L. W. Currey, Inc.

Bell, Neil (pseudonym of Stephen Southwold, which was apparently a pen name for Stephen H. Critten). ALPHA AND OMEGA. London: Robert Hale Limited, [1946]. Octavo, cloth. First edition. Collects fifty-three stories, including dark fantasy and several short scientific romances, with a nine-page preface by the author. See Stableford, Scientific Romance in Britain 1890-1950, pp. 281-2 and elsewhere. Bell is probably best known for his ambitious SF novel, THE SEVENTH BOWL, published in 1930 under the pseudonym "Miles." Science-fictional material in the present collection includes "More Than Flesh and Blood Could Stand," "The Root of All Evil," and "The Crack in the Wall." A typical plot in these stories revolves around a person whose paranormal abilities bring him only misery. Hubin (1994), p. 62. Not in Bleiler (1948; 1978) or Reginald (1979; 1992). A bright, very good copy in very good dust jacket with wear at edges, internal offsetting from old tape mends with some show through on rear panel, and some dust soiling to rear panel. Scarce. (#115861).

Price: $150.00