The first title in the acclaimed 'Poldark' series

GRAHAM, Winston ~ Ross Poldark : A Novel of Cornwall 1783-1787

FIRST UK PRINTING : Ward, Lock & Co., Limited, London and Melbourne : 1945

The First UK Printing published by Ward, Lock & Co., Limited, London and Melbourne in 1945. 8vo., salmon pink cloth, backstrip lettered in black; together in the neatly-clipped pictorial wrapper showing the image of a coastal scene through a closed window; The BOOK is in Very Good+ condition, with slight shelf lean and some sunning to the spine tips; lightly frayed at ends; with an ownership inscription in ink to the front free endpaper (contemporary); otherwise clean, printed on war-time economy paper. The WRAPPER is in Very Good++ condition, with some inevitable fading of colouring at the spine, with some rubbing to the edges and some light nicking/chipping to the spine and fold tips; the folds a little darkened themselves; short 1cm closed tear to the lower panel. The wrapper is protected in a removable Brodart archival cover. The extremely scarce first book in the Poldark series. A rare survivor. Winston Graham (1908-2003) had wanted to be a writer since he was a young man, and when at 17 years of age he moved to Perranporth, Cornwall, the location served as an inspiration for the setting of 'Poldark'. He married his childhood sweetheart Jean Williamson in 1939, and Jean would later him with the publication of his books, serving as inspiration for the character of Demelza. 'Ross Poldark' is the first work in a series which would eventually run to twelve titles. Set in 1783, the plot follows the titular protagonist as he returns to Cornwall after serving with the British army in the American Revolutionary War. He finds his home much changed - his former love engaged to his cousin, his father dead, and the house in disarray. It is then up to the young man, disfigured from war and with a pronounced limp, to improve the family fortunes. To this end he reopens the family copper mine and marries his servant, with whom he gradually falls in love. Graham later claimed that he had based Poldark's physical characteristics on those of an injured flying officer whom he had met on a train during the Second World War. The books have been adapted for television twice, firstly between 1975 and 1977 (when they proved so popular that it was reported that some vicars rescheduled or cancelled church services in order to catch the programme), and perhaps most famously again in 2015, starring a rugged Aidan Turner in the title role. Graham was reportedly furious at the portrayal of Demelza in the first adaptation as being promiscuous, but by the time complaints had been submitted, it was too late. After this initial disagreement, Graham and his wife became more heavily involved in the series and would often be found watching on set, even appearing as characters in one of the episodes. An attractive copy of "the book which started it all".

BINDING: Hardcover
CONDITION: Very Good+
JACKET: Very Good++