The author's second novel.

AMIS, Martin ~ Dead Babies.

FIRST UK PRINTING. Jonathan Cape Ltd, London: 1975.

8vo., black publisher's boards lettered in gilt to spine with publisher's device to foot; upper edge stained orange; together in the neatly-clipped dustwrapper designed by Craig Dodd; THE BOOK just a touched bruised at foot, otherwise fine; THE WRAPPER near-fine, retaining all of its original colour along the backstrip. The wrapper is protected in a removable Brodart archival cover. First UK edition, first printing. A wonderful, bright copy of the author's second novel, scarce in this condition. Following 'The Rachel Papers' (1973), which won the Somerset Maugham Award, 'Dead Babies' follows a group of friends who travel to Appleseed Rectory in order to take drugs over a long weekend. Characters feature the "preposterously hideous Keith Whitehead", "three decadent Americans, a golden-hearted whore from London and Johnny, a mysterious intruder". Written in the satirical, sadistic and dark style for which he would become known, the book is in many ways a parody of Agatha Christie and country-house mysteries in general, and one reviewer writes that the resulting work is something akin to a plot in which "the Marquis de Sade were to crash one of P.G. Wodehouse's house parties". Martin's father, Kingsley Amis, was famously critical of his son's work, once claiming that he was "Breaking the rules, buggering about with the reader [and] drawing attention to himself." Martin, however, achieved just as much fame during his writing life, and cited his father as one of his influences. He was listed for the Booker Prize twice, and was named by The Times as one of the 50 greatest British writers since 1945. A fabulous copy.

BINDING: Hardcover
CONDITION: Fine
JACKET: Near Fine