Burgess, Anthony

New York. 1982. Abbeville Press. 1st American Edition. Very Good in Torn Dustjacket. 0896592804. 129 illustrations, 121 in full color. 96 pages. hardcover. . keywords: Literature England . FROM THE PUBLISHER - Children must be coerced into it, enthusiasts leap into it, many of us have to be dragged out of it. Bed. ON GOING TO BED, an irresistible combination of pictures and prose, tells us much of what goes on in bed - a subject that tickles nearly everyone's curiosity. Most of us were conceived in bed, spent the first months of childhood in bed, sleep one-third of our lives away in bed, and will probably end our days in bed, for, as the author says, ‘few people die in chairs unless they are electric.' Anthony Burgess, author of the best-selling A Clockwork Orange and Earthly Powers, here turns his investigatory talents to the fact and fancy, the history and psychology of beds and mankind. It is a witty, often touching, and always fascinating book. Added dimension is provided by a wealth of color plates illustrating scores of beds from antiquity to the present. There are royal beds that are practically pieces of architecture; cradles and peasant beds; beds depicted by great master painters from all periods of art history; beds from illuminated manuscripts and illustrated fairy tales; beds in which saints receive the blessings of heaven; and beds in which lovers attain more worldly bliss. In addition to the lore of the bed, Mr. Burgess offers his personal views on the subject, from the nocturnal terrors he experienced as a child to the various beds of ease and unease that he has occupied during his adult life. And he also tells us that he hasn't owned a bed in years. ON GOING TO BED has all the qualities of a classic, and it is certain to become the quintessential bedside book. 129 illustrations, 121 in full color. inventory #1898 ISBN: 0896592804.