A wonderfully evocative 1964 Four Square paperback edition of Mary Renault’s The Charioteer, one of the author’s most important and enduring novels.

Originally published in Britain in 1953, The Charioteer is set against the backdrop of the Second World War and follows three young men — Laurie, Ralph and Andrew — as they negotiate love, identity, loyalty and the social expectations of their time.

The novel has become particularly significant for its sensitive portrayal of relationships between men at a period when homosexuality in Britain remained criminalised and was rarely treated with such seriousness in mainstream fiction. For that reason, early and vintage editions have interest extending beyond Renault collectors to readers and collectors of 20th-century LGBTQ+ literature and social history.

This copy is especially attractive as a period piece thanks to its striking illustrated Four Square cover, with its unmistakably mid-century pulp-paperback presentation. The original 4/- price is printed prominently on the front.

Edition details

Title: The Charioteer

Author: Mary Renault

Publisher: Four Square / The New English Library Ltd

Format: Paperback

Language: English

Publication history shown inside:

* First published in Great Britain by Longmans Green & Co. Ltd — 1953

* Second impression — 1953

* First Four Square Edition — 1959

* Reprinted — 1963

* This copy: 1964 reprint

So, importantly, this is not the 1953 first edition, but an early 1960s paperback issue of the novel.

About the novel

The story centres on three young men whose lives intersect during wartime:

Laurie, wounded at Dunkirk, is forced to confront difficult truths about himself.

Andrew, gentle, idealistic and a conscientious objector, represents a very different path.

Ralph, a naval officer, is more experienced and more accepting of his own sexuality.

Their relationships form the emotional heart of a novel concerned not simply with romance, but with maturity, morality, courage and the compromises demanded by both society and war.

The result is one of Renault’s most personal and historically interesting works.

Condition

This is a genuine vintage reading copy with visible wear rather than a pristine collector’s example.

There is noticeable:

* Cover and spine creasing

* Rubbing and wear around the edges

* Bumped and worn corners

* Surface marks and age-related discolouration

* Tanning/toning associated with an approximately 60-year-old paperback

* Some curvature and general reading wear

* Small handwritten marking/number near the base of the spine

Despite this, the wonderful illustrated cover retains strong colour and display appeal, and the age and wear arguably add considerably to its character as an authentic 1960s paperback.

Please examine the photographs closely, as they show the actual book being offered.