Click for full-size.
The Autobiography and Other Writings
by Benjamin Franklin
- Used
- Acceptable
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Acceptable
- Seller
-
Goring-by-Sea, West Sussex, United Kingdom
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New American Library, 1985. Hardcover. Acceptable. 1985. First Edition. 271 pages. No dust jacket. Brown cloth boards with gilt lettering. Slight crinkling to paper at gutter. Bright and clean pages with light tanning and foxing to text block edges. Binding is firm throughout with minor thumb-marking. Boards have mild edge-wear with slight rubbing to surfaces and bumping to corners. Gilt lettering is bright and clear. Visible wear marks to boards.
Synopsis
Benjamin Franklin, statesman, philosopher, and man of letters, was born in Boston in 1706 of Protestant parents. He entered Boston Grammar School when he was eight and later attended George Brown Ell’s school. When he was twelve his father apprenticed him to his half-brother James as a printer. James was later the publisher of the New England Courant , where Franklin’s first articles, The Dogood Papers , were published before he was seventeen. He went to Philadelphia in 1723 and pursued his trade of printer. He was befriended by William Keith, Governor of Pennsylvania, who offered to help the young man get started in business. Franklin left for England, where he hoped to arrange for the purchase of printing equipment. Arriving in London in 1724, he was soon deserted by Keith, and again turned to printing for a livelihood. His privately printed Dissertation on Liberty and Necessity, Pleasure and Pain (1725) introduced him to leading Deists and other intellectuals in London. A year later, he returned to Philadelphia, and by 1730 he had been appointed public printer for Pennsylvania. In 1731 he established the first circulation library in the United States; in 1743-44, The American Philosophical Society. In 1748 he retired from the trade of printer but continued to advise and back his partner and to draw profit from the business. Poor Richard’s Almanack was his most spectacular success as a publisher, having gone through numerous editions and been translated in many languages. During the next thirty-five years he devoted himself largely to politics and diplomacy, but still wrote and engaged in scientific ventures. He resigned as Minister to France in 1785, returned to America, and was elected President of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Still concerned with the rights of the individual, he published papers encouraging the abolition of slavery. He died in Philadelphia in 1790.
Reviews
(Log in or Create an Account first!)
Details
- Bookseller
- World of Rare Books
(GB)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 1634050574BFI
- Title
- The Autobiography and Other Writings
- Author
- Benjamin Franklin
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Acceptable
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Publisher
- New American Library
- Date Published
- 1985
Terms of Sale
World of Rare Books
30 day return guarantee, with full refund including shipping costs for up to 30 days after delivery if an item arrives misdescribed or damaged.
About the Seller
World of Rare Books
Biblio member since 2009
Goring-by-Sea, West Sussex
About World of Rare Books
Wob sells rare and collectable books on behalf of charities. Our team of booksellers are happy to deal with any enquiries and aim to provide same-day dispatch for all orders.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Rubbing
- Abrasion or wear to the surface. Usually used in reference to a book's boards or dust-jacket.
- Acceptable
- A non-traditional book condition description that generally refers to a book in readable condition, although no standard exists...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- Gutter
- The inside margin of a book, connecting the pages to the joints near the binding.
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Edges
- The collective of the top, fore and bottom edges of the text block of the book, being that part of the edges of the pages of a...
- Text Block
- Most simply the inside pages of a book. More precisely, the block of paper formed by the cut and stacked pages of a book....
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
Frequently asked questions
Collecting Aleister Crowley
Aleister Crowley was a well-known and highly controversial figure in the first half of the 20th Century. A writer, occultist, magician, and mountaineer, Crowley impacted a diverse collection of sub-cultures and interests. See collectible Crowley from Biblio booksellers.
Cleaning and repairing leather books
Wondering how to take care of the leather books in your collection? Renowned book care expert Bern Marcowitz explains how and when to clean and repair leather books.
