Rare Book Monthly
Book Catalogue Reviews - January - 2009 Issue
Capri and Other Places from Elysium Books
A photographic portrait of Norman Douglas by Carl Van Vechten.
Item 70 is a photographic portrait of Norman Douglas, taken in 1935. The photograph bears the embossed stamp of the photographer, Carl Van Vechten. Van Vechten was himself an author, writing several books with themes concerning African American life during the first few decades of the 20th century. In the 1930s, he turned to photography, and took pictures of many of the great writers and other artists of the period. $750.
Item 8 is a very early gay novel by the cross-dressing Duke of Saxe-Gotha and Altenburg, August Emil Leopold. For those unfamiliar with this duchy, suffice to say it was not a large one. His fondness for dressing in women's clothes was unusual, but this was his duchy, so he could do as he pleased. August Emil was the grandfather-in-law of the very staid British Queen Victoria, which must have made her proud. His novel is entitled Ein Jahr in Arkadien, published in 1805, and tells of two shepherds who fall in love. Is this a precursor of Brokeback Mountain? $1,800.
Item 112 is a photograph of actress and singer Lotte Lenya, taken by her friend Louise Hartung. Lenya is most noted for her roles in The Threepenny Opera. Her husband, Kurt Weill, composed the music for the play. However, this picture was taken from her role in The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahogany. Lenya has inscribed on the back, "This is the cruelest picture ever made of me." Look out for Miss Lotte Lenya! $450.
You can contact Elysium Books at 802-763-7147 or elysium@sover.net. Their website is www.elysiumpress.com.
