Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Collecting: A New Edition of JANE EYRE

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post about collecting books, and mentioned that I have a small collection of different editions of Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre. At the time my collection was only four copies and I'd just acquired the fourth, an inexpensive illustrated edition I found at a local used book store (second from the bottom in the picture below):

Well, a week and a half ago or so I read this post, about five British publishers designing and producing beautiful editions of classic books, and I discovered another lovely edition of Jane Eyre, published by White's Books.

It's really a pretty thing, cloth bound with lovely endpapers,
and printed on thick, nice-quality acid-free paper. The line from White's also includes Jane Austen's Emma and Pride and Prejudice, as well as a handful other titles. You can see the full list here. Their website will link to Waterstone's online store but you can buy them through many online booksellers.

While we're on the subject of hardcover special editions, and hardcovers generally, I encourage you to read and comment at this great post, which the great Ann Kingman tweeted about on Friday: it's right here, at the Northshire Bookstore's blog.

I love this copy of Jane Eyre and for $30 it's a great addition to my collection; I think any of these books would be wonderful to include in your home library or to give to the book lover in your life. I wish I knew more people who loved the classics because then I'd have an excuse to buy more of these beautiful books!

20 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ooooh! I have recently become obsessed with Jane Eyre. A friend and I started an online celebration of the Sisters Bronte called the Bronte-Along.

We'd love to have you involved!

We're still on the first book, Jane Eyre, of course!SO far there are 28 other bloggers posting about JE and I know they would love to see your collection!

Have a look-see if you like!

http://www.yummygoods.com/blog/2010/3/10/364-bronte-along-jane-eyre.html

(Austen-Along to follow!)

melissa@yummygoods
(ps, we're neighbors: I live on the Cape!)

Susan Hemann said...

I have a 40"s edition of Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. They belonged to my grandmother. They are beautiful inside.

A Bookshelf Monstrosity said...

This edition of Jane Eyre is awesome! Thanks for sharing your pics.

Laura said...

That's beautiful! What a find! Thanks for sharing with us.

Anonymous said...

I've seen that edition! I wanted to buy it, but my sister got me an older, and I think equally beautiful, copy for Christmas. Still kind of envious of the endpapers though...

Hannah Stoneham said...

Gosh - that really is a lovely looking book. My edition of Jane Eyre is a war time one which was given to me by my aunt. Because of its period it is printed on very cheap paper and the pages had to be cut to be read - so it has jaggedy edges - which is kind of nice. It is no where near as pretty as that though.

Lovely post thanks for sharing
Hannah

bermudaonion said...

That would make a lovely addition to your collection!

Athira said...

Those covers look awesome! Great addition!

caite said...

oh, I am a total sucker for a beautiful book.

Mel_Joulwan said...

I collect copies of Jane Eyre, too! I think I'm up to eight now. The more broken-in they are, the more I love them. Although I also have a new one that's small -- about 5 inches tall by 3 inches wide -- with a nice green ribbon to mark the page. I keep it in my bag for when I ride the bus.

Fun to "meet" another collector!

Zibilee said...

I have three copies of Jane Eyre, but none of them are as nice as some of the ones you have! I recently went to the used bookstore after hearing that they had a beautiful hardcover copy bound in leather for less than twenty dollars. When I got there, the woman said it had been sold the day before to a woman who came in and bout all of her hardcover classics. I just kicked myself because I had missed it by just a day! This now edition is beautiful though, and I think I am going to invest in one as soon as I have the extra money for it. Great post!

Anonymous said...

Wow - it's beautiful :)

Harvee said...

A little pricy but very nice.

Unknown said...

I am surprised that you don't have the Penguin Classics Jane Eyre designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith! Could that be your next JE edition? The grey background with the bronzy red leaves are to die for, imo!

Marie Cloutier said...

Book Dilettante- it's not cheap but for the quality it's a good value. :-)

D- Yeah. I keep seeing that one in stores and I don't know, it just doesn't strike me as *special* enough to spend the money. *shrug*.

Anonymous said...

Don't you love having a beautiful edition of a treasured book?! I have several editions of a few Madeleine L'Engle books, and I must say, the old ones are my favorite. Especially the one she autographed for me in the 80's. Anyway, the new Jane Eyre looks gorgeous! I'm so happy it found it's way to your collection.

Darlene said...

I love the cloth bound edition - it's gorgeous! I love Jane Eyre - one of my favorites. I'm planning on a reread this year.

Kathleen said...

I love collecting different editions of the classics. I find so many at my local used bookstore. There's something about an old edition of a book that I really love but the new one you picture here is quite lovely!

Dawn @ sheIsTooFondOfBooks said...

You've inspired me to officially collect editions of LITTLE WOMEN. I have several that I've acquired on my 'local' shelf, so it's a natural fit for me. I'm an easy mark, I guess; that didn't take much arm-twisting :)

You should have seen the look J gave me when I asked if he could bring me back a foreign-language edition on his recent trip to Asia (I didn't even get a postcard!)

Anonymous said...

Jane Eyre is my all time favorite book, second is Possession.

I have a my own collection of Jane Eyre. LOL. I treasure it.