The Rowan Gibbs Book Collection
Thursday, 16 November - Thursday, 14 December 2023
Spear-Baigent C.L. - Rearguard Actions
Estimate $1,000 - $2,000
Realised: $800 plus premium
Lot Details
Methuen, London, 1936. 362pp. Bagnall S1374. Foxing, but a sound copy in rubbed d/w. Spear-Baigent, C.L. a joint pseudonym of Charles Spear and Lawrence Baigent, signed on title by both authors; bookplate of Raymond Gilbert and inscribed to him by Baigent on endpaper. A parody of the mores of the idle rich -- intrigues and romantic scandals among socialites and bohemian artists at a Mediterranean seaside resort, but very much a roman à clef of the Christchurch circle of Spear, Baigent and Leo Bensemann (whose Fantastica is dedicated to “C. L. Spear-Baigent”). No copy is known to have been offered for sale in New Zealand.
