Books from Northern North America from Helen R. Kahn
Canadian rebel leader Louis Riel.
Item 23 touches on an unfortunate incident in Canadian history. It is Reponse a une adresse de la Chambres des Commons...de s'enquerir de l'etat mental de Louis Riel...published in 1886. Louis Riel was a leader of the Metis people of western Canada, who twice found himself leading a rebellion in Canada. The Metis are a polyglot people, a mixture of descendants of various Indian tribes who married French and English settlers. Many, like Riel, had a notable French background, making him a sympathetic figure in French Canada (Quebec). Riel came to the forefront as a leader of the Red River Rebellion of 1869 in Manitoba, where the Metis clashed with authorities of the new Canadian government. He would escape to the United States, go to Quebec after being pardoned, and then on to Montana. Along the way, he suffered serious mental problems and delusions. However, he would recover enough to lead a second rebellion in Saskatchewan in 1885, and this time rather than being pardoned he was tried and sentenced to death. This book concerns the mental health of Riel, the official investigation launched after he was condemned to death. Riel's conviction was finally revoked by Parliament in 1992. Unfortunately, Riel was hanged in 1885. Too little, too late. $450.
Item 58 is A Journey from Prince of Wales's Fort in Hudson Bay, to the Northern Ocean...for the Discovery of Copper Mines, a North-West Passage etc. in the Years 1769...1772 by Samuel Hearne. This is a first edition, though not published until 1795. Hearn was the first European to travel by land from Hudson Bay to the mouth of the Coppermine River at the Arctic Ocean. That is a long, cold trek. The book was published from Hearne's notes, three years after his death. It describes local natives, natural history, the discovery of Great Slave Lake, and the impossibility of finding a northwest passage through Hudson Bay. $6,950.
You may reach Helen R. Kahn online at www.hrkahnbooks.com, or by phone at 514-844-5344.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Hooke, Robert. Micrographia: or some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies made by Magnifying Glasses. London: James Allestry for the Royal Society, 1667. $12,000 to $15,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Chappuzeau, Samuel. The history of jewels, first edition in English. London: T.N. for Hobart Kemp, 1671. $12,000 to $18,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Sowerby, James. Exotic Mineralogy, containing his most realistic mineral depictions, London: Benjamin Meredith, 1811, Arding and Merrett, 1817. $5,000 to $7,000.
Heritage Auctions Rare Books Signature Auction December 15, 2025
Heritage, Dec. 15: John Donne. Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death. London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
Heritage, Dec. 15: F. Scott Fitzgerald. Tender is the Night. A Romance.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Jerry Thomas. How to Mix Drinks, or the Bon-Vivant's Companion, Containing Clear and Reliable Directions for Mixing All the Beverages Used in the United States…
![<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/8caddaea-4c1f-47a7-9455-62f53af36e3f.jpg "<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.")
