The Soul of the War (1915)
This copy signed by Maud Warrender, Edwardian socialite and musician
Author
Publisher
Printing Details
First edition, fifth printing. Hardback, bound in the original burgundy cloth with gilt titling to spine and upper board. 22.5 × 14.5cm, 362pp.
This copy has two pencilled signatures to the ffep. At the head of the page, there is the name Godfrey Baring (he was a Liberal MP for Barnstaple during the Great War), and it appears to have been given to him by Maud Warrender who has signed and gifted the book further down the page, dated January 1916. Maud Warrender (Lady Ethel Maud Warrender, née Ashley-Cooper) singer, patron of the arts, poet, and prominent society figure during the late Victorian, Edwardian, and interwar eras. In 1903 she and her husband acquired Leasom House near Rye where they hosted musical evenings and arranged concerts with Edward Elgar, Dame Nellie Melba etc. After her husband's death in 1917, she lived at Leasom House with her partner, the American soprano Marcia van Dresser.
Philip Gibbs's account of the first year of the Great War. He had been one of the few journalists on the ground in France and Belgium in 1914, initially operating without official accreditation and even helping with a British ambulance unit near Ypres. This book deals with the advance and retreat of the Allied forces, and casts quite a sombre tone as he concentrates on the human, psychological, and emotional toll of the conflict. It serves as the first volume of his war memoirs, with Now It Can Be Told (1920) being the second volume.
Condition
Good condition. The cloth is rubbed to the spine ends, and has light spotted foxing throughout but remains in strong readable condition.
As of July 2026, books remain duty-free. The price of the book incurs no extra US import fees.
Price
£30.00
