Ted May And The Forlorn Hope
Historical Fiction Art & Illustration Young Adult Fiction Australian Colonial Art Picture Book Collectible Australiana Adventure Fiction
Ted May and the Forlorn Hope is a scarce, lavishly illustrated paperback that occupies the sweet spot between picture book and art folio. Created by Gordon Morrison and J.P. Stow, it recounts—through atmospheric full-page plates and vignettes—the fictional journey of early Australian artist Ted May as he chases an 1850s gold-rush exhibition that never quite happens. Because the story is built around real colonial art techniques, every spread doubles as a gallery of museum-quality drawings, lithographs, and sketchbook pages that collectors of Australiana and 19th-century illustration hunt for.
What makes this copy especially appealing is its immaculate, collector-grade condition: crisp, unmarked pages, no ex-library stamps, no inscriptions, no corner creases, and no smoke or sun fading—details that matter when a title was only ever released in softcover and rarely surfaces in any state above “good.” Young-adult readers enjoy the adventure narrative, while adult collectors value the accurate period detail and the bonus exhibition notes that document forgotten Australian art societies. The book’s crossover audience keeps demand steady in both youth fiction and antiquarian art circles.
Because Ted May and the Forlorn Hope was never reprinted, copies in “very good” condition have become increasingly hard to source. This clean, carefully stored example is ready for immediate shelf or gift use and represents one of the most affordable entry points into collectible Australian art books. Keywords: Australian colonial art, Gordon Morrison illustrated, J.P. Stow, out-of-print picture book, gold-rush artists, collectible Australiana, young adult historical fiction, scarce illustrated paperback.
Refer to our eBay listing for a full condition report and many more high-quality pictures of this item.
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