Lady Filmy Fern or the Voyage of the Window Box

London: Hamish Hamilton Ltd, 1980. First edition. Cloth. Near Fine/Near Fine. 9" by 11". Edward Bawden. A lovely first edition copy of this children's book by Thomas Hennell, with colour illustrations by Edward Bawden. The first edition of this work in the publisher's original pictorial cloth binding, with the original unclipped dust wrapper. A lovely copy of this children's book by Thomas Hennell (1903-1945), written in 1930 around the series of illustrations presented in this volume by Edward Bawden (1903-1989). The book follows the strange story of the retiring social beauty, Lady Filmy Fern, her devoted companion, the carpenter Mr Virgin Cork, and the photographer known as the Welsh Polypod. Interestingly, at the outbreak of the Second World War, Bawden hid the scrapbook with both text and pictures of this book in a waterproof covering, at the bottom of his well, only to be found after the retreat of Germany. In the meantime, Thomas Hennell was killed in Indonesia in 1945, and it was not until 1980 that the book was officially published, with more illustrations. In the publisher's original pictorial cloth binding, with the original unclipped dust wrapper. Externally, cloth is in lovely condition. Internally, firmly bound. Pages are very bright and clean apart from some spotting to the pastedowns and first and last couple of pages. Good colour to dust wrapper, which is in excellent condition, though there is some spotting to the flaps. Near Fine