"ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL, BUT SOME ANIMALS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS": 50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF ORWELL'S ANIMAL FARM, INSCRIBED BY ILLUSTRATOR RALPH STEADMAN WITH ORIGINAL SKETCH

(STEADMAN, Ralph, illustrator) ORWELL, George. Animal Farm: A Fairy Story. London: Secker & Warburg, (1995). Octavo, original red cloth boards stamped in black, original dust jacket, pictorial endpapers. $3500.

First edition, first printing of the 50th anniversary special edition of Orwell's famous allegory, illustrated by iconic gonzo artist Ralph Steadman, inscribed by Steadman on the half title "For Steve / Ralph Steadman 24.10.95" with an accompanying sketch of a blood-spattered pig.

"A political fable that partly recounts, in an allegorical mode, the aftermath of the Russian revolution, and partly illustrates a belief in the universal tendency of power to corrupt" (Stringer, 22). "Animal Farm, which owes something to Swift and Defoe, is [Orwell's] masterpiece" (Connolly 93). Satirical cartoonist Ralph Steadman, known for his work with Hunter S. Thompson, illustrated this commemorative anniversary edition in his signature style; Paul Gallagher commented on "the scabrous beauty of Ralph Steadman's grotesque scratchings… I'd be hard put to think of any other artist who so effectively depicts the grim satire at the heart of Orwell's tale. Steadman's drawings seem to be on the verge of exploding with fury at the raw injustice of life or, in this case, the political allegory of the endless brutal horror of Animal Farm" (Dangerous Minds).

Title page with slight ghosting and one stray ink mark from inscription on half title. A fine inscribed copy.