Captain Slaughterboard Drops Anchor by Mervyn Peake first edition 1939

London: Country Life (1939). A first edition. 4to., original pictorial paper boards, backed with the original green cloth spine; pp. 48; An about very good copy. Missing its jacket. The boards and all pages have browned with age. The upper board has wear and rubbing to the corners. The lower board has marks, a couple of small splash marks and a small number of scratches. The corners are also rubbed. The upper board at the bottom edge says "A Country Life book London 1939". The front free end paper is heavily creased. It has a near contemporary gift inscription from 1941. The third leaf has a handful of tiny pen marks dotted at the bottom of the page. All pages have browning marks although most are sporadic and occasional. Overally an about very good copy of a scarce book.
 
Mervyn Peake's first book and notoriously scarce. Most copies were destroyed in the blitz as the Country Life building was hit, just as the book was about to be published. Only a handful of review copies were sent out and the book was not reprinted until 1945. A scarce item and difficult to find in any condition.