W. Heath Robinson — Bill the Minder

London, Hodder & Stoughton, 1924 . First edition. Cloth. Beautifully illustrated throughout with tipped in colour plates, and with the original dust wrapper, this work follows the adventures of Bill and his cousins as they meet a selection of interesting characters. A lovely 1920s edition of Robinson's classic work, in the original unclipped dust wrapper.Illustrated with a tipped in colour frontispiece, and fifteen colour plates, alongside numerous vignette illustrations. Collated, complete.This work follows the adventures of a child called Bill, who, along with his cousins, meet a variety of unusual people. These characters include The King of Troy, The Doctor and The Respectable Gentleman. Each of these interesting people are given their own illustrative depiction, bringing to light their often dramatic appearances. This work was was both written and illustrated by English cartoonist and illustrator William Heath Robinson. He became well known in the early 1900s, particularly for his whimsical drawings of elaborate machinery. This recognition was to such an extent that the term 'Heath Robinson Contraption' was cited in the Oxford English Dictionary in 1917. In the publisher's original cloth binding, with unclipped dust wrapper. Externally, fine. Significant spotting to dust wrapper back strip tail, with loss to back strip head. Significant closed tears to front wrap head, centre of back strip, and centre of front wrap, resulting in the dust wrapper being divided into two separate parts. Significant amount of tape to dust wrapper reverse, at back strip, front wrap, and flyleaf folds. Internally, firmly bound. Pages clean and bright. Near Fine . Ill.: W. Heath Robinson. Near Fine/Fair.