O’BRIEN, Flann. The Third Policeman (First edition, first impression in fine condition)

London: MacGibbon & Kee, 1967. First edition. Octavo. pp. 200. Brown papered boards, titled in gilt. A near fine copy in fine pictorial unclipped dust jacket.

The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien is widely regarded as one of the greatest Irish novels of the twentieth century and a masterpiece of surreal fiction. Written during the early 1940s but rejected by publishers in the author's lifetime, the novel was first published posthumously in 1967, securing its place as a modern literary classic. Combining dark humour, philosophical speculation and an unforgettable cast of eccentric characters, The Third Policeman continues to captivate readers and collectors alike.

The story follows an unnamed narrator who descends into an increasingly bizarre world after committing murder. There he encounters enigmatic policemen, strange theories concerning the exchange of atoms between bicycles and their riders, and the mysterious philosopher-scientist de Selby. O'Brien's brilliant blend of absurdity, satire and existential enquiry has earned comparisons with Franz Kafka, Samuel Beckett and James Joyce, while remaining entirely original in conception and style.

First editions of The Third Policeman are among the most sought-after books of modern Irish literature. Their scarcity, combined with the novel's enduring critical reputation, has made them highly desirable to collectors of rare books, Irish first editions and twentieth-century fiction. At De Búrca Rare Books, we specialise in rare Flann O'Brien first editions and significant works of Irish literature, offering collectors exceptional copies of one of Ireland's most influential and imaginative writers.

Grimly comic “posthumous fantasy”; the protagonist of which is a murderer who, unknowingly, has himself been murdered, and finds himself in a warped alternate Ireland. The surreal landscape, imbued with a sense of the literary weird, is signalled in the work by what Jorge Luis Borges called “games with time and infinity” (Clute & Grant). O’Brien, “one of the finest of modern Irish fantasists”, wrote this, his second novel between 1939 and 1940. It did the rounds with publishers and met with repeated rejections, causing him such disappointment that he withdrew the manuscript from circulation, and the work was consequently published posthumously.

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