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I was in the mood to read The Razor's Edge again, so of course I went looking for a "new" edition!
Not finding anything on eBay, I decided to try eBay.co.uk, figuring maybe there was a British edition that might be for sale. Turns out I was right!
This cover is pretty decent; its a painting called Spanish Woman, but it could certainly fill in as the scene of Isabel as she leaves Larry's apartment, having just decided they won't be getting married--that sad, wistful look on the woman's face seems more than appropriate.
The back cover description is new, and does a fairly good job representing the book--mentioning the major characters, but putting Larry front and center.
Thrilled to add another edition to my collection!
I was absentmindedly surfing through eBay, when I got the ides to look for "new" editions of The Razor's Edge, reasonably sure I wasn't going to find one. And yet...
I guess this edition's cover would rank the most laughably wrongheaded, trying so hard as it does to make the novel and its characters seem contemporary. Remove the text and it kind of reminds me of those "bumper cards" you'd see on The Tonight Show coming back from commercials.
Now I have an excuse to read the book again!
This is my all-time favorite edition of The Razor's Edge: one made especially for the Armed Services!
For anyone not familiar with these, Armed Services Editions were specially-made books for servicemen in WW II, reformatted so they could be more easily carried in a G.I.'s back pocket.
As the cover indicates, these are the complete books, not abridgments. Dozens, if not hundreds, of titles were produced. The first forty titles are listed on the inside back cover, and a quick glance at the titles tells me The Razor's Edge was by far the most famous book so chosen for this series.
I was stunned when I saw this for sale on eBay; I had no idea this existed and couldn't believe its survived all these decades. But while this copy is pretty weather beaten, its still complete and readable. I can't imagine what it must have been like, reading about Larry Darrell and his quest for The Absolute while sitting in some filthy foxhole, wondering if you were going to live through the day.
This is the last copy of The Razor's Edge I have in my collection (I wanted to save the best for last), but I have other versions of the story in other formats I still plan to talk about, so keep an eye out for future posts coming soon!
Another edition with a fairly generic cover, though the subject seems more Larry Darrell-ish to me than some of the others.
The back cover description mentions more of the book's characters than any other edition: Gray and Suzanne Rouvier, for instance.
An interesting take for the cover this time around; it gives the reader a vague sense of the theme of the book without being too explicit. I wonder if this was shot for the book or was a piece of stock photography?
Interesting on the back cover that the book is described as being about three characters--Isabel, Elliott, and Larry--making it sound like they are of equal importance to the story. Sure, Isabel and Elliott probably get just as much (if not more) "screen time" as Larry, but anyone who's read The Razor's Edge knows this is the story of Larry Darrell.
Another paperback Penguin edition of The Razor's Edge, this time with a generic cover but one that nevertheless is fairly handsome--I especially like the distressed effect.
The back cover features one of the less flattering author portraits I've seen, but since most of the photos of Mr. Maugham seem to make him look like a total sourpuss, I guess this artist's rendering shouldn't be too big of a surprise.
This 1955 edition of The Razor's Edge takes a moment right from the book (when Isabel visits Larry in his tiny apartment in France) for the cover. Its a fine painting, but isn't all that representative of the book's themes.
In addition, the Larry Darrell seen here looks way older than the character in the book. For most of the novel, Larry is in his twenties; here he looks much older--even older than Tyrone Power, who was 32 when played Larry in the 1946 film version.
Since The Razor's Edge was re-released as a movie tie-in on the occasion of the 1946 film, it only makes sense that it would be published again to mark the release of the 1984 film version, this time with star Bill Murray on the cover.
The back features a pretty decent description of the book's plot, with the emphasis being on the film, of course.
I never knew this edition existed until, while on a short trip to Maine, I saw it on the bookshelf in the childhood home of a friend of mine. From that point on, my #1 goal for when I got back was to go on eBay and get a copy for myself, which I did almost immediately.
This version of The Razor's Edge probably earns the award for most inscrutable cover--I have no idea what any of the objects pictured are supposed to mean, or how they relate the story.
What is very spot-on about this edition is the brief summary on the back cover--unlike other editions that have tended to miss the mark, the back cover here gives you the main thrust of the novel, its characters, and the book's place in literature history.
This Pocket Books edition is clearly taking its cue from the then-new movie adaptation, since this cover makes the book look like a weepy melodrama.
The romance angle is played up on the description of the book's plot on the back cover, as well. Add in the cartoony Pocket Books logo, and you have a book that's hard to recognize as The Razor's Edge.
Yet another paperback edition, again from Pocket Books. This one features a very simple, elegant cover, with a re-use of the motif on the back cover as well.
At some point during this book's existence, the first page must have fallen out or been torn out--then someone made a copy of the first page from another edition and taped it into this book's binding.
Page two ends midway through with the word "people" (from the sentence "It is very difficult to know people") and then picks up on page three. Kinda odd, but its nice someone went to all that effort to keep this book complete.
Another paperback edition, again from Pocket Books. This one is unusual in that the cover features a specific scene from the book (in this case, when Larry, Isabel, and everyone else run into Sophie at the bar), not the usual metaphorical covers you find on The Razor's Edge. The cover art is uncredited--too bad; its a nice painting!
I like the use of text, with the slanted axis of both the lettering and the overall orientation. It reflects the "edge" part of the title of course, but it doesn't hit you over the head with it.
I have to say, I think the description of the book's plot on the back cover is a tad misleading--Larry has virtually no effect on Elliott, let alone it being "miraculous."
This is the "newest" edition of The Razor's Edge I have bought--I was in the mood to read it again so I went looking on eBay and found this, an edition I'd never seen before. I dig that pseudo-hippie cover (which I first thought was a painting; upon further inspection I see its some sort of sculpture photographed close up).
I noticed that page 278, where Maugham and Larry have a meal after viewing Sophie's body, features a typo--it says, "knowing Larry seldom at meat", instead of "ate meat." I think that's the first time I've seen an error like that, in all the versions of the book I've read.
The indicia lists this edition as the book's "24th printing." Could that possibly mean there are that many different editions out there? If so, back to eBay...
