Churchill and Roosevelt, The Complete Correspondence
Winston S. Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt, edited with commentary by Warren F. Kimball
This weighty, three-volume set first issued in 1984 publishes the complete correspondence of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston S. Churchill from October 1933 to April 1945, the month FDR died. The correspondence is edited with commentary by Warren F. Kimball. This is the first printing of the desirable hardcover edition. All printings of the hardcover edition totaled 3,466 sets sold and have long been out of print. This is a quality production with illustrated dust jackets, sturdy red cloth bindings, black endpapers, head and foot bands, and contents printed on acid-free paper.
This set features very good volumes in very good dust jackets. The red cloth bindings are square, clean, bright, and tight with sharp corners. We note only wrinkling to the spine ends. The contents of all three volumes are clean and bright with no previous ownership marks. The chief defect is light spotting to the page edges, as well as dust soiling to the top edges. The red dust jackets are highly prone to spine sunning. This set shows no appreciable color shift between the faces and spines. Moreover, the jackets are complete. Nonetheless, the jackets show mild shelf wear to extremities, the worst of it being to the Volume I jacket, which shows a scuff along the lower rear joint and a short closed tear and attendant wrinkling at the bottom edge of the front face. The dust jackets are protected with removable, clear, archival covers. We will ship this large, heavy set at cost.
Few relationships between world leaders proved as important and world-defining as the relationship between Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill. On 11 September 1939, Franklin D. Roosevelt had already been President of the United States for six and a half years. By contrast, Winston S. Churchill had only been re-appointed as Britain’s First Lord of the Admiralty a week prior, after the outbreak of the Second World War. While Roosevelt had been leading his own nation, Churchill had spent most of the 1930s out of power and out of favor, warning against the growing Nazi threat and often at odds with both his Party leadership and prevailing public sentiment. But on 11 September, President Franklin Roosevelt initiated what would become a world-defining relationship and correspondence. FDR wrote, “My dear Churchill, It is because you and I occupied similar positions in the [First] World War that I want you to know how glad I am that you are back again in the Admiralty… I shall at all times welcome it if you will keep me in touch personally with anything you want me to know about.” (ed. Kimball, Complete Correspondence Vol.I, p.24) Churchill responded with the amusingly transparent code name “Naval Person” which he changed to “Former Naval Person” when he became prime minister in May 1940.
Reference: Cohen A287.1
Ref #: 007497
We are Churchill Book Collector, a professional bookseller specializing in books and other published works by and about the great twentieth century statesman and acclaimed writer, Sir Winston Churchill. We offer both a singular inventory and approachable expertise. The integrity of our inventory is backed by our membership in the Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of America (ABAA), the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB), and the Independent Online Booksellers Association (IOBA).Churchill's official biographer, Sir Martin Gilbert, rightly called Churchill's long life "remarkable and versatile". Statesman, soldier, war correspondent, ardent social reformer, combative cold warrior, painter - Churchill was many things, but perhaps above all a master wordsmith. We’re here to help Churchill’s words find your shelves. Our extensive inventory features some of the rarest material offered – including fine first editions and inscribed copies – as well as reading copies and works about Churchill’s life and time.While we specialize in Churchill, our inventory also includes noteworthy first and collectible editions by other authors, ranging from Xenophon to T. E. Lawrence, spanning exploration and empire to twentieth century fiction.We are able to help with anything from finding individual books to assembling full collections, working closely with individual collectors to identify and accommodate their preferences and budget. We are also able to commission preservation cases and fine bindings. Please contact us if you have books to sell. We buy, and in some cases consign, fine and collectible individual items, as well as whole collections.
