Van der Elst, Violet. The Torture Chamber and Other Stories. With Some Personal Reminiscences. London: n.p., 1937. First edition. Octavo, pp. [1-8] 9-237 [238: colophon] [239-240: blank] [note: inserted before final integral leaf is an inserted single leaf printed on recto only with ads for the author's music -- "Music Composed and Written by Violet Van der Elst Published in Album Form by The Doge Press."] [note: original printed imprint on (238) -- "The Van der Elst Press" -- has been covered with a sticker naming publisher as THE DOGE PRESS]. Original red cloth with dark maroon leatherette shelf-back, spine stamped in gold. Illustrated with a photographic portrait of the author at the frontis, plus four full-page drawings. A fine copy in very good pictorial dust jacket; the front panel reproduces a photo of the author inside a room with dog and palm tree; rear panel reproduces the music ad on the inserted leaf. Uncommon in jacket. #923. $150. Reginald 14481. "Risibly bad weird fiction, self-published by a notorious British eccentric. Most of these stories were subsequently reissued in several post-World War II paperback collections (also self-published). One of the leading British collectors of the period, R. George Medhurst, found her work to be 'crudely written, [with] a peculiarly adolescent flavor.' That about covers it." -- Robert Knowlton. Seller Inventory # 923

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Bibliographic Details

Title: The Torture Chamber

Publisher: The Doge Press, London

Publication Date: 1937

Binding: Hardback

Condition: Fine

Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good

Edition: First Edition.

Store Description

When I began my bookselling business in 1996 I called it "Eldritch Books" because that adjective at least partly covered the type of material I offered (and because its similarity to my own surname seemed so -- eldritch). "Ghost stories" would be another handy, if somewhat reductive, term. Most of it is fiction from the 19th and early 20th century with a strong emphasis on the fantastic. Since the most familiar and relevant genre terms in use today -- "science fiction," "fantasy," "supernatural," "horror" -- were not so much in use when these books were first published, pegging them that way can be anachronistic. But that should give you the general idea. I don't have much in the way of American pulp (either in magazine or specialty press book form) but otherwise my interests range widely from high-brow to middle-brow to low-brow to amateur/eccentric. You're more likely to find rare and obscure works here than high spots. (Or at least they're obscure now, whatever their status was when first published.) In 2001 I went to work for L. W. Currey as cataloguer and general assistant. Since 2014 I've been back working on my own. I have exhibited at convention fairs (such as WFC and Readercon) in the past. I began collecting and studying antiquarian fantasy around 1980. Some of my essays have appeared in genre publications such as NYRSF, Wormwood and F&SF. I tend to carefully research my inventory and write extensive notes. (If another dealer wishes to make use of any of these notes, I'd appreciate the courtesy of putting such excerpts in quotes and giving proper attribution to me. That's what I do when I quote from any of my reference works.) I will be gradually listing my inventory on ABE over the coming years. I hope you find something of interest.

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Robert Eldridge, Bookseller
NY, U.S.A.

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Robert Eldridge
P. O. Box 293
Elizabethtown NY 12932
USA.
Tel: 518-873-9966.
Email: rfx51@charter.net.

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I ship only by U.S. Postal Service. All shipments are packed carefully and mailed with insurance and (for domestic shipments) tracking information. Except where specified for extra large items, rates are: Domestic (within USA) Media Mail: $5. Domestic Priority: $10. International First Class (must be under 4 lbs.): $25. International Global Priority (...

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