I've just published a new book, a restored edition, under its original title, of a novel by Evangeline Walton. Her manuscript was cut by one-third by the original publisher (presumably to reach a standard page count), and published under a different title, which the author did not approve. This edition restores the text that was haphazardly chopped out, and restores the novel's original title, Dark Runs the Road.
In 1956 it had been called The Cross and the Sword when published in New York by Bouregy & Curl. In 1957 it was called Son of Darkness when published in England by Hutchinson. It has long been out of print.
The new edition is available in trade paperback (ISBN 979-8304520089) and in Kindle format at the various Amazon incarnations. I couldn't resist using two of the Lewis Chessmen on the cover; see below. The rear cover, with the descriptive blurb, appears below that. (Click on the illustrations to make them larger.)
I think this is one of Walton's finest novels, and it's great to see it available again, allowing modern readers the chance to see if they agree with me.
Great news, Doug -- and many thanks! For me, the book as originally published may well be her best (and one of the finest "viking" novels ever), so I'm very much looking forward to your restored version (especially with the Lewis chessmen cover and the Nodens imprint)!
ReplyDeleteThanks again,
Trevor
Thanks, Trevor. I don't think you will be disappointed with it!
DeleteThanks, Doug. I hesitate to ask, given that you say the text was "haphazardly chopped out", but could you possibly provide some idea of where the cuts occurred (at least the major ones)? If so, it would help a lot as I try to navigate between the first-published and newly restored editions.
DeleteMany thanks,
Trevor
The in-house editor basically cut sentences or paragraphs or pages or sections all throughout the typescript, and sometimes wrote bridging passages to smoothe the gaps . I think the cuts were done to get the content down to fit into the publishers usual page count. It would be very complicated to delineate what was restored. I had many pages of typescripts of two versions of the book. Walton had deposited the cut and copyedited typescript in Special Collections at the University of Arizona. From them I got a copy of the cut version, and used it to match pages from the disordered pages Walton had kept. Thereby I re-assembled the original version, and then typed the whole book from that. I realize that doesn't quite answer your question, but there is no simple answer to give.
DeleteFantastic! I've had the defunct Nodens Books blog bookmarked for years just in case this news finally came through.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteGreat news. Do you plan to add the ebook to other retailers (Kobo, Barnes & Noble) or offer it for library purchase (Overdrive)? Also, any plans to republish "Above Ker-Is and Other Stories" in digital format?
ReplyDeleteI will be looking into other ebook formats. We put Above Ker-Is &OS out of print a few years ago, as it will be superseded by a Collected Stories with more materials in it.
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