1952 First British Edition of Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans

This is an extremely rare first British Edition, first printing of Madeline, written and illustrated by Ludwig Bemelmans, in very good condition. Published in 1952 by Derek Verschoyle. Unpaginated. Bound in the publisher's illustrated boards which are in very good condition with only minor rubbing/bumping to the corners and to the head and tail of the spine. Complete with unclipped dustjacket (12s. 6d.) which is also in very good condition, with some light soiling and a couple of pencil marks to the rear cover. The jacket is also slightly shelf worn with a small section of loss at the top edge. The colours on both book and cover are vibrant and bright. Plain cream endpapers. Contents near fine. The first US edition was published in 1939, and the British edition thirteen years later, in 1952. 
 
Madeline is the first book in the beloved children's series by the Austrian-American author and illustrator Ludwig Bemelmans. Set in an all-girls boarding school in Paris, France, the opening lines to this masterpiece of children's illustration are famous: “In an old house in Paris that was covered with vines lived twelve little girls in two straight lines.” Without doubt this is a book for the collector, and it is a beautiful one at that!