The Jewel in the Crown

1966, the first printing of the first of Paul Scott's The Raj Quartet

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Printing Details

First edition, first printing. Hardback in dustwrapper. 22 × 14.5cm, 451pp.

The first title in Paul Scott's Raj Quartet. India 1942: everything is in flux. World War II has shown that the British are not invincible and the self-rule lobby is gaining many supporters. Against this background, Daphne Manners, a young English girl, is brutally raped in the Bibighat Gardens. The racism, brutality and hatred launched upon the head of her young Indian lover echo the dreadful violence perpetrated on Daphne and reveal the desperate state of Anglo-Indian relations. The rift that will eventually prise India, the jewel in the Imperial Crown, from colonial rule is beginning to gape wide.

Condition

Fair, a reading copy only. The book is in sound shape but heavily bumped at the head of the spine, and with foxing / tanning to the page edges and margins. The dustwrapper is creased and faded to the spine, with wear to all edges but has not been price-clipped and is now within a protective sleeve.

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