Eliot's letters to his godson to be auctioned in London

A series of tender and whimsical letters written by poet T S Eliot to a beloved godson will go on sale next month, auctioner Bonhams announced on Thursday.

The collection of 50 letters to Thomas Faber, a member of the Faber and Faber publishing family, is valued between 25,000 and 30,000 pounds (USD 45,000 and USD 54,000).

They include poems and illustrations that formed the basis of Eliot's 1939 children's book 'Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats,' which was dedicted to Faber.

It went on to inspire the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical 'Cats'.One letter is a verse 'Invitation to All Pollicle Dogs and Jellicle Cats to Come to the Birthday of Thomas Faber,' sent just before Faber's fourth birthday in 1931.

Bonhams' manuscripts consultant, Felix Pryor, said the letters were 'very moving but enormous fun.'   

"For anyone who loves T S Eliot's poetry, the connection with the Faber family and its publishing house makes this collection even more exciting," he said.

Eliot, who died in 1965, worked for many years as an editor at Faber and Faber and eventually became a director of the firm.
    
The Eliot collection will be sold by the Faber family in London on September 20. The sale also includes 84 other letters from Eliot and a signed first edition of "The Waste Land," inscribed to Tom Faber's father, Geoffrey, and valued at between 30,000 and 40,000 pounds (USD 55,000 and USD 72,000).