisovicha

First edition of Solzhenitsyn's first book - here with the very rare variant of the cover showing a watchtower. A fine example of this great novel.

Image for SHALAMOV, V. Kolymskie rasskazy. First edition, 1978. #1

With provenance

SHALAMOV, Varlam Tikhonovich

[Kolyma Stories] Kolymskie rasskazy

£1,250

SHALAMOV, Varlam Tikhonovich, [Kolyma Stories]

First edition of this classic of "GULAG literature", with literary provenance.

Image for BLOK, A. O liubvi, poezii i gos. sluzhbe. Berlin, 1920. #1

First book edition

BLOK, Aleksandr Aleksandrovich

O liubvi, poezii i gosudarstvennoi sluzhbe [Dialogue About Love, Poetry and Government Service]

£125

BLOK, Aleksandr Aleksandrovich, O liubvi, poezii i gosudarstvennoi sluzhbe

Very good example of this first separate edition of Blok's thoughts on a wide range of themes.

Image for NAKHIMOV, Akim. Works in Verse and Prose. Kharkov, 1815. #2

Rare Russian fables from Ukraine

NAKHIMOV, Akim Nikolaevich

Sochineniia v stikhakh i proze [Works in Verse and Prose]

£1,250

NAKHIMOV, Akim Nikolaevich, Sochineniia v stikhakh i proze

Early Russian fables (and other poetical works) at the dawn of Russia's Golden Age of Literature - the authors only book, written and printed in Kharkov, nowadays Ukraine. No copy traced outside Russia.

Image for MONTESQIEU, Ch. Lettres persanes in Russian. Skt. Peterburg, 1792. #2

French enlightenment in Russia

MONTESKE [MONTESQUIEU, Charles Louis de]

Pisma persidskiia [Lettres persanes] [Persian Letters]

£3,750

MONTESKE [MONTESQUIEU, Charles Louis de], Pisma persidskiia [Lettres persanes]

Rare first illustrated edition of the 'Lettres persanes' in Russian, in contemporary binding with lovely Russian endpapers.

Tolstoy the playwright

TOLSTOY, Lev

Pervyi vinokur ili kak chertenok kraiushku zasluzhil. Komediia [The First Distiller, or How the Little Devil Earned his Crust. A Comedy].

£1,750

TOLSTOY, Lev, Pervyi vinokur ili kak chertenok kraiushku zasluzhil. Komediia

First edition of Tolstoy's successful play on wine and some of its effects... Lovely example in wrappers. Scarce.

Image for PUSHKIN and DOBUZHINSKY. Evgenii Onegin. Paris & Bruxelles, 1938. #1

Finely illustrated

PUSHKIN, Aleksandr and Mstislav DOBUZHINSKY (artist)

Evgenii Onegin. Roman v stikhakh [Eugene Onegin. Novel in verse, ed. by V.F. Khodasevich]

£750

PUSHKIN, Aleksandr and Mstislav DOBUZHINSKY (artist), Evgenii Onegin. Roman v stikhakh

Pushkin's novel in verses in the original Russian, here illustrated by Dobuzhinsky: the first edition of the full set of illustrations.

Image for D.H. LAWRENCE, first edition of Lady Chatterley's Lover in Russian, Berlin, 1932 #2

In the publisher's wrappers

LORENS, D. G. [D. H. LAWRENCE] and Tatiana LESHCHENKO (transl.)

Liubovnik ledi Chatterlei [Lady Chatterley's Lover]

£3,950

LORENS, D. G. [D. H. LAWRENCE] and Tatiana LESHCHENKO (transl.), Liubovnik ledi Chatterlei

First edition in Russian of Lawrence's famous scandalous work, banned in the UK, USA and Soviet Union. An early translation by a talented Russian woman who went from Moscow to New York and to the GULAG, and inspired Solzhenitsyn. Very rare: no copy in Russian libraries, none in the UK, only two traced in WorldCat (Princeton and Syracuse).

Image for DICKENS - PLESHCHEEV, first 'Life of Dickens' in Russian, first book edition. #2

Dickens' life for Russian readers

[DICKENS] – PLESHCHEEV, Aleksei Nikolaevich

Zhizn Dikkensa [The Life of Dickens]

£1,450

[DICKENS] - PLESHCHEEV, Aleksei Nikolaevich, Zhizn Dikkensa

Rare first significant biography of the great Victorian author in Russian, written by an active (and politically engaged) man of letters. First book edition. Apparently no copy in Britain, only at the NYPL and in Sidney outside Russia.

Image for Rustaveli, Vepxistqaosani, The Knight in the Panther's Skin, in Georgian, Berlin, 1943 #2

For the Georgian soldiers of the Third Reich

RUSTAVELI, Shota

Vepxistqaosani [The Knight in the Panther's Skin]

£4,750

RUSTAVELI, Shota, Vepxistqaosani

The main national epic of Georgia in a very unusual, small-format production, in Georgian, for the Third Reich's "Georgian Legion". An extremely rare edition of Rustaveli's masterpiece, and a fantastic example from the 50 deluxe copies, here in a luxurious binding.

Image for Pouchkine, Ruslan et Ludmila, première édition en vers, avec envoi, Paris, 1898. #2

Inscribed by the translator, a feminist character

[PUSHKIN] – Alexandre POUCHKINE, Véra STARKOFF (transl.) and Marie EGOROFF (artist)

Rouslane et Ludmile

£2,450

[PUSHKIN] - Alexandre POUCHKINE, Véra STARKOFF (transl.) and Marie EGOROFF (artist), Rouslane et Ludmile

The first complete poetic French translation of Pushkin's celebrated work. Strikingly illustrated by an original Russian female artist, and this copy inscribed by the translator: a politically-engaged playwright and one of the main figures of the feminist theatre movement in France. Rarely found, and only 500 copies printed.

Image for Bulgakov, Heart of Dog, first Russian book edition, Paris, YMCA, 1969. #2

U-u-u-u-u-u... in first edition

BULGAKOV, Mikhail

Sobache serdtse [Heart of a Dog]

£1,450

BULGAKOV, Mikhail, Sobache serdtse

Uncommon first book edition in Russian of Bulgakov's suppressed satirical masterpiece. A lovely copy in its original wrappers by Annenkov.

Login