Available Copies from Independent Booksellers
Dickens, Charles. The Story of Little Dombey. Bradbury & Evans, London, 1858.
Price: US$96.06 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: A Very Good copy in worn quarter leather with marbled boards which are a little loose. This copy lacks the leather part of the spine, so this would present itself ideally for a professional rebinding for such an uncommon work.
Seller: Fountain Books (Steve Moody), Eastleigh, United Kingdom
DICKENS, Charles. THE STORY OF LITTLE DOMBEY. Bradbury & Evans, London, 1858.
Price: US$125.00 + shipping
Description: First edition thus, an abridgement of Dombey and Son, arranged for public readings. 16mo in eights. (2), 121 pp. Lacks half-title and ad leaf. Eckel, p. 215. Later brown morocco, boards framed with a thin gilt double-rule, gilt title between raised bands on spine, marbled endpapers, top edge gilt. Very good.
Seller: Bartleby's Books, ABAA, Chevy Chase, MD, U.S.A.
Price: US$169.07 + shipping
Description: FIRST EDITION. Half title. Orig. green printed pictorial wrappers; spine neatly reinforced with appropriate green paper, chipped at head & tail, wrappers a little dulled. Bookplate of Marguerite Robins Maclaren. A good-plus copy in attractive custom-made dark green morocco slip case. Gimbel B171. Advertisement on the following wrapper listing the Cheap and Uniform Edition of Mr. Dickens's Christmas Books.
Seller: Jarndyce, The 19th Century Booksellers, London, United Kingdom
Charles Dickens. The Story of Little Dombey. Bradbury & Evans, London, 1858.
Price: US$185.73 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: The first edition of Dickens' abridged version of 'Dombey and Son', produced for his very popular public reading tours. The first edition.Bound without half-title or publisher's adverts.This interesting volume contains Dickens' abridged version of 'Dombey and Son', thus edited for his very popular public readings which he began in 1853. Dickens undertook these public readings later in his career, at which point he was one of the most famous figures in the Western world, perhaps second only to Queen Victoria. These readings took place across Great Britain and the United States."Dombey and Son" is about Paul Dombey, the owner of a shipping company, who intends to pass down ownership of his company to his son, ignoring his daughter, Florence. The novel tells the story of their family, and their hopes and fears. In a rebacked half calf binding with cloth to the boards. Externally, smart. Light rubbing and some light marks to the boards. Remnants of aged tape and discolouration due to tape to the tail of the boards. Internally, firmly bound. Pages are bright and clean, with a few scattered spots and handling marks. Very Good
Seller: Rooke Books PBFA, Bath, United Kingdom
Price: US$200.00 + shipping
Description: First edition thus, published as part of the series of ?Cheap and Uniform Editions of Mr. Dickens?s Christmas Books? by Bradbury & Evans. Sixteenmo. 114, [1, ads], [1, blank] pp. Original printed green wrappers bound in at rear. Full crushed green morocco by Riviere with triple gilt rule borders, gilt spine and turns-ins, burgundy endpapers. Front joint split but still holding. A clean and attractive copy.?Boots at the Holly-Tree Inn? was a Christmas story written for a special issue of Dickens?s Household Words, and ?Mrs. Gamp? is an excerpt from Martin Chuzzlewit. Gimbel D31.
Seller: Nat DesMarais Rare Books, ABAA, Portland, OR, U.S.A.
Price: US$211.34 + shipping
Description: FIRST EDITION. Half title, final ad. leaf. Orig. green printed pictorial wrappers; spine with small neat repair at spine, otherwise v.g. Gimbel B171. Advertisement on the following wrapper listing the Cheap and Uniform Edition of Mr. Dickens's Christmas Books, listing three titles.
Seller: Jarndyce, The 19th Century Booksellers, London, United Kingdom
Charles Dickens. The Story of Little Dombey. Bradbury & Evans, London, 1858.
Price: US$435.49 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: A first edition copy of Charles Dickens' re-written excerpts from Dombey and Son, intended for public readings. The scarce first edition. Rebound in paper covered boards. Re-written excerpts from Charles Dickens' popular novel, 'Dombey and Son', adapted for public readings. Dickens' public readings were highly popular during the Victorian period, and involved him re-shaping many of his novels into a performance format. 'The Story of Little Dombey', was one of his most successful works in this style. 'Dombey and Son', the novel from which the material came from, is a popular novel exploring the themes of child cruelty, deceit and the British class struggle. The story follows a shipping firm owner who has a difficult relationship with his daughter. The half title page is present, alongside one page of publisher's advertisements to the rear of the volume. Rebound in paper covered boards. Externally, very smart with light shelf wear. Some light marks and the odd spot to the boards. Spine is darkened. Light marks to the paste-downs and free endpapers. Internally, firmly bound. Pages generally bright and clean with age-toning to the edges and scattered spots and handling marks throughout. Repaired closed tear to the title page. The half title page is darkened. Very Good
Seller: Rooke Books PBFA, Bath, United Kingdom
Price: US$496.27 + shipping
Description: London: Bradbury & Evans, 1858. 16mo. Orig. printed wrappers (rebacked). Preserved in green cloth folding case with ties. 1st editions. NOTE: Dickens undertook private readings and accordingly published abridged texts to correspond with these popular reading tours. First read in London on 10 June 1858, The Story of Little Dombey, proved so popular that it remained in his repertoire throughout his reading career.
Seller: Berkelouw Rare Books, Berrima, NSW, Australia
Price: US$505.94 + shipping
Description: The first reading edition of Charles Dickens's christmas tale, bound in the publisher's original paper wraps. The first "reading edition" of this work, the rarest of Dickens's five reading editions.'Boots at the Holly-Tree Inn' had previously appeared in Dickens's 'Household Works', while 'Mrs. Gamp' is an excerpt from 'Martin Chuzzlewit'.The 'reading editions', edited by Dickens and sold in uniform green wrappers, were sold at bookshops and in large numbers at Dickens' popular public readings.With a publisher's advertisement to the rear.A charming collection of festive tales from Charles Dickens. In the publisher's original paper wraps. Significant losses of paper to back strip from a spill burn. Light discolouration to perimeters of front wrap. Scorch mark to head of rear wrap, with fairly significant loss. Faint pencil inscriptions to verso of front wrap. Internally, binding slightly tender. Pages clean and bright, but with scorch mark visible from head of page 89 to head of final leaf. Good Only
Seller: Rooke Books PBFA, Bath, United Kingdom
Dickens, Charles. The Story of Little Dombey. Bradbury & Evans, 1858.
Price: US$576.39 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: London: Bradbury & Evans (1858). First edition. 12mo., original publishers green paper wrappers, with an illustration of little dombey on the upper wrapper, with decorations, the title and publishing information all in black. An advertisement in black on the lower panel; pp. 121 + an advertising leaf at the rear; An about very good copy. The upper panel corners rubbed with a few preliminary pages with the corners turned over. The spine is chipped with about 2cm off loss to the bottom, sporadic patches of browning here and there. Otherwise pages and wrappers are clean and the binding is holding well. An abridged version of Dombey and Sons that Dicken's publisher would have printed after the success of his public reading tours. Bradbury and Evans produced five of these ephemeral booklets in 1858, that are referred to in Eckel as the 'reading editions'. Eckel goes on to say "Each was uniformly bound in a green, printed pictorial paper wrapper". Dickens had been on an extensive tour of the UK and America, reading extracts from his novels and so the publishers decided to print these special reading editions to commemorate his efforts. [Eckel p. 215]
Seller: The Plantagenet King ABA / ILAB, Birchington, KENT, United Kingdom
DICKENS, CHARLES. The story of Little Dombey. Bradbury & Evans, London, 1858.
Price: US$1125.00 + shipping
Description: First edition, 16mo, pp. [4], 121; original green printed wrappers; pretty fine. Excerpts from Dombey & Son re-written by Dickens for public readings. Eckel, p. 215; Gimbel B-171.
Seller: Rulon-Miller Books (ABAA / ILAB), St. Paul, MN, U.S.A.