MAUGHAM, W. Somerset.
The Land of Promise: A Comedy in Four Acts.
London: William Heinemann, 1922.
$2,000.00
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Item Number: RRB-152491
+$500
First Published Edition of W. Somerset Maugham's The Land of Promise; Inscribed by Him to New York Socialite Edward Wasserman
First published edition of Maugham's comedy The Land of Promise, the story of a refined Englishwoman who emigrates to the Canadian prairie and a marriage born of hardship. Duodecimo, original red cloth lettered in black. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "Dear Eddie, Did you know that in order to get the atmosphere for this play I went to stay on a farm in Canada? Willie W. Somerset Maugham." The recipient, Edward Wasserman, was a New York banker and socialite, a celebrated host whose circle took in much of the literary and theatrical world of the period. Somerset Maugham signs the inscription "Willie," the name used by his intimates, and his remark refers to the 1912 journey across the Canadian prairies out of which the play grew. In near fine condition. From the collection of Edward Wasserman with his bookplate to the front pastedown.
The Land of Promise, a comedy in four acts, was inspired by W. Somerset Maugham's 1912 journey across the Canadian prairies. First produced in the United States in 1913 and staged in London at the Duke of York's Theatre in 1914, it follows Norah Marsh, a genteel Englishwoman reduced to poverty, who emigrates to her brother's farm on the Canadian frontier and, rather than endure dependence, enters a marriage of convenience with a hired hand. On the hard prairie her pride and refinement are tested against the realities of pioneer life. One of Maugham's most successful plays of the period, it reflects the Edwardian preoccupation with emigration and the contrast between Old World gentility and New World labor, and it was twice adapted for the screen.
The Land of Promise: A Comedy in Four Acts.
$2,000.00
In Stock
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