Moon

1927. First Edition. THOREAU, Henry David. The Moon. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1927. Small octavo, original half vellum with purple paper boards, original slipcase. $900.Limited first edition, one of 500 copies printed at the Shakespeare Head Press in Stratford-upon-Avon.Found after his death among his manuscripts, The Moon was probably intended by Thoreau ""to form the basis of a lecture, which, following the course usual with his writings, would eventually find periodical publication as an essay and later be included in a book"" (from the introduction). Which is exactly what happened, albeit in a much abbreviated form. The Moon is an attempt to present these extracts ""just as he left them… they are not to be judged as a finished essay, but Thoreau's writing always has distinction and hardly the slightest entry in his Journal but has a dignity and beauty of its own."" A fine copy in a toned slipcase. (Inventory #: 127292)