Waugh, Evelyn.

8vo (203 x 148mm.), pre-publication edition, [one of 50 copies] privately printed, original blue wrappers, labels on upper cover, title label printed in blue, limitation label printed in red, uncut, folder and morocco-backed slipcase, faint spotting to endpapers, backstrip slightly faded and faint spotting to labels, otherwise a fine copy

Selina Hastings, Evelyn Waugh, 1994, p.490

Condition is described in the main body of cataloguing, when appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The rare pre-publication "proof" of the best-known novel by one of Britain's finest twentieth century novelists. 

"This edition is issued privately for the author's friends; no copies are for sale. Messrs. Chapman & Hall earnestly request that until they announce the publication of the ordinary edition in the early part of 1945, copies will not be lent outside the circle for which they are intended, and no reference will appear to the book in the Press".

These copies were specially bound and sent at Christmas to Evelyn's friends, with the author waiting eagerly for their reactions. Several changes were made as a result of their comments (including some passages considered too coarse), with the ending rewritten and a few names altered.

"Both the sentimental and the political approaches do the book a disservice... Waugh loathed politics and politicians of whatever colour and owed no loyalty to anything opposing his [Catholic] faith. Brideshead is a religious book, a contemplation of the meaninglessness of human existence without God. Beneath that public mask of arrogance there lay a dedicated artist and a man of earnest faith, struggling against the dryness of his soul" (Martin Stannard).