Three Ages Of Lake Light

David Ross

Published by The Macmillan Company, New York, 1962

About this Item

Stated First Printing, First Edition. Signed and inscribed on the blank first front end paper ( 'To Alma and Vanio-- David Ross' ). As you can see from the photos, the blue and white covers are exceptionally clean. The black lettering on the spine is very bright. The covers have only minor wear, a little bump/crease just below the front top corner (having no bearing on the pages), a little crinkling at the spine ends, and a tiny, shallow nick/dent at the center of the rear cover. The edges and corners are in solid shape. The page edges look quite clean. The 'Minus' in the Very Good rating is due entirely to some foxing/spotting on the early pages. Most affected are the inside covers and end papers (both front and rear, I've provided a photograph of the front inside cover and signed front end paper). The next page, the half-title page and its blank facing page are also quite foxed. The following page, the title page has tanning/toning on both sides of its juncture with its blank facing page. That's also the case with the following two pages, the copyright and dedication pages, strips of tanning/toning on both sides of their juncture. That continues, diminishing, over the next two pages, and is pretty much gone when you reach the first poem. It reappears at the juncture of the last two pages of poetry, although only very lightly. The pages are otherwise in excellent condition. I didn't see any soiling or staining on any of them. Nor is there any creasing. There are no markings. No attachments. And with the exception of the author's signed inscription, no one has written their name or anything else anywhere in the book. One other thing I noticed: there is a little wear on the thin bit of inside cover visible above and below the inner junctures of the front and rear covers. You can see the dust jacket in the first few photos. It's in pretty decent shape. I've had it in a fitted protective cover for as long as I've owned the book which goes back a good number of years. There is a very small loss at the top edge of the spine and at a few of the corners. There small bits of scuffing here and there. And there are a few small spots of staining on the rear cover. The white flaps are in very nice condition. The jacket is NOT price-clipped, not clipped at all. There is a lightly penciled '2T' under the price on the front flap. It could easily be erased, but you would probably want to take off the protective cover in order to do it. From the dust jacket: 'David Ross has written a remarkable book of poetry. Three Ages of Lake Light is not a collection of unrelated verse, nor is it one long poem; it is a true book, in which each separate lyric, while completely independent, joins with the others to form a single work. The lyrics themselves are a return to the highest poetic tradition, the celebration of loveliness. Not since the late Dylan Thomas or, in America, Hart Crane, has such a direct and vital perception of natural things appeared. Mr. Ross's utilization of Greek mythology is virtuosic, and might invite comparison even with a Keats. He is capable of a wonderful transparency, as in the title piece, Three Ages Of Lake Light. But whether in the light lyric style of Night Fishers or the somber note of December Night, his touch is magical. The lyrics sing with immediacy. In them we recognize a unique and beautiful voice. We feel that Mr. Ross writes poetry as it truly should be, a living classical art.'. Seller Inventory # 003397

Bibliographic Details

Title: Three Ages Of Lake Light

Publisher: The Macmillan Company, New York

Publication Date: 1962

Binding: Hardcover

Condition: Very Good Minus

Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good Minus

Signed: Inscribed by Author(s)

Edition: 1st Edition