Animal Farm – George Orwell – 1946 | First American Edition, Harcourt Brace

George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’ is perhaps the most important and recognized dystopia novel in the English language. First printed in 1945, this satirical book covers the events leading to the Stalin rule in Russia before World War II. On the surface, this book appears to simply be a story about animals coexisting on a farm together, however, Orwell’s views on socialism are abundantly apparent as he is critical of Stalinism and the Spanish Civil War. Time Magazine has called it one of the 100 best English-language books, and according to Stringer, this book is

“A political fable that partly recounts, in an allegorical mode, the aftermath of the Russian revolution, and partly illustrates a belief in the universal tendency of power to corrupt” (Stringer 22)

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Animal Farm
• Author(s): George Orwell
• Publisher: New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company
• Edition: First edition. 1946.
• Format: (8vo), single volume
• Binding: Black cloth, gilt spine
• Size:  7.75 in x 5.25 in (19.5 cm x 13 cm)
• Collation: [4], 118 pp
• Contents Include:
  • Complete text of Animal Farm
• Provenance: Handwritten inscription to Holmes A. Fay, 1946
• Reference(s): Stinger 22

Condition:

Very Good. The cloth binding is secure and intact. Gilt titling on the spine has faded. Minor wear along edges. Internal pages are clean with no writing or marks.

Why Collect This?

• First American printing
• Complete edition in original binding
• U.S. edition from Orwell’s earliest American publisher

Item Number: # 28909