Lot 8239 email save

Frisbie MY TAHITI 1937 Very Scarce 1st Ed Travel

Sign In to see what this sold for

Condition/Details: Bound in chartreuse cloth, this antique book is a very scarce account of travels in Tahiti by a prominent writer.
Robert Dean Frisbie was an American writer of travel literature about Polynesia. Frisbie produced a great number of sketches, articles and books that were printed by several publishers in America. Frisbie's autobiographical travel stories are of enduring value, offering detailed and humorous descriptions of island life in Polynesia and especially the Cook Islands. He also wrote many news stories for various periodicals like Pacific Islands Monthly. His work is marked by a passionate search for solitude, his concern for the fate of island locals in the face of Anglo exploitation, and his desire to write the perfect American novel. His output is very impressive considering his personal hardships. From the preface of My Tahiti: "During twelve years of wandering among the atolls of the South Seas I have attempted, at odd moments, to re-create from memory fragmentary passages from my life in a Tahitian village. It has been a pleasant task -- redeeming from oblivion of the last of a Golden Age." "These passages, sketches, incidents, are an attempt to recapture something of the spirit of native Tahitian life as I knew it during the first three years of the nineteen-twenties. The same life may be in existence to-day in few a of the out-of-the-way-corners of Tahiti; but for me it came to an abrupt end one stormy night of the hurricane season. All this I have explained in the pages that follow; here I am only concerned with telling that I have written these sketches as though describing a people whose culture is already a thing of the past."
The work is illustrated with a frontispiece illustration and other images within. The volume shows mild external wear, with a faded spine and some water toning on the boards, and is solidly bound with clean, very lightly age toned pages. There is a decorative period owners' bookplate. The book measures approximately 5.5" x 8.5" and contains 277 pages, including a glossary of Tahitian words. Shipping cost (within the U.S.) for this lot will be: $4.50

View CNY Book Auctions next auction.

Similar lots up for auction

KITTENS, Children's Book CA 1937

Phoebus Auction Gallery

Starting Bid $25

1st Jan 10 Lot #434

save bid now »

Mulberry Street signed 1st issue in dj

PBA Galleries

Starting Bid $4000

7th Jan 10 Lot #13

save bid now »

GORHAM SILVER PLATE 1937 FLAT SET.

Wichita Auction Gallery

Starting Bid $100

6th Jan 10 Lot #197

save bid now »