‘The Mystery of Edwin Drood’ has always attracted attention. It was Charles Dickens’ last novel, left unfinished at the time of his death in 1870. He had intended to publish it in twelve instalments, but only six had been created when he passed away, and he didn’t leave any detailed notes on how the story would have continued, or on the solution to the ‘mystery’ of the disappearance of the title character. Over the years since its first appearance, various solutions have been presented, and various authors have published continuations of the extant first half of the novel.
In the Bromley House Library collection we have three copies of this novel – and two of them have recently been given a new lease of life, thanks to generous donations from library members through our Adopt-a-Book scheme.
The first to receive attention was classmark Dc 5269. This is a completed version of the novel, published in 1914. It includes Dickens’ original segments, and is then continued by Walter E. Crisp, under the initials “W.E.C.”. Crisp is a bit of a mystery himself! We have nothing else by him in the library, and I can only find reference to one other work – a novel entitled “World without End”, published in 1917.
Our copy of Crisp’s version of Edwin Drood was in quite poor shape. The joints were split and the spine had become completely detached; it had also been repaired in the past with some very nasty sticky tape! The book was included in our Suggestion List of books which were in need of repair, and was adopted from the list by one of our library members. Our bookbinder added a new spine, but kept the original too, and stuck it onto the new one.
The second copy of ‘…Edwin Drood’ to be repaired was found on the shelves by a member who had spotted the first one on the Suggestion List and been disappointed by the fact that it had already been adopted! This version is incomplete, comprising just the six instalments written by Dickens. It is included in an anthology volume with four other stories (‘Master Humphrey’s Clock’, ‘Hunted Down’, ‘Holiday Romance’, and ‘George Silverman’s Explanation’), which was published in 1876. It has classmark Dc 133.
This book was also in a sorry state, with the front board detached, the corners battered, and the spine leather very worn. Our bookbinder repaired the corners, attached a new spine, and stuck the original spine over the top. He also included new, acid-free endpapers and new head- and tailbands at the top and bottom of the text block.
Both these books are now back in the library and available for members to borrow. They have been returned to excellent condition, and are sturdy and easily readable, so you can delve into the mystery and try to find your own solution, or discover how Walter Crisp concluded the tale.
This wouldn’t have been possible without the kindness of our book adoption donors! Find out more about our Adopt-a-Book scheme here.