Guy de Maupassant: SHORT STORIES (in English) Mint ICL!

"The Necklace"
plus “The Wedding Night,” Forbidden Fruit” & More
Great French Tales of Love (& who does it better???)
International Collectors Library Edition
Leather-Like Binding -- in Absolutely-Mint Condition!!!!!

The International Collectors Library was a publishing program from the late 1940s through the early 1960s (and briefly revived in the 1970s), dedicated to preserving "immortal masterworks of the past and significant books of our time...the great classics of fiction, history, biography, poetry, drama, travel, and adventure...clothed in bindings truly worthy of their imperishable contents."

These ICL books have exceptional style and quality in cover design, paper, and printing. The covers are leather-like with gilt designs, adaptations of historic bindings designed by some of the great artisans of centuries past, often for the collections of monarchs or other notables. The paper is heavier than in most other books; many of the volumes have gold-coated page edges. Each book has a silk marking ribbon.

This volume is bound in the ICL's "Tree of Life" binding, adapted by American artist Rafael Palacios from an 1800 binding designed by London bookbinder Frederick Kile -- an era when books were treasured belongings, not disposable junk. The cover is a beautiful dark slate blue with 24K stamped decoration on cover and spine in a stylized "tree" design created by London bookbinder T. J. Cobden-Sanderson for an 1818 edition of a book by Shelley. The page tops are also edged with gold. The book measures about 8-1/2" x 5-3/4" and has 523 pages.

This copy is in absolutely mint, like-new condition, with only very minor shelf wear to the cover. The hinges are intact, and the pages and patterned endpapers are unmarked. There is no copyright date shown, but most of the ICL books date from the 1950s and 1960s. I can’t testify to its entire 40-or-so year lifetime, but it has lived the past several years in a smoke-free home. It really does look like someone just went out and bought it in a new-book store!!!!

Guy de Maupassant (1850-93) was a French writer considered one of the greatest masters of the short story form. Writers such as Ellen Glasgow, Theodore Dreiser, James Hilton, Sherwood Anderson, William Saroyan, and W. Somerset Maugham paid tribute to his skill, and acknowledged a "debt of gratitude" to de Maupassant. This collection is a "selection" of his stories -- but there are about 60 of them here, enough to keep even the greatest de Maupassant fan happy, and surely enough for an introduction for anyone else to this wonderful writer.

Among the best known stories included here are "The Necklace," which may be de Maupassant's most famous, at least to English-language readers; "The piece of String," "Mademoiselle Fifi," "A Cock Crowned," "The Madwoman", and "One Phase of Love." There isn't enough room, and I don't have enough energy, to list more -- but if you have a favorite, email me and I'll check to see if it's included!

If you read some de Maupassant stories in college, and have only a beat-up paperback in your shelves, or if you somehow never read him at all --
if you're homeschooling a young person and want to introduce him or her to a fine example of 19th century French literature (without the political preaching of Les Miserables, the incessant swordplay of The Three Musketeers, or the romantic excess of Madame Bovary) -- or if you just want a nice copy to own or give as a gift -- now is the time and this is your chance to own a truly beautiful copy at a very reasonable eBay price!!!!!

The Nitty-Gritty: Please Read The Following Carefully!!!!!
First, please understand that shipping costs include not just postage but also secure packaging. Old books can be fragile, and the USPS isn’t always gentle with packages. I use commercial-grade bubble envelopes and (because the envelopes are inadequate if a heavy package is dropped on top of them) additional bubble-wrap to protect the book itself. With multi-item purchases I use new or recycled boxes and whatever bubble wrap or filler is needed to prevent your items from shifting around and breaking each other’s hinges.

Payment from both U.S. and international buyers now accepted by PayPal ONLY. This is now an eBay requirement, not my idea; frankly, I don’t like it either. After seven days, if I have not heard from you, I will begin the Non-Paying Bidder process, but you will still have another three days to pay. In all cases, however, payment must be received within 10 days.
If you’re buying two or more items, or planning to bid on other items, PLEASE don’t pay for items individually!!!! When you’re finished (with current listings, anyway), I will send you an invoice with the correct shipping charges. If you’re waiting to snipe something else, please let me know and I’ll delay the invoice until you’ve bid to your heart’s content!

Shipping: 90% of U.S. book buyers prefer shipping via Media Mail (it’s slower -- 5-9 business days – in practice that’s 1-2 weeks -- depending on distance but much cheaper than Priority Mail). Single-item Media Mail shipping charges are stated in the information at the top of the listing page. eBay now requires that fixed-price shipping rates not exceed $4.00, which is fine for smaller books but doesn’t allow for those packing materials on larger or heavier items (this is ridiculously unfair, but never mind…) Anyway, for that reason I have adopted the calculated shipping charge system, even though it may actually end up costing you more. If I can save you money by using my standard fixed rate, I will offer that option on the invoice.
Shipping for Multiple Item Purchases (via Media Mail) is calculated as follows: charge as indicated (again, eBay is forcing me to switch to the calculated charges) for the heaviest item; then $1.00 each for the second and third item and $0.50 each for items in excess of four. I cannot ship more than 10 books together because of weight – if I can’t lift the box, I can’t get it to the post office!! – so really big purchases will have to be split in two.
Shipping by Priority Mail: Individual item charges will be based on weight, but if a Flat Rate box will save you money I will use it instead, even for just one book.
Multi-Item Purchases: If I can fit your purchase into a Priority Mail Flat Rate Box, the charge will be $10.00 anywhere in the U.S. (The boxes hold up to six books, seldom more.) If a larger package is necessary I’ll have to calculate shipping charges by total weight and send you an invoice.
International Shipping:International Shipping: Please email me for rates for your country. I offer a choice of Priority Mail International (fast but expensive) or First Class International (a slightly slower but less expensive option, but good only up to 4 lbs.); the USPS no longer offers “Surface Mail.” Your invoice will state the anticipated shipping times for both categories. International rates are adjusted per quarter-pound, but the eBay calculator shows only FULL pound charges, so may overstate your cost. International shipping also includes a $2.00 handling charge (I have to make a special trip to the post office, fill out forms, etc.). Also: be aware that import duties and/or taxes are not included in the shipping charges. Any such charges are the buyer’s responsibility. Very few countries impose duties on books (except sometimes in large quantities that look like commercial transactions), but if yours does…it’s up to you to know about it and pay them.

I make every effort to mail within 3-4 days of payment. If you need the item by a certain date, TELL ME (I don’t read minds very well), and I’ll do everything I can to get it to you in time (please be realistic: cross-country Media Mail will not reach you in three days!). I try to notify buyers when I ship, but sometimes don’t get the notices out the same day.

Please respond to end-of-auction email with payment intentions as soon as possible; seller cannot schedule mailings without knowing when and how buyers are planning to pay. Non-payers and very slow payers (who don’t contact me to tell me they’ll be slow) will face a Non-Paying Bidder report exactly one week from the end of the auction. So if you’re somehow not going to have computer access when the auction ends, email me ahead of time just in case you win!!!!!! And if you receive a "polite reminder" of late payment, check your PayPal record to see if maybe you thought you'd paid but hadn't!!!!

See my other listings -- click on "Seller's Other Auctions" above. Buy more than one item and save on shipping. I will combine books with other items where feasible, but Media Mail is good only for books, tapes, CDs, DVDs, and other "media."

Feedback: In order to be sure you are satisfied with your purchase, I usually delay leaving feedback until I have heard from you. So if you don’t see my feedback right after the sale, that’s why. When you receive the item, email me if you have any problems or complaints (and give me a chance to resolve them); or just leave FB and I will do the same.

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