The Siamese Cat. Story and Cuts. [Introduction by Phillips Russell.] Underwood (Leon) Modern First Edition

FIRST EDITION, woodcut illustrations by the author throughout, pp. xv, [1], 269, crown 8vo, original orange cloth, the upper board with a lattice design stamped in red and a woodcut vignette by Underwood stamped in black, backstrip lettered in black, top edge orange, the hinges with webbing slightly exposed (more so at rear), dustjacket to a design by the author, very good. Leon Underwood was one of the leading British wood-engravers of a very rich era in the medium, but the present work was only published in the US - where the artist had resided for the previous few years. It is an adventure novel driven by the 'daily hopes and fears incident in the life of an idealist', namely its feline hero, who travels from his London home to New York, displaying a 'spirit of complete detachment from human affairs' (Introduction); incorporating frequent outbreaks of verse, the novel's blurb compares it to Carroll's 'Alice' in terms of its possible demographic. [Wth:] [Original Wood-Engraving:] [A Mermaid Arises from the Sea]. 1928, 4/50 COPIES, signed and dated by the artist in pencil, 7.8 x 4.5cm, image, mounted, very good condition - the illustration from p. 13.