Grahame, Kenneth

8vo (190 x 120mm.), FIRST EDITION, PRESENTATION COPY INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR IN THE MONTH AFTER PUBLICATION ("Anstey Guthrie | from | Kenneth Grahame | Oct. 1908.") on front free endpaper, frontispiece by Graham Robertson, original green pictorial cloth gilt, top edge gilt, others uncut, PICTORIAL LIGHT BROWN FIRST ISSUE DUST-JACKET (with price of 6/- on upper panel), collector's folding box, extremities slightly bumped, dust-jacket frayed at extremities with some loss to spine and brown tape repairs to reverse

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate. There is a tear to the leaf comprising pp. 39-40, not affecting text.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The novelist and journalist, Thomas Anstey Guthrie (1856 - 1934) wrote comic novels under the pseudonym of F. Anstey. He was an old friend of Elspeth Grahame's family since 1889. On publication of The Wind in the Willows, Elspeth Grahame wrote to Guthrie begging him to review it. His reply was not encouraging: "At present, I am, as you see, away from town, but even if I were not, I could do very little, as I do not review for any paper... and am not on intimate terms with any reviewer... If by any chance the book should not have been noticed by the time I return, I will certainly find an opportunity of mentioning it to someone on the Punch staff" (see Peter Green, Kenneth Grahame - A Biography (1959), p. 256). In the event the review in Punch missed the point and declared the tale "a sort of irresponsible holiday story".