Available Copies from Independent Booksellers
FLEMING, Ian Lancaster (1908-1964). Dr. No. London: Jonathan Cape, 1963, 1963.
Price: US$192.13 + shipping
Description: [James Bond adventure] Sixth Impression. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.256. Publisher's dark grey cloth-effect paper over boards (binding 'B'), silver titles to spine, with pictorial dust-jacket designed by Pat Marriott. Edges a little dusty/toned, contents clean, title page with an unfortunate clip to lower corner and one neat library stamp, old price '25p' in pen to free endpaper, jacket with a little wear at crown, priced 18s. via publisher's label. Despite faults, this copy shows well on the shelf. Gilbert, Jon: Ian Fleming The Bibliography, A6a (6.2).
Seller: Adrian Harrington Ltd, PBFA, ABA, ILAB, Royal Tunbridge Wells, KENT, United Kingdom
FLEMING, Ian Lancaster (1908-1964). Dr. No. London: Jonathan Cape, 1963, 1963.
Price: US$288.19 + shipping
Description: [James Bond adventure] Fifth Impression. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.256. Publisher's black cloth-effect paper over boards, silver titles to spine, with price-clipped pictorial dust-jacket designed by Pat Marriott. Top edge dusty, contents clean, would be fine, but for some overly enthusiastic use of tape (probably to secure an old clear protector) which has left numerous tape ghosts to the jacket, book and endpapers. Nonetheless, this copy shows well on the shelf. Gilbert, Jon: Ian Fleming The Bibliography, A6a (5).
Seller: Adrian Harrington Ltd, PBFA, ABA, ILAB, Royal Tunbridge Wells, KENT, United Kingdom
Price: US$349.99 + shipping
Condition: Near Fine
Description: IAN FLEMING - ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE, Taiwanese "Pirate" Edition circa 1963 (per date on title page), white endpapers, dark green (darker than shown in the attached scan) cloth boards with silver gilt lettering to spine. NOTE - DUE TO THE IMMENSE POPULARITY OF IAN FLEMING'S JAMES BOND BOOKS FOLLOWING THE RELEASE OF THE FIRST JAMES BOND MOVIE "DR. NO" IN 1962 AND JFK ANNOUNCING THAT FLEMING WAS HIS FAVORITE WRITER, FLEMING'S JAMES BOND BOOKS WERE HIGHLY SOUGHT AFTER BY U.S. SERVICEMEN STATIONED OVERSEAS IN THE ASIAN PACIFIC THEATER. TO FILL THAT NEAT "PIRATE" EDITIONS OF FLEMING'S BOOKS (AS WELL AS NUMEROUS OTHER POPULAR AUTHORS OF THE TIME) WERE CREATED - PRINTED IN ENGLISH AND USING VARIOUS TYPE SET PAGES AND DUST JACKET COVER ART (THEY WOULD USE WHATEVER VERSION OF THE BOOK THEY COULD FIND - WHETHER IT WAS A U.S. HARDCOVER OR A U.K. PAPERBACK) - IN THE CASE OF ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE THEY USED THE U.K. JONATHAN CAPE 1ST BUT THE DUST JACKET USED THE U.K. NAL PRINTING (THESE "TAIWANESE" EDITIONS ARE MOST EASILY IDENTIFIED BY THE UNINITIATED BY THE PRESENCE OF A BLOCK OF ASIAN CHARACTERS - SOMETIMES ON THE COPYRIGHT PAGE BUT USUALLY AT THE BOTTOM LEFT ON THE REAR ENDPAPER). WHILE THESE BOOKS HAVE NEVER BEEN PARTICULARLY COMMON (THE ONLY WAY THEY TURN UP FOR SALE IS IF A SERVICEMAN DECIDED TO BRING THE BOOK BACK TO THE U.S.), UP UNTIL ABOUT 3-4 YEARS AGO THESE BOOKS ROUTINELY SOLD FOR $100 OR LESS. NOW THESE BOOKS ARE NEAR IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND (AND ARE MUCH MORE COMMONLY KNOWN/COLLECTED). Book has no creased page corners, flat white pages with sharp outer page corners, no foxing to pages, endpapers or outer page edges, hint of dust soiling/age darkening to outer page edges, endpapers are clean and free from any discoloration (very tiny tear - likely a publishing defect at the top of rear internal hinge), no former owner's markings or used bookseller stamps/stickers inside, no wear to board edges, corners or spine tips, no bumped board corners, no discoloration/soiling to boards, no age darkening to spine. Dust jacket has largisth "v" losses at top spine tip otherwise no chipping or tearing or creasing (very poor paper was used on these DJs and as a result they are extremely prone to tearing and chipping), slight wear to spine tips, no wear to front flap crease (just at nick losses at flap crease corner), no wear to left/right on spine, no spine sun fading, no color rubbing, no age foxing spots panels, almost no no dust soiling to panel/spine, some edge wear (again common due to the poor printing quality of the paper and glossy covering used), no soiling or staining. Overall a FINE-/N-FINE book in VG+/FINE- condition dust jacket (not price clipped) of an Ian Fleming scarce "Taiwanese pirate" edition hardcover book. I have a number of other U.S. and U.K. Ian Fleming James Bond 1st printing hardcover appearances up for sale.
Seller: Far North Collectible Books, Anchorage, AK, U.S.A.
Ian Fleming. Dr. No. Jonathan Cape, 1963.
Price: US$480.32 + shipping
Condition: Near Fine
Description: Fifth impression from 1963 in near fine condition, there is a mark to the blank rear endpage which has also affected the jacket, no other markings, pages clean, binding firm, the boards are sharp. jacket in removable protective sleeve.
Seller: Setanta Books, Richmond, SURRE, United Kingdom
Fleming, Ian; Kroese, Beza Stenfert (eds.). Dr No. Jonathan Cape, 1963.
Price: US$677.18 + shipping
Condition: Fair
Description: Ex-library book, usual markings. First edition hardback without original dust cover but with original binding. Well worn copy with some significant spine wear. Colouring of page edges due to age. Quick dispatch from UK seller.
Seller: Stephen White Books, Bradford, United Kingdom
Ian Fleming. On Her Majesty's Secret Service. Jonathan Cape, London, 1963.
Price: US$1000.03 + shipping
Condition: Fine
Description: A fine copy of the eleventh Bond adventure. This a first impression, Binding B, with silver to both the spine and the front cover. The book is clean, square, and tight. There is a previous owner's name in pen to the ffep. The jacket has been price clipped but is otherwise fine. The back cover notes that Dr. No has now been filmed and that From Russia, With Love is soon to follow. Gilbert: First impression, binding B, A11a (1.2).
Seller: Sellers & Newel Second-Hand Books , Toronto, ON, Canada
Price: US$3522.38 + shipping
Description: [Spy novels] 14 volumes. Later printings, in a similar format to the first printings. Octavos (20 x 14 x 36cm). Publisher's hardbacks in original illustrated dust-jackets. All Cape printings (the original publisher of the James Bond novels), the final three titles being first impressions. A uniform set which shows well. No owner inscriptions or ink names, some light edge spotting to a few volumes, jackets generally bright and fresh with minor wear only, three titles are price clipped (OHMSS, YOLT, OCT), three are re-priced by Cape (DAF, FYEO, SPY), 'Live and Let Die' jacket is laminated, some wear/rubs to inside gutter, 'Spy' has a Bond film-related news-clipping to endpaper, overall gently aged and generally quite fresh. An attractive vintage set; with early hardcovers much in demand, and many being destined for the library system, this series is becoming rather difficult to assemble in decent order.
Seller: Adrian Harrington Ltd, PBFA, ABA, ILAB, Royal Tunbridge Wells, KENT, United Kingdom
FLEMING, Ian.. Casino Royale.. London: Jonathan Cape, 1963, 1963.
Price: US$19212.96 + shipping
Description: Second edition, fifth impression, presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "To CD from Ian". Sir Charles Denis Hamilton was a decorated veteran of the Second World War, "an outstanding natural newspaperman", a close friend of Fleming, and a fellow board member at the Kemsley News Group. As a columnist, much of Ian Fleming's journalism was published in the Sunday Times when Hamilton was editor-in-chief. In 1962 the inaugural issue of the ST Magazine featured the James Bond novella The Living Daylights. Hamilton also championed Fleming's Thrilling Cities travel articles, later being the dedicatee of the book edition. The first James Bond novel, Casino Royale was originally published in 1953. After two reprints, the work was entirely reset in 1957 and featured a dust jacket design by Patricia Marriott (1920-2002). Marriott also designed the dust jackets for two further Cape-published James Bond novels, Diamonds are Forever (1956) and Dr No (1958). Her husband, Michael Howard (1923-1974), was Fleming's literary advisor and a director at Cape. The 1963 impression was the fifth impression of the second edition and is also noted by Gilbert as the "eighth printing". This was, crucially, the final Cape printing of the author's debut novel to be published during his lifetime. This copy is from the library of the Fleming bibliographer Jon Gilbert, with his bookplate and signed catalogue description loosely inserted. Gilbert A1a(8). Harold Hobson, Phillip Knightley and Leonard Russell, The Pearl of Days: An Intimate Memoir of the Sunday Times, 1972. Octavo. Original black boards, spine lettered in red, red heart device on front cover. With dust jacket. Housed in a custom black morocco-backed folding box. Minor foxing to edges, extremities of jacket a little rubbed, unclipped; a fine copy in a near-fine jacket.
Seller: Peter Harrington. ABA/ ILAB., London, United Kingdom