[BLOY (Léon)] - BOLLERY (Joseph). - Lot 108

[BLOY (Léon)] - BOLLERY (Joseph). Cahiers Léon Bloy. La Rochelle: [Joseph Bollery], 1924-1939. - 90 issues in 8 volumes in-8, 221 x 137. Red half-maroquin, spine ribbed, gilt head, untrimmed, covers preserved (P. L. Martin). Complete collection of the first series of Cahiers Léon Bloy, edited by Joseph Bollery, comprising 90 issues published in 76 fascicules from September 1924 to September 1939. A precious copy, ONE OF 4 ON LAFUMA REGISTER VELIN, justified by the publisher as follows: "Il a été tiré, de chaque numéro des Cahiers Léon Bloy: Quatre exemplaires sur vélin registre Lafuma." This one bears the number 2 and includes this handsome autograph letter from Bollery to Jehan Kappès-Grangé: à mon ami, Jehan Kappès-Grangé, // qui a bien voulu me demander // l'histoire des Cahiers Léon Bloy. // I beg his pardon for having done so // at such length, but this story is // the story of my whole life, which, from the moment I was // born, was directed, unbeknownst to me // and even against my will, towards // the vocation of historian of the // "Ungrateful Beggar", // In memory of our common // expeditions in search of Cain's // "disjecta membra" // Marchenoir, // remember Vernègues, // Aix-en-Provence, Paris, Cubjac, // Taillepetit, to name but // our most prestigious stops... // La Rochelle, June 1957 // Joseph Bollery As promised in his dedication, Bollery has written on 4 flyleaves not the history of the Cahiers, but a veritable autobiography recounting the events since his childhood that led him to admire Léon Bloy and devote a publication to him. His text is signed and dated July 1957, and here is an extract from the beginning of the publishing adventure: "I had collected enough subscriptions to cover the magazine's first year. The first issue of Cahiers Léon Bloy appeared on September 25, 1924, with a print run of 250 copies - more than enough, I thought. But it quickly sold out, and I had to re-compose and reprint it to satisfy new subscribers. The Cahiers Léon Bloy lived up to - and exceeded - my manifesto's rash promises. They appeared regularly every two months, except for a few double and triple issues which sometimes extended the periodicity to 4 or 6 months. Founder, director, editor-in-chief, editorial secretary, proofreader, office boy and errand boy, I assumed all the functions single-handedly." A beautifully bound copy by Pierre-Lucien Martin, enriched with the subscription bulletin announcing the publication of the Cahiers, as well as the supplements often printed on colored paper. It is also complete with all red covers. A very well preserved copy. Provenance: Jehan Kappès-Grangé, with consignment from the publisher.