London: Heinemann, 1967. First edition, first printing. This is a very good copy. The Janet and Anne Grahame-Johnstone dust wrapper is notably bright. The top edge is a trifle toned and worn. Some shelf wear present. It has been neatly price clipped. The boards are sharp, with some slight bumping to the corners and a very slight band of toning to the top edge. The text blocks are moderately foxed at the top edge, but otherwise clean. There is some slight wear to the bottom edge, however, affecting p35-40. To the front prelim, Dodie Smith inscribes this copy in black ink: To | Valerie White, | from | Dodie Smith. | Dear Octopus. Theatre Royal, Haymarket. | 1967 . Dated in the year of publication, and to the actress Valerie White, this is an exceptional copy in very good condition. The sequel to Smith's The Hundred and One Dalmatians (1956). The recipient, Valerie White (1915-1975), was born in South Africa. She is best known for The Halfway House (1944), BBC Sunday-Night Theatre (1950) and Theatre Night (1957). This copy was inscribed to White after she starred in Dodie Smith's production of Dear Octopus on the West End in 1957. It ran for nine weeks. White played Edna Randolph in the production. It is said that Smith gifted the main actors an inscribed copy of The Starlight Barking, like the one here offered.