L. W. Currey, Inc.

Caviare (pseudonym of John Francis O'Donnell). THE EMERALD WREATH: A FIRESIDE TREASURY OF LEGENDS, STORIES, &c. By Caviare [pseudonym]. With Numerous Illustrations Engraved by the Brothers Dalziel. Dublin: James Duffy, 15, Wellington Quay; London: Paternoster Row, n.d. [1864]. Octavo, pp. [1-6] [1] 2-240, colored engraved frontispiece and additional title leaf engraved by Dalziel after Runton, 8 inserted plates, some with illustrations signed "FitzPatrick R.H.A," wood engraved initials in the text, publisher's decorated brown cloth, front and rear panels stamped in blind, spine panel stamped in gold, all edges gilt, publisher's ads on endpapers. First edition. "Collects five stories and two poems 'cast in the Annual style of the period,' as the author notes in his preface. The five stories are all set in Ireland, and are typical Victorian commercial fiction of the sort often featured in Christmas annuals of the period. 'Tom Hickey and the Good People' and 'Mike Driscoll and the Fairies' are humorous holiday fantasies that involve drunken encounters with 'the little people.' 'The Double Shadow' is a well-done crime story that involves the use of an Indian drug that produces a suspended animation to thwart a marriage by convincing the wealthy groom that his bride has died. The best story in the collection is 'Benevolent Freak of an Odd Gentleman,' a minor work of comic genius in which Stephen Hastings attempts to get his brother Edward, a harmless lunatic who loves practical jokes, committed to an insane asylum in order to prevent Edward from disrupting his wedding" (Boyd White). John Francis O'Donnell (1837-1874) was an Irish writer who "wrote for many Irish magazines, such as the DUBLIN REVIEW, as well as for various English journals, including those of Charles Dickens, who befriended him ... He is best known for his poetry, much of which expressed his ardent nationalism" (Loeber and Loeber, pp. 1002-1003). Brown, Ireland in Fiction (1919) 1292. Cloth lightly worn at spine ends, spine panel a bit faded, mild foxing to title page, several gatherings just a bit proud, a lovely copy of a very scarce book. (#171578).

Price: $450.00