1898 Rare First Edition - Dealings with the Dead, From La Légende de la Mort

Author: Anatole Le Braz. Authorized Translation by Mrs. A.E. Whitehead. Preface by Arthur Lillie. Introduction by L. Mariller. Title: Dealings with the Dead, Narratives From "La Légende de la Mort en Basse Bretagne". Publisher: London, George Redway, 1898. First English Edition. Language: Text in English. Size: 7.5 x 5.5 inches. Pages: 220 pages + publisher’s catalogue. Binding: Near fine original dark blue full-cloth binding with gilt lettering to the spine. The binding remains remarkably well preserved, solid and attractive, with only light signs of age and handling. Protected with a removable mylar cover. Content: Good to very good content overall with foxing throughout, heavier to some leaves and endpapers. With the attractive illustrated ‘America My Country’ Audubon family bookplate to the front pastedown, signed ‘M. R. Audubon,’ likely Maria Rebecca Audubon, granddaughter of John James Audubon. The text remains complete, sound, and highly readable. Estimate: (USD 350–550). The book: A scarce and atmospheric First English Edition of Anatole Le Braz’s celebrated exploration of Breton folklore and death legends, translated from La Légende de la Mort en Basse Bretagne. Gathered from oral traditions in rural Brittany, these uncanny narratives revolve around the Ankou, omens of death, wandering souls, ghostly apparitions, funeral customs, and supernatural visitations preserved within Celtic tradition. Written with both ethnographic fascination and literary elegance, the work captures a world where the boundary between the living and the dead remains hauntingly thin. Titles such as “The Open Door,” “The Night Watch,” and “A Night in a Crypt” give the collection an enduring gothic and folkloric power, making it an important and highly desirable work of nineteenth-century Celtic supernatural literature. The author: Anatole Le Braz (1859–1926), often called the “Bard of Brittany,” was a Breton writer, folklorist, and scholar devoted to preserving the oral traditions and spiritual heritage of Brittany. His works helped introduce Breton legends and Celtic folklore to a broader European audience, and he remains one of the most important literary figures associated with Breton cultural identity.