Grettis Saga: The Story of Grettir the Strong, Translated from the Icelandic. MORRIS, William, & Eirikr Magnusson (trans.).

First edition, presentation copy, inscribed by William Morris on the front free endpaper, "The Reverend Charles Kingsley with W. Morris' compliments, 1869", facing Kingsley's armorial bookplate. Whilst at university, Morris was politically impacted by the works of social reformists such as Kingsley, Thomas Carlyle, and John Ruskin, their influence apparent in Morris's later socialist literature. This book was passed down to Kingsley's eldest son, Maurice (1847-1910). A gift inscription on the front pastedown notes, "Maurice Kingsley from Mother 1886". Pencilled onto the front free endpaper is an inscription by the bibliophile and Grolier Club president Lucius Wilmerding (1880-1949), dated February 1922. Morris studied Old Norse with Magnusson (1833 1913), an Icelandic scholar at the University of Cambridge. Within a year of Morris starting his studies, teacher and pupil published the present volume, the beginning of a fruitful collaboration. The work had a print run of 500 copies. Buxton Forman 22; LeMire A-5.01. Octavo. Double-page engraved map. Original green cloth, paper label to spine lettered in black. Housed in a custom green cloth chemise and quarter morocco slipcase. Cataloguing slip tipped to front free endpaper. Spine label worn with loss of text, small mark on front cover, cloth rubbed, and lightly worn at edges, inner hinges cracked but holding, endpapers browned. A very good copy.