Isherwood, Christopher

8vo (193 x 123mm.), FIRST EDITION, PRESENTATION COPY INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR TO ALAN CLODD ("For Alan Clodd | With admiration for his | strength of purpose in | what I dare not (lest | I be accused by Derek Neame of mock humility) | call an unworthy cause | Christopher Isherwood | January 1956") on the front free endpaper, original mustard cloth, dust-jacket, slightly soiled dust-jacket worn at extremities

Condition is as described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate.
"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."

Dated January 1956, this inscription was written when Isherwood, accompanied by Don Bachardy, returned to England from the US for several months. The couple returned to California in mid-March.

Alan Clodd (1918-2002) began collecting Isherwood's work early in the 1950s and went on to amass a collection of over 20,000 volumes over his life. Isherwood was the first of a number of writers with whom he corresponded. In the 1950s, Clodd started working on a bibliography of Isherwood which may have been the "unworthy cause" to which Isherwood refers; the bibliography was never completed. Clodd, whose grandfather Edward was a friend to Gissing, Hardy and Meredith, was described in his obituary as "perhaps the last surviving example of a bookman in the 19th-century mould". He also formed a fine collection of the works of Samuel Beckett (see lots 6-11).