{"product_id":"the-collected-poems-richard-spender-4th-impression","title":"The Collected Poems, Richard Spender — 4th Impression","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublication\u003c\/strong\u003e: London, Sidgwick \u0026amp; Jackson, 1946\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormatting\u003c\/strong\u003e: 8vo, pp. viii, 77, [i, blank].\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCondition Report\u003c\/strong\u003e: Very Good. Bound in the publisher's original deep blue cloth with gilt lettering and double-rule titling directly to the spine. The boards remain structurally sound and flat with crisp, square corners and only the gentlest trace of shelf-wear to the extremities. The spine retains exceptionally bright, crisp, unoxidised gilt lettering, free from rubbing or fading. The text block shows mild, even age-toning to the untrimmed edges, remaining sound and tightly bound. Internally, the pages are wonderfully fresh and clean throughout, featuring a bright, unblemished photographic portrait frontispiece of the author in uniform.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCatalogue Note\u003c\/strong\u003e: Fourth impression (March 1946), following the initial publication of this collected edition in September 1944. Features a black-and-white portrait frontispiece depicting Captain Spender of the Parachute Regiment. Lacks the original dustwrapper.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis single-volume anthology gathers the poignant World War II military verse of Captain Richard Spender (1921–1943), combining his previously published collections \u003ci\u003eLaughing Blood\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eParachute Battalion\u003c\/i\u003e alongside several posthumously published works.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCopies of the wartime and immediate post-war impressions without the dustwrapper remain readily accessible on the trade market, though examples retaining such bright, unrubbed gilt to the cloth spine are increasingly uncommon.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Collected Poems\u003c\/i\u003e of Richard Spender serves as a powerful testament to one of the Second World War's most gifted and tragic poetic voices. A captain in the 2nd Parachute Battalion, Spender wrote with vivid immediacy, capturing the camaraderie, quiet introspection, and intense mortality of soldiering before he was killed in action at age twenty-one while leading an assault in Tunisia during Operation Torch.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBringing together the full body of Spender's combat verse, this anthology reflects both the romanticism of youth and the stark reality of frontline service. His evocative lines endure as an essential addition to twentieth-century war poetry collections.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Broadhursts Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54482874401107,"sku":"4023","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0960\/1469\/6787\/files\/20260729_154638.jpg?v=1785843083","url":"https:\/\/broadhurstsbooks.com\/products\/the-collected-poems-richard-spender-4th-impression","provider":"Broadhursts Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}