The Chequer Board by Nevil Shute 1947 SIGNED 1st US edition with dust jacket

The Chequer Board by Nevil Shute. First US edition, William Morrow & Company, New York, 1947, double-signed by the author. A rare opportunity to acquire a signed copy of one of Nevil Shute's novels. I believe this to have been signed whilst the author and his wife were on a tour of North America to promote the book and, as he put it,'get in touch with the man on the street'.

He reportedly took his wife along to help with the business of entertaining and making contact with women. If this copy is anything to go by he had a least some success with the latter, for not only is the book flat signed'Nevil Shute Norway' but also rather more endearingly'Winnie, with love from Norway, May 1947'. The book is in good overall condition with tight binding, and all pages intact without tears or markings. The fore edges and tops of the pages are dulled and the front and rear endpapers tanned, but the whole of the text block remains bright by comparison.

The once buff-coloured boards are now darkened and dulled by age. The spine has sustained impact damage to the top 1.5cm resulting in a small loss of cloth and backing, but the binding itself remains intact. The dust jacket is still in one piece but has torn for half its length along the spine's rear fold from the bottom up. There are other various tears nicks and losses to top and bottom.

Edges and corners - please see photos for exact condition. The spine is faded and water-stained in a few areas.

Although having a prolific output signed examples of Nevil Shute's work are few and far between and the addition of a personal dedication makes a totally unique copy of this novel.