Autumn arrives with its cohort of poetic and prosaic symptoms: head colds, goose bumps, tonsilitis, chest ailments, streptococcal pharyngitis, acute coryza and other feverish chills of the season...

As summer draws to a close, doctor's notes begin piling up with difficulty.

If we must whine and lament the unbearable fragility of being, let us draw inspiration from the sickest of the sick and borrow the ills of the literary giants.

From Maupassant's siphylitic agony, Baudelaire's bilious affliction or Sade's hypochondriac logorrhea, Le Feu Follet has prepared a cordial stimulant of epistolary self-pity and literary bedriddenness...

To your very good health!

***

OUR INVESTIGATION. The Marquis falls ill in Charenton.

_______

"I feel spasms, little shivers, a lot of yawning, disgust, total despondency,

blood rushes violently to my head, then I feel dizzy, spinning and stumbling,

and a thousand other things proving great tension in the body,

and great irritation in the nervous system."

This is not an extract from the misfortunes of the virtuous Justine suffering through the Marquis's sadistic writing, but the Marquis's own moans subjected to the vice of his somatizing imagination.

Edition-Originale takes a look at the literary soul of the afflicted man.

Our new acquisitions

________

Antoine de SAINT-EXUPÉRY

[Original signed drawing]

Character in pencil and crayon

N. D. 

Original signed drawing in pencil and pink crayon by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, on “Navarre” watermarked paper.

Precious drawing signed by Saint-Exupéry – the writer-artist very rarely signed his graphic works – of a caricature character, sharing some of the writer's own features.

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Louis-Ferdinand CÉLINE

Féerie pour une autre fois

[Fable for Another Time]

Gallimard | Paris 1952

First edition, one of 1,050 numbered copies on 'vélin labeur' paper.
Publisher's cloth binding after an original design by Paul Bonet.

A very fine copy.

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Romain GARY

Tulipe

Calmann-Lévy | Paris 1946

First edition, one of 800 numbered copies on vélin alfa, only deluxe issue after 220 copies on vélin blanc du Marais.
Rare inscribed copy to B.B.C. newsreader Lionel Marson, who first announced to the world the beginning of WW2 after Germany had invaded Poland.
Romain Gary probably met British serviceman turned actor and radio presenter Lionel Marson after his aerial exploit he recalled in 'Promise at Dawn'.

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Jean de LA FONTAINE

Œuvres. Fables. Contes et nouvelles en vers. Œuvres diverses. Théâtre

Lefèvre & Les Libraires Associés | à Paris 1790 - 1822

Two editions bound together, belonging to the complete works of La Fontaine published by Lefèvre in 1822 by Wallckenaer; with an edition of the tales published in 1790..

Fables illustrated by Moreau Le Jeune with 12 plates newly engraved by Schneider; Pirate edition of 'Les Contes et Nouvelles' after the famous 'Fermiers généraux' edition, illustrated with a portrait and 80 full-page plates.

Sumptuous, unsigned Restoration-era binding in excellent condition, probably by a great workshop, Thouvenin or Simier.

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Romain ROLLAND

Warning autograph letter signed relaying Sun-Yat-Sen's call for help

Villeneuve (Vaud) | March, 1^st 1932

Autograph letter dated and signed by Romain Rolland, written in French and English from Villeneuve, Switzerland.
Romain Rolland, aligned with Moscow's position, criticizes the expansionist and imperialist policies of the West and the Japanese empire in China: “I take the liberty of communicating to you the enclosed appeal which I sent today to several French newspapers, and I enclose a copy of the telegram from Moscow, which triggered it.”

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Jules VERNE

Nord contre sud [North Against South]

Édition Hetzel | Paris 1905-1914

First edition illustrated with 85 drawings by Benett and a map of central Florida on page 33.
This adventure story set during the American Civil War marks Jules Verne's return to adventure novels after several science fiction works.

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Pierre DRIEU LA ROCHELLE

Les Chiens de paille

Gallimard | Paris 1964

Extremely rare unreleased true first edition, which remained as a proof copy under a blank cover; the deluxe paper copies announced were never printed.
Printer's imprint dated July 31, 1944, the entire print run of this edition has been destroyed.

An extremely rare work, one of probably only a few dozen copies printed for Gallimard proofreaders.

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Francis PICABIA & Mario PRASSINOS

Thalassa dans le désert

Fontaine | Paris 1945

First edition, one of 25 copies on Arches paper, this one unumbered, most limited deluxe issue.
Cover illustrated by Mario Prassinos.

Rare copy.

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Émile ZOLA

Autograph letter signed to Octave Mirbeau, written in exile during the Dreyfus Affair : « I believe it is the end of the world »

[Weybridge] | 19 August 1898

“In the midst of universal cowardice, you wouldn't believe how moved I am to have a few faithful people around me.”

Wonderful testament of friendship and self-sacrifice written by Zola in exile, after being sentenced to the maximum penalty for writing “J'accuse... !”.
Death would strike him in the midst of his glory days, before the final outcome of the Dreyfus Affair he had devoted so many years of struggle.

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Carlo RIM

97 original photographs from the set of Carlo Rim's "L'armoire volante" motion picture

1948  |  97 photographs in a cardboard box 

Original silver prints in three different formats depicting scenes from the film set housed in a 'Crumière' cardboard box labeled by Carlo Rim himself on the front cover and one edge of the lid.

L'armoire volante [The Flying Wardrobe] was written and directed by Carlo Rim; with Fernandel, Berthe Bovy and Pauline Carton in the lead roles.

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