A very good first edition of the first novel by John Braine, a leading light amongst the so-called ‘Angry Young Men’ writers who emerged onto the English literary scene in the 1950s. The book would also serve as the catalyst for the British New Wave of Kitchen Sink realism films when transferred to the big screen in 1959. The jacket artist John Minton was respected as an illustrator and artist in his time, notably doing the jacket artwork for some of Elizabeth David’s influential cookery books; he was to some degree under-appreciated subsequently, but has enjoyed something of a well-deserved renaissance recently, in part aided by the Mark Gatiss documentary for the BBC in 2018. Unusual to find with the publisher’s original wraparound also present.