Aghani al-Darwish [Songs of the Dervish]

New York: Syrian-American Press, 1928. A very good copy, internally clean, the front wrapper with large chip at fore-edge. 8vo. Frontispiece by Kahlil Gibran. Original printed wrappers. FIRST EDITION, PRESENTATION COPY, inscribed on the front flyleaf in Arabic: "Ila Akhiy Jawaad ‘Arid [To my brother Jawaad ‘Arid] Rashid Ayyub."

This is the second of the three volumes of verse published by the Lebanese-born poet Rashid Ayyub (1872-1941) nicknamed the "complaining" or "dervish" poet. It's frontispiece is a characteristic image by Kahlil Gibran (Jubran Kahlil Jibran). As a merchant, he visited Paris and Manchester and later emigrated to New York, where he joined the romantic movement of the Mahjar ("exiled") poets, founding with other writers, al-R bi a al-Qalamiyya, the first Arab-American literary society. A scarce title, especially inscribed.