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rif. 50076 — Elkin Mathews & Marrot. London. 1930 First edition thus. Roy8vo 36pp. Hardcover in original cream pigskin with an abstract design of blue and black onlays and is lightly soiled with a darker mark on the lower spine being slightly splayed as well for reasons best known to specialist collectors internally this unusual book is comprised of Kelmscott hand-made paper that is clean and unfoxed with the requisite uneven fore-edges. Number 272 of only 300 copies ever produced with a lengthy introduction by D.H Lawrence this "is a story within a story contained within Dostoevsky's 1880 novel The Brothers Karamazov. It is recited by Ivan Karamazov during a conversation with his brother Alexei a novice monk about the possibility of a personal and benevolent God". This important original translation was made by Samuel S. Koteliansky a famous Ukrainian translator of Russian literature into English. Chekov was another who benefitted from his support as well as Dostoevsky and Rozanov amongst others being the manager of the prominent literary journal The Adelphi that published works of Lawrence Katherine Mansfield and even Dylan Thomas in the rarified world of mid-20th century English letters together with Leonard and Virginia Woolf. Hence the prominence of his name on the front board under the title and geometric pattern. Obviously extremely scarce anywhere in the world. Elkin, Mathews & Marrot. London. 1930 (First edition thus) hardcover