First Edition of John Wyndham’s first novel in scarce dustwrapper.

BEYNON, John. [Wyndham, John: pseud: John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris] The Secret People. London. Newnes. 1935 [32879] First Edition. 8vo. Dark blue pebble grain cloth with gilt titling to spine. The pebble grained cloth would appear to be a variant (unless it is the same cloth as the elusive Ferret Fantasy copy, although that is described as vertically ribbed blue cloth; the fact that we differentiate between details to this degree is in some way an explanation as to why you never see rare book dealers dating supermodels or movie stars...or indeed out in daylight...or even dating).

Not only is this copy near fine in previously unknown blue cloth, but it is also clad in a splendid example of its fabulously scarce dustjacket; bright, clean, fresh and unfaded with a 2cm closed tear to the front spine hinge and a 1cm wound to the lower-mid spine panel, coupled with some slight cosmetic edgewear. Altogether a lovely and extremely rare object.

This is Beynon-better-known-as-Wyndham’s first novel; a lost race extravaganza set in (oddly enough) 1964, with a suitably prescient touch Queen Elizabeth the Second sits upon the throne of England (she wasn’t in line for succession in 1935), our hero is flying his ‘strato-plane’ across the Sahara with a feisty redhead and her cat...there’s a crash, there are decadent underground pygmies (obviously!), giant mushrooms,  the feisty redhead is worshiped as a goddess, oh, and Italy is planning to flood the Sahara in order to turn it into an inland sea. All in all it makes genetically engineered man eating plants seem tame by comparison.

This item is available, along with many others, from Adrian Harrington. PRICE: £4,500