Mist of Memory by Bernard Sachs

Mist of Memory (Signed Copy of a South African Journalist's Memoir)

The Autobiography of a Lithuanian-Born South African Journalist, Editor and Biographer of Herman Charles Bosman

Bibliographic Specifications

• Title: Mist of Memory: An Autobiography
• Author: Bernard Sachs
• Publisher: Vallentine, Mitchell & Co. Ltd., London
• Publication Date: 1973
• ISBN-10: 0853031738
• Edition Details: First published in Great Britain in 1973. Signed by the author.
• Binding: Publisher's green cloth boards with a pictorial dust jacket.
• Physical Format: Octavo (8vo) hardcover, with a portrait of the author as frontispiece.
• Language: English

Official Condition Report

• The Book: Very Good (VG)
• Exterior / Boards: The green cloth boards are clean, with square corners and a straight spine.
• Interior: The text block is clean and bright, with no foxing or markings to the pages examined. The binding is tight.
• Provenance: Handwritten signature in blue ink to the front free endpaper, reading 'Bernard Sachs'.
• The Dust Jacket: Present. The bright yellow-green pictorial jacket carries a portrait of the author. The spine head is slightly chipped and rubbed, with some edge wear at the back top corner, and the back panel and flaps show light toning. The jacket is protected in a durable archival-type plastic cover.

Synopsis & Historical Value

Published in London in 1973 by Vallentine, Mitchell, Mist of Memory is the autobiography of Bernard Sachs, a Lithuanian-born South African writer and journalist. It is the second of his two autobiographical volumes, following Multitude of Dreams of 1949.

Sachs recounts his life and the events he witnessed, including the 1922 Rand strike and its aftermath. As a long-time editor of South African Opinion and a writer on prominent South Africans, he offers a first-hand view of South African public and literary life across much of the twentieth century.

A signed copy in its pictorial dust jacket, this will interest collectors of South African memoir, Jewish South African history and the literary circle around Herman Charles Bosman.

Author Profile: Bernard Sachs

Bernard Sachs (1905-1985) was a journalist, historian and author. Born in Kamai, Lithuania, he was brought up in South Africa after his parents emigrated and was educated at Jeppe High School in Johannesburg. He worked as a journalist and leader writer for the South African Jewish Times, and was founding editor of South African Opinion and later of Trek.

He was also a biographer of prominent South Africans, particularly Herman Charles Bosman, whom he knew well. His other works include The Utmost Sail (1955), South African Personalities and Places (1959) and The Road to Sharpeville (1961), his short book on the Sharpeville tragedy.