London: Chapman and Hall, 1839. First edition. A handsome, Near Fine copy. Bound in publisher’s full maroon morocco gilt, all edges gilt, yellow endpapers. While copies of this work in the publisher’s deluxe binding usually appear in a green morocco, this example is in a much scarcer maroon morocco in much the same style. Complete with the frontisportrait (in the first state) and thirty-nine plates. Minor rubbing to extremities. The usual spotting to plates, but cleaner than is usually seen. A scarce and attractive survival in the scarce publisher's maroon morocco.

“Dickens’ third novel has always been a favourite with the general public. Indeed, it was the book’s huge sales that enabled Dickens to give up parliamentary reporting and become a full-time writer...The theatricality of the novel attracted new and more appreciative critical attention [and it] demonstrates the inextricable link between public and private” (Bannerjee). A satire tackling the injustices faced by both women and men within the Victorian class system that relied so heavily the social status of the patriarch, the novel follows Nicholas Nickleby as he seeks to support his mother and sister after his father’s death. When Nicholas’ father dies after losing all of the family’s money, it is up to the young man to emerge as the new and more morally sound patriarch. Dashing and likable, Nicholas ultimately prevails, dodging shady characters along the way and securing a respectable life in Devonshire for his extended family.

Smith, Part I: 5. Near Fine (Item #7942)