INTO BATTLE (Blood Sweat and Tears)

   

The first volume of the normal series of war speeches, INTO BATTLE, compiled speeches made during the period 1938 to the end of 1940. The first edition was published by Cassell in February 1941. The binding was pale blue cloth, wartime economy paper, and a red blending to black dustjacket. Correct first printing jackets should have an ad for THE WOUNDED DON'T CRY on the front flap. This was a big seller with 12 printings totalling at least 60,000 copies. If you are going to have only one book of Churchill's speeches, this is the one to have, as it contains many of the most familiar utterances from those fraught days of 1940. These include " I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat", "This was their Finest Hour", "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed, by so many, to so few", and lots more. All of the war speech volumes are prone to foxing, and the thin paper jackets chip easily, so condition is a big factor, with a Fine/Fine copy worth 20 times what an average copy brings.

The first American edition was published by Putnam in the same navy blue binding as the three previus titles, with a new title for the US market- BLOOD, SWEAT, AND TEARS. A new dustjacket design was used. The Book-of-the-Month Club (BOMC) edition is easily identified, but constantly offered as a first on ebay. The trade edition has navy cloth, the BOMC is bound in red. The dustwrappers have the same design, but the trade jacket has a price at the top of the front flap, whereas the BOMC jacket has a large BOMC logo on the bottom of the front flap. Like its British predeseccor, this title is readily available, but seldom seen in really fine jacket.

The publisher of the Canadian first edition, McClelland-Stewart, produced a large handsome volume in red cloth with a dustjacket design similar to that of the US edition, and used the American title. Thr first printing has 488 pages. later printings have 3 extra titles and 525 pages, but no statement of later printing, so many dealers offer them as firsts. There are several variants of the Canadian edition including one in grey cloth, and one identified as being published by Dominion Book and Bible House, bound in blue cloth.

There is also a truly scarce edition published in Shanghai by Kelly & Walsh, clearly issued prior to the arrival of numerous Japanese visitors in late 1941.

 
1st edition later printings US 1st
BOMC Canadian 1st later Canadian
Dominion Canadian grey Shanghai

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