THE AIR MINES OF MISTILA

First edition, first printing. Inscribed by the authors. Original illustrated card wraps. A near fine copy, tight and square, showing minor signs of shelfwear. The page block is a little dusty, and there's a faint (barely visible) diagonal crease to the lower right of the front cover. A nice copy.

A lovely example of a book whose inscriptions tell a story. To the reverse of the front cover there is a birthday inscription to Pat Borthwick from "Margaret", ending by expressing "Hope [that] you meet the /other half of / "the author" / one day". The title page shows what must be the inscription alluded to by Margaret, from Sylvia Kantaris (the first half of "the author"), in black ink, "Pat! / Lots of love, Sylvia x". Intersecting this is a second inscription, in blue, from the other half of the author, "So pleased our paths crossed... Philip", appropriately crossing the first inscription. Below this is another (!) signature from Philip Gross followed by, in parenthesis, "(21 years on at StAnza)". Provenance: from the library of the multi-award winning poet Pat Borthwick.