Miscellany 5 Penguin Illustrated Classics
| Editor: | Russell Edwards |
| Date: | 1990 |
| Type: | Miscellany |
| Pages: | 42 |
| Medium: | Booklet |
| Series: | Classics |
The Miscellany series was an attempt to make some of the more important material from the Newsletters available again but in a revised and consolidated form where appropriate.
This Miscellany takes a look at one of the most short-lived series. Whilst Penguin considered their Illustrated Classics a failure, the volumes are well regarded and widely collected – perhaps because they were small in number but also because of the superb engravings.
The series was described by Russell Edwards in a brief article entitled Short and Sweet in PCS Newsletter 21, 1983. In Miscellany 5, John Morris provides a thorough study of the books and their illustrators and considers the plans for later volumes that were never printed.
- ‘Penguin Illustrated Classics’ provides a history of the series and a biography of Robert Gibbings.
- ‘The Illustrators of the First Ten’ looks more closely and provides brief biographies of each illustrator.
- ‘Penguins Progress May 1938’ a special issue which devoted eleven of its sixteen pages to a preview of the new series; reprinted here in total.
- ‘False Dawn’ considers the failure of the series.
- ‘The Illustrators of the Second Ten’ gives biographies of the illustrators new to the series (three artists had contributed to the first ten titles).
- ‘Last Rites’ the demise of the series and the appearance of wood cut illustrations in other areas (including, slightly ironically, the Allen Lane Christmas Book Boxwood and Grover)
Printed by Salvia Books
If there is a particular article that you are interested in obtaining, please get in touch with the Editor.