Available Copies from Independent Booksellers
DRAKE, Leah Bodine. A HORNBOOK FOR WITCHES. Poems of Fantasy. Arkham House, 1950.
Price: US$1300.00 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: A collection of forty-seven macabre themed poems, originally published in various journals and magazines, including Weird Tales, Wings, The Arkham Sampler, and others. One of the included poems, 'The Ballad of the Jabberwock' won the Stephen Vincent Benet award in 1946. Werewolves, Dragons, Witches, Kelpies, Fauns, Centaurs, are only a smattering of the mythical and supernatural subjects explored. Readily approachable, the majority of poems are only a page in length. Drake was a popular Weird Tales poet with more appearances in WEIRD TALES than Robert E. Howard, Clark Ashton Smith, or H.P. Lovecraft. With so few copies printed, [553 copies]the book is a legendary Arkham House rarity, with only half the edition run offered to the public. The printing on the spine of this copy runs British style from bottom to top as I believe it does on all copies. D.j., spine lettering lightly aged, 1/4" spot of color rubbed off rear of d.j., lettering, thin glue remnant at top page edges a nearly unavoidable flaw with these very thin Arkham House poetry volumes, two corners just nubbed, else a tight, bright very good copy in v.g., d.j.
Seller: Terence McVicker, Rare Books, Glendale, CA, U.S.A.
Drake, Leah Bodine. A HORNBOOK FOR WITCHES. Arkham House, 1950.
Price: US$1469.65 + shipping
Description: A HORNBOOK FOR WITCHES, Arkham House, 1950, first edition, some light browning to the gutter between the title page and the page adjacent (no doubt due to the publishers choice of glue and paper), else just about fine in a vg+ or better dust-wrapper with light wear to the top edges. 1/553 copies of which the author paid for and took about half to sell on her own making this vanity publication among the scarcest Arkham House publications to locate.
Seller: THE FINE BOOKS COMPANY / A.B.A.A / 1979, ROCHESTER, MI, U.S.A.
Leah Bodine Drake. A Hornbook for Witches. Arkham House, 1950.
Price: US$1500.00 + shipping
Condition: Near Fine
Description: Poetry collection. Perhaps the most difficult Arkham House title to find. Only 500 copies produced with half the run going to the author who helped fund the book's publication. Book is Near Fine. The jacket is Very Good with small chips at head and tiny color flakes along spine and on heel. A reasonably nice copy of a very rare book.
Seller: DreamHaven Books, Minneapolis, MN, U.S.A.
Leah Bodine Drake. A Hornbook for Witches - Poems of Fantasy. Arkham House, Sauk City, 1950.
Price: US$1539.31 + shipping
Condition: Fine
Description: Sauk City, Arkham House, 1950. First Edition. First Impression. Hardback. A lovely copy. One of the smaller print runs from Arkham consisting of 533 copies of which 300 were for Drake and the remainder sold via Arkham. Limited scuffing to the forecorners and spine tips. Plate of M J Miller to front pastedown. Some glue offsetting near the hinges as usual. An excellent copy. Cover art by Frank Utpatel [8834, Hyraxia Books].
Seller: Hyraxia Books. ABA, ILAB, Hutton Cranswick, United Kingdom
Drake, Leah Bodine. A Hornbook for Witches. Arkham House, Sauk City, 1950.
Price: US$2200.00 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: First edition. Near Fine in a Near Fine dust jacket. Browning to endsheets, gutters of prelims, and to spots on the top edge of page block. Black cloth is sharp and clean. The dust jacket shows light rubbing at extremities, and toning to the spine panel and to the blank verso, but presents rather well. A collection of poetry self-financed by the author and originally printed in a run of 533 copies, 300 of which the author distributed on her own. A very scarce Arkham House title.
Seller: Burnside Rare Books, ABAA, Portland, OR, U.S.A.
Price: US$2250.00 + shipping
Description: Octavo, pp. [i-vi] vii-viii [1-2] 3-70 [71-72: blank] [note: last leaf is a blank], original black cloth, spine panel stamped in gold. First edition. 553 copies printed. Tymn (ed), Horror Literature 6-17. Some tanning to top edge of pages (a common occurrence with this book), a fine copy in nearly fine dust jacket with light wear at upper spine end, mild rubbing to lower spine end and upper corner tips, and some tanning to spine panel with light show through to white lettering. A nice copy. (#162611)
Seller: Currey, L.W. Inc. ABAA/ILAB, Elizabethtown, NY, U.S.A.
Leah Bodine Drake. A Hornbook For Witches. Arkham House, WI, 1950.
Price: US$2750.00 + shipping
Condition: Near Fine
Description: One of the scarcest Arkham House titles with only 553 copies published.
Seller: Heartwood Books and Art, Fort Lauderdale, FL, U.S.A.
Drake, Leah Bodine. A Hornbook for Witches. Arkham, 1950.
Price: US$3500.00 + shipping
Condition: As New
Description: First Edition, First Printing. One of the scarcest Arkham House titles with only 553 copies published An attractive dustjacket that is rich in color with slight wear to the spine ends and panels with no chipping to the dustjacket. The book is in nice shape. The binding is tight and the boards are crisp with minor wear to the edges. The pages are exceptionally clean, with no writing, marks or bookplates in the book. Overall, a lovely copy of this true first edition in collector's condition!!! We are also interested in purchasing these type of books.
Seller: Magnum Opus Rare Books, Missoula, MT, U.S.A.
Drake, Leah Bodine. A Hornbook for Witches. Arkham House, Sauk City, 1950.
Price: US$5500.00 + shipping
Condition: Near Fine
Description: 1st edition. Signed. Some rubbing to the corners, toning from acidic binder's glue along the gutters, else near fine in fine (actually fine) dust jacket. One of the smallest publications of any Arkham House book at 553 copies, Drake self-financed the printing and took 300 copies for her own distribution. Fine copies are rare and signed copies scarce. Custom ¼ morocco slip case. This is Drakes first book, but she was already well known from the mid 30s as one of the more popular poets of the horror and fantasy genre, regularly appearing in Weird Tales. They named It the Jabberwock For want of another; But some shook their heads; "It's The Devil's own brother!" Then people came to church Who'd never been yet. Some patched up a quarrel And some paid a debt. -The Jabberwock.
Seller: Biblioctopus, Los Angeles, CA, U.S.A.