Crainquebille [SIGNED BY ILLUSTRATOR]
signed
1949 · New York
by France, Anatole; Bernard Lamotte (Illustrated by)
New York: Limited Editions Club, 1949. Limited edition. good+ to near fine. 1/1500. Small Folio. (xiii), [1], 69pp, [1]. Maroon buckram slipcase with gilt lettering on spine. Champagne colored tapestried burlap cloth boards with debossed red lettering on cover and spine. Illustrated frontispiece. Limited editions club newsletter and descriptive pamphlet laid in at front.
This limited edition, #707 of 1500 copies hand numbered and signed by illustrator Bernard Lamotte at colophon, contains beautifully printed lithographic charcoal-hued illustrations, some with color accent, throughout. Jérôme Crainquebille, is an aging modest vegetable seller who has sold groceries from his cart in Les Halles market in Paris for over 40 years. One day, whilst waiting for a customer to give him his change, he is hassled by a policeman who insists that he moves on. When he protests, Crainquebille is arrested, supposedly for swearing at the policeman. Following a farcical trial, the old man is sent to jail, where due to the poor quality of his past life he enjoys the benefits of the free shelter and food. On his release, however, his life continues to nose-dive: all of his past regular customers shun him, and, with no income, he turns to the bottle becoming an alcoholic. He is reduced to a tramp that everybody loathes, and the sad old man is about to commit suicide when a young street boy called "Mouse" takes him by the hand to forget about the past and persuades him to make a fresh start.
Slipcase with some scratches and minor waterstains. Rubbing on spine and along extremities. Binding with sunning to spine and along spine edge of covers. Slipcase in good+, Binding in very good-, interior in near fine condition overall. (Inventory #: 45211)
This limited edition, #707 of 1500 copies hand numbered and signed by illustrator Bernard Lamotte at colophon, contains beautifully printed lithographic charcoal-hued illustrations, some with color accent, throughout. Jérôme Crainquebille, is an aging modest vegetable seller who has sold groceries from his cart in Les Halles market in Paris for over 40 years. One day, whilst waiting for a customer to give him his change, he is hassled by a policeman who insists that he moves on. When he protests, Crainquebille is arrested, supposedly for swearing at the policeman. Following a farcical trial, the old man is sent to jail, where due to the poor quality of his past life he enjoys the benefits of the free shelter and food. On his release, however, his life continues to nose-dive: all of his past regular customers shun him, and, with no income, he turns to the bottle becoming an alcoholic. He is reduced to a tramp that everybody loathes, and the sad old man is about to commit suicide when a young street boy called "Mouse" takes him by the hand to forget about the past and persuades him to make a fresh start.
Slipcase with some scratches and minor waterstains. Rubbing on spine and along extremities. Binding with sunning to spine and along spine edge of covers. Slipcase in good+, Binding in very good-, interior in near fine condition overall. (Inventory #: 45211)