Bauche

Fourth edition statement, after the French original published in 1750; illustrated with a frontispiece and 15 figures by Gravelot by Avéline, Chedel, Fessard and Pasquier. "Charming illustration from Gravelot's best period". Cohen. Translation and adaptation by De La Place.
Full brown glazed granulated calf binding. Smooth spine decorated. Red morocco title-label, black wax volume labels. Red edges. Rubbing, particularly to volume labels, with loss of gilding to volume 1. One corner cut to volume 1. Dampstain trace along upper joint of volume IV. Some scattered foxing, particularly on first leaves of volume 1 and title page of volume III.
The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling is unquestionably one of the great masterpieces of English literature. It establishes the English picaresque genre with a brilliant mixture of various genres: the novel of manners, the sentimental novel, and a satirical prose typically English found in Swift. Fielding had previously written Joseph Andrews, a sort of satire of the fashionable sentimental novel, Richardson's Pamela, and The History of Jonathan Wild, already two masterstrokes, and with Tom Jones he created a multiple, profound work, though always in the same vein as Joseph Andrews; its influence would be great in France, and enduring in England, reaching Thomas Hardy and George Eliot. The echoes of this so English style would find great resonance in Dickens.

First edition of this abridged version of La Calprenède's novel by the Marquis de Surgères. Faramond, like La Calprenède's other novels, extended endlessly over 7 large unfinished volumes; Surgères expurgated it of its digressions and concentrated the novel on the main character.
Contemporary full brown calf binding, grained and glazed. Spine with raised bands, decorated. Red morocco title label, green morocco volume labels. Lacks at head of volume I. A tear with lack to the head compartment of volume 3. 3 corners slightly bumped. Surface abrasions on the lower board of volume 2. Small lack on the upper board of volume 2 at tail. Volume 2, pp. 23 to 50, trace of pale yellow dampstain, which resumes p. 484 to end. Volume 4, trace of dampstain in upper margin from p. 289 to 384. Otherwise, a fresh copy.
A prolific and fertile writer, La Calprenède entered the literary world at the moment of the apogee of the precious and pastoral genre of which L'Astrée by Honoré d'Urfé was already the model. He added princes, kings, and sword fights, in short the ingredients of the chivalric novel, such as Tasso's Jerusalem Delivered; the result is a series of abductions, combats, thwarted loves, in short an incredible mixture between the pastoral genre, that of chivalry and that of Greek and Latin adventure novels, the author seeming to play skillfully with all domains to satisfy his public. His works were much appreciated and read, but they were never considered serious, like their author, a good-humored Gascon gentleman.
Faramond is the author's last novel, and was left unfinished; La Calprenède wrote only 7 books of it, which his death interrupted. Once again the adventures and exploits of the noble heroes unfold in a destabilized political world, which these same heroes will restore to peace.