Remarkable autograph letter signed by Antoine Blondin, addressed to Roger Nimier at his Paris office at the N.R.F., in which he recounts—perhaps not entirely sober—his misadventures in “marital” cohabitation with a seminarian named Prébende Alexis.
29 lines on a folded sheet.
Envelope included.
Published in À mes prochains: lettres, 1943-1984, ed. Alain Cresciucci, 2009, p. 110.
In a highly humorous and irreverent tone, Antoine Blondin writes to his “dear friend” a list of edifying events from his Mayenne existence, enumerated, as “I believe the time has come to enlighten you about certain things that have happened to me.”
Edition of the same year as the first, statement of 17th thousand.
Spine slightly sunned.
Signed and inscribed by Alphonse Narcisse to André Morice.
First edition, rare copy with no statement of print.
Full blue morocco binding, spine with raised bands in the Jansenist style, endpapers and pastedowns of combed marbled paper, gilt dentelle framing the pastedowns, double gilt fillets and gilt tooling to headcaps and board edges, top edge gilt with untrimmed margins preserved, original front wrapper bound in, binding signed by Marius Michel. Monogrammed bookplate mounted on the verso of the first endpaper.
This copy is enriched with four hors-texte plates by Louis Boulanger and Alfred Johannot.
Signed autograph inscription by Victor Hugo on the half-title: « À Monsieur Ch[arles] Mévil son bien cordialeme
Edition of the year of the first edition, statement of 17th thousand.
Spine slightly sunned.
Autograph inscription signed by Alphonse Narcisse to madame André Morice.
Second edition, printed in a small number of copies on Hollande laid paper.
3/4 red morocco, five raised bands-spine, gilt date at foot. Slight, superficial fading to spine, marbled paperboards, pebbled flyleaves and pastedowns, original covers and spine preserved, top edge gilt, A finely executed, unsigned binding from the late 19th to early 20th century.
Provenance: from the library of Simone and André Maurois, with their engraved bookplate on front pastedown.
Signed and inscribed copy by Paul Verlaine to the opera singer Marie-Blanche Vasnier : "A Madame Vasnier, hommage respectueux. P. Verlaine." [To Madame Vasnier, with respectful homage. P.
