CROSS, John Keir. The Owl and the Pussycat: A Strange Story for Children. With drawings by Robin Jacques. London: Peter Lunn. 1946. Thin and small 8vo. First edition. Publisher’s red cloth lettered in gilt to the spine, in the dust jacket designed by Jacques. A very good copy. The cloth clean and bright, the binding tight and square, the contents mostly fine with some mild marks only. The dust jacket unclipped (7s 6d net) with tear along the crown, closed tear to front joint upper, and very gently bumped elsewhere.
An uncommon volume by the science fiction and fantasy author. Cross led a colourful life—he worked as a busking ventriloquist while homeless in his late teens and became known across much of Scotland for his riveting one-man shows. By 22, he published an autobiography of this life. This short tale, somewhat reminiscent of C. S. Lewis’ otherworldly Narnia chronicles, uses a similar alternative world device. The drawings by Jacques perfectly suit the text—he had previously illustrated Cross’ children’s science fiction tale, The Angry Planet, one year prior, and went on to form in similar vein a lasting working relationship with the folklorist, Ruth Manning-Sanders.
CROSS, John Keir. The Owl and the Pussycat: A Strange Story for Children. With drawings by Robin Jacques. London: Peter Lunn. 1946. Thin and small 8vo. First edition. Publisher’s red cloth lettered in gilt to the spine, in the dust jacket designed by Jacques. A very good copy. The cloth clean and bright, the binding tight and square, the contents mostly fine with some mild marks only. The dust jacket unclipped (7s 6d net) with tear along the crown, closed tear to front joint upper, and very gently bumped elsewhere.
An uncommon volume by the science fiction and fantasy author. Cross led a colourful life—he worked as a busking ventriloquist while homeless in his late teens and became known across much of Scotland for his riveting one-man shows. By 22, he published an autobiography of this life. This short tale, somewhat reminiscent of C. S. Lewis’ otherworldly Narnia chronicles, uses a similar alternative world device. The drawings by Jacques perfectly suit the text—he had previously illustrated Cross’ children’s science fiction tale, The Angry Planet, one year prior, and went on to form in similar vein a lasting working relationship with the folklorist, Ruth Manning-Sanders.
