In today's edition of Redwall Collectors Community, we're covering the three Advance Readers Copies (ARCs, also known as uncorrected proofs or galleys) for Lord Brocktree by Brian Jacques.
To our knowledge, this is the only Redwall novel that received three different ARCs - one from U.S. publisher Philomel and two from UK publisher Random House (prior to their merger).
One of these advances just may be one of the rarest Redwall items out there, and we'll explore why below.
The U.S. advance for Lord Brocktree is fairly straightforward. It features Troy Howell's cover artwork, and contains Andrew Warrington's map and Fangorn's illustrations. It's the entire book, just in a pre-publication format. The promotional excerpt on the back comes from the end of Chapter 27, which closes out Book 2.
The first UK proof for Lord Brocktree differs a bit from the U.S. one. It features Fangorn's cover artwork, however the colors are intentionally faded. The book text begins right at the Prologue - there's no title or copyright pages, no map, and the "teller of tales" introductory poem is missing. The chapter icon illustrations are included, though.
The second UK proof for Lord Brocktree appears to be a more exclusive release of the previous one. It's unclear which one was released first, and who was selected to receive this more VIP version. The cover artwork is completely vibrant in this edition, and there's a clear differentiator on the front: a "Limited Edition Proof Copy" graphic in the upper right corner - Brian Jacques' name has also been relocated to accommodate for this.
And while the back cover is identical to the other UK proof, it's the inside where things get interesting.
The first thing that greets the reader is a Brian Jacques autograph! The following page indicates why this is a "limited edition proof" - there were only 150 copies printed. We have number 119. Like the U.S. ARC, this proof contains the entire content of the published novel - title page, copyright page, map, "teller of tales" poem, etc.
To put this into context:
- There are only 500 copies of the signed and numbered Author's Limited Edition of Redwall.
- There are only 400 copies of the signed and numbered Castaways of the Flying Dutchman UK proof.
- There are only 250 Nelvana Redwall TV Series promotional goblets.
Out of Brian Jacques-related items where there are known strict amounts, the UK Lord Brocktree limited edition uncorrected proof is seemingly the most scarce and rare.
Thanks for joining us today! More excitement to come soon.
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