The Christmas Books: The Chimes; The Battle of Life; Cricket on the Hearth; The Haunted Man and The Ghost’s Bargain.

First editions of the four final novellas in Charles Dickens’ Christmas Book series. Octavo, 4 volumes bound in full morocco by Root & Son with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt, engraved frontispieces and additional vignette titles. The set contains: a first edition, second issue of The Chimes: A Goblin Story of Some Bells that Rang an Old Year Out and a New Year. [London: Chapman and Hall, 1845] [1844] with the publisher's advertisement for A Christmas Carol; with the half-title; 13 illustrations including frontispiece and vignette title by Maclise, Doyle, Leech and Stanfield; second state of the vignette title. First edition, second issue of The Cricket on the Hearth. A Fairy Tale of Home. [London: Bradbury and Evans for the author, 1846] [1845] with the half-title; 14 illustrations including frontispiece and vignette title by Leech, Doyle, Stanfield, Maclise and Landseer; with three-line italic heading for Oliver Twist on p.175 of the publisher's ads at rear. First edition, later issue of The Battle of Life. A Love Story. [London: Bradbury and Evans, 1846] with the half-title; 13 illustrations including frontispiece and vignette title by Maclise, Doyle, Leech and Stanfield; 2pp. advertisements at rear. First edition of The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargain. [London: Bradbury and Evans, 1848]; 16 illustrations including frontispiece and vignette title by Leech, Stanfield, Tenniel and Stone. Original covers bound in at rear of each volume. In near fine condition.