Robbery Under Arms.
BOLDREWOOD, Rolf
London: Remington and Co Publishers. 1888.
Description:
First edition. Three volumes. 8vo. 182x120mm. pp. [4], 300; [4], 300; [4], 291 [1bl]. Publisher's green cloth, decorated with a flower and butterfly design in black to upper cover and lettered in gilt to spine. Decorated endpapers. Front pastedowns have book label of George C. Leighton (quite probably of the celebrated printing firm) and the rear pastedown of first volume has the bookplate of H. Bradley Martin Housed in a card chemise (with the Bradley Martin label) in a custom-made box in green quarter morocco and green cloth. Slight bumping to corners and to head and foot of spine but otherwise in excellent condition. Internally very good but with some foxing, heavy in a few places. Some repair and strengthening to the hinges. A nice copy of a novel which marked an important stage in the development of a distinctively Australian literary tradition.
Generally regarded as the first great Australian novel and one of the most important works of colonial literature, Robbery Under Arms is an authentic recreation of the hard, violent, lawless life of the outback. Bolderwood (actually Boldrewood but incorrectly spelt on the title page of the novel – and in any case, the nom de plume of Thomas Alexander Browne) based the novel on real events and this, together with its authentic dialogue and use of "colonial vernacular" gives the novel its hard-edged character and immediacy.
Description:
First edition. Three volumes. 8vo. 182x120mm. pp. [4], 300; [4], 300; [4], 291 [1bl]. Publisher's green cloth, decorated with a flower and butterfly design in black to upper cover and lettered in gilt to spine. Decorated endpapers. Front pastedowns have book label of George C. Leighton (quite probably of the celebrated printing firm) and the rear pastedown of first volume has the bookplate of H. Bradley Martin Housed in a card chemise (with the Bradley Martin label) in a custom-made box in green quarter morocco and green cloth. Slight bumping to corners and to head and foot of spine but otherwise in excellent condition. Internally very good but with some foxing, heavy in a few places. Some repair and strengthening to the hinges. A nice copy of a novel which marked an important stage in the development of a distinctively Australian literary tradition.
Generally regarded as the first great Australian novel and one of the most important works of colonial literature, Robbery Under Arms is an authentic recreation of the hard, violent, lawless life of the outback. Bolderwood (actually Boldrewood but incorrectly spelt on the title page of the novel – and in any case, the nom de plume of Thomas Alexander Browne) based the novel on real events and this, together with its authentic dialogue and use of "colonial vernacular" gives the novel its hard-edged character and immediacy.