ROSCOE, William. The Butterfly’s Ball. And the Grasshopper’s Feast. To which is added, an original poem entitled A Winter’s Day by Mr. Smith, of Stand. London: J. Harris, 1808. 12mo, 16pp. Rebound in maroon leather decoratively stamped in gilt, housing the original pictorial paper wrappers. Marbled endpapers; 8 hand-colored plates. Spine and corners a bit rubbed, previous owner’s label affixed to front fixed endpapers, front and rear paper wrappers a bit soiled with front bearing some small writing at top, frontispiece cleanly disconnected with a newspaper advertisement for the book affixed to verso and previous owner’s name in ink on verso, light aging and handsoiling to pages. Overall, a nice, collectible copy.

Second edition. Originally written in 1802 by lawyer, Member of Parliament, abolitionist and poet William Roscoe, this charming and hugely popular work tells the story of a party attended by insects and other small animals. This second edition of this poem features a slightly reworked text and entirely new illustrations. The popularity of this book led to a variety of sequels, piracies, and imitations including The Lion’s Masquerade, The Peackock ‘At Home’ and The Elephant’s Ball.