Available Copies from Independent Booksellers
Price: US$150.00 + shipping
Description: First American Edition, Duodecimo, original cream cloth over boards, black stamped lettering and design on covers and spine. Part of Henry Holt and Company's Leisure Hour Series, Hardy's first book to be published in the U.S., late issue of First American Edition with 1873 on title page and March 22, 1880 on ads at rear pastedown. Good, moderate wear especially to spine ends and front of covers, ex-libris with bookplate and punch-hole stamp on title page and card-holder at rear pastedown.
Seller: Yesterday's Gallery, ABAA, East Woodstock, CT, U.S.A.
Price: US$450.00 + shipping
Description: First American Edition, 18 mo, original mustard cloth over boards, decorated in black stamped lettering and design on covers and spine, gilt stamped lettering on spine. A story of Victorian romance between musician Dick Dewey and school teacher Fancy Day from English novelist and poet Thomas Hardy, this copy was published without ads, part of Henry Holt and Company's Leisure Hour Series. Very good, lacking front free endpaper, light shelf wear, .25 inch closed tear to top of front cover, top corner of page 86-87 missing.
Seller: Yesterday's Gallery, ABAA, East Woodstock, CT, U.S.A.
Price: US$540.19 + shipping
Description: 8vo., First US Edition [Later Issue]; original pictorial mustard cloth blocked and lettered in black, backstrip lettered in gilt and black, very neatly rebacked with old backstrip laid down, original printed endpapers wholly preserved, covers very lightly age-soiled (but every detail of the blocking bright and clear), corners very lightly bruised without material damage, a remarkably bright, clean copy. HARDY'S FIRST BOOK PUBLISHED IN THE US AND THE SECOND EDITION OF THE WORK OVERALL. Hardy's second novel 'Under the Greenwood Tree' was first published by Tinsley in 1872, one of the 'best press-noticed' books sold by that publisher. Under the terms of Tinsley's new agreement with Holt of New York it was then issued by the latter in their popular 'Leisure House' series in June 1873, the first of Hardy's works to be so issued in the US. His first novel 'Desperate Remedies' (1871) did not appear in the series until March 1874. From the series catalogue present on the front endpapers it is clear that this is a later issue (at least 1881 since the list includes 'A Laodician'). Most volumes in the 'Leisure Hour' series were severally reissued with updated endpapers. This copy has been expertly rebacked. The original, elaborately blocked, backstrip is virtually complete with just a few millimetres missing at extreme head and tail. The original endpapers, which carry a detailed catalogue of the 'Leisure Hour' series catalogue printed in red, are all complete and virtually unmarked. The top edge is mildly dust-soiled but this does not extend to the text, which also shows practically no trace of the usual foxing and spotting. A NOTABLE COPY AND A RARE SURVIVAL. See Purdy, p.8 et seq. NCBEL III 981.
Seller: Island Books, Thakeham, West Sussex, United Kingdom
HARDY, Thomas. A PAIR OF BLUE EYES. Henry Holt and Company, New York, 1873.
Price: US$1250.00 + shipping
Description: Issued in the Leisure Hour Series. Publisher's decorated cloth with the ads dated 4 October 1873. Hardy's third novel and the first published under his own name. Fraying to spine tips. The light-colored cloth is foxed and soiled. The first sentence of most of the chapters have a pencil notation that seems to be the reader's response to the chapter titles. Very Good and quite uncommon
Seller: Charles Agvent, est. 1987, ABAA, ILAB, Fleetwood, PA, U.S.A.