Translated into English verse by Edward Marsh. With twelve illustrations after engravings by Stephen Gooden. First trade edition. 8vo., original brown cloth. London, William Heinemann Ltd, 1933.
With a really fine presentation inscription "To E.H.W. Meyerstein for Air-Shelter reading from Edward Marsh. Sept 1939" and with a 6 page ALS to Meyerstein, dated Nov 1939, and clearly in response to Meyerstein's close reading of the book (or at least the beginning of it), in which Marsh makes an enthusiastic and good-natured defence of his translation of "The Fox and the Crow", which Meyerstein has extensively annotated in his copy, effectively rewriting it.
Although the letter, which is more than a bit flirtatious, implies that they're not close "Must you call me 'Sir E'? I think it's presuming on your youth!" they were neighbours in Grays Inn, and may have only recently met, maybe in an air raid drill (one notes Marsh's other-worldly misuse of the phrase "Air-Shelter"). Spine a little faded, but a very good copy with a few newspaper clippings laid in, including John Wain's review of Meyerstein's posthumous memoir, which describes him as "a frightening human gargoyle, a formidable savant with the heart of a terrified child, an artist whose work, always driving towards nobility was always held back by petulance, spite, or just plain oddity."
