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First Edition of The Fire Next Time; Signed by James Baldwin
BALDWIN, James.
The Fire Next Time.
New York: The Dial Press, 1963.
First edition of one of the most influential works on race relations published in the twentieth century. Octavo, original cloth. Signed by the author on the title page, "Peace! James Baldwin." Very good in a very good dust jacket. Jacket design by Paul Bacon. Jacket photograph by Mottke Weissman. Rare and desirable. Housed in a custom clamshell box by the Harcourt Bindery. Founded over a century ago in 1900, The Harcourt Bindery is the oldest and largest traditional bindery in America exclusively devoted to fine traditional leather bookbinding by hand. Signed examples of The Fire Next Time are uncommon.
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 129331
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"Perhaps the greatest French illustrated book of the first half of the eighteenth century": Rare first edition, first issue of Oeuvres de Moliere
MOLIèRE. [POQUELIN, Jean-Baptiste].
Oeuvres de Moliere. Nouvelle Edition.
Paris: [Pierre Prault], 1734.
First edition, first issue of one of the greatest French illustrated books of the first half of the eighteenth century. First issue with "Comteese" in vol. VI, p. 360, line 12. Quarto, six volumes bound in full calf with gilt titles and ruling to the spine in six compartments within raised bands, morocco spine labels lettered in gilt. Illustrated with 33 engraved plates by Laurent Cars after François Boucher, engraved frontispiece portrait of Molière by Nicolas-Bernard Lépicié after Charles-Antoine Coypel, 210 engraved head and tailpieces, and 104 engraved initials by Joullain and Cars after Boucher, Blondel and Oppenord. In near…
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 130224
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"In a world darksome as this'n I believe a blind man ort to be better sighted than most": First Edition of Cormac McCarthy’s Rare Second Novel; Signed by the author
MCCARTHY, Cormac.
Outer Dark.
New York: Random House, 1968.
First edition of the author's second novel. Octavo, original half cloth. Boldly signed by Cormac McCarthy on the front free endpaper. Fine in a near fine price-clipped dust jacket. Jacket design by Muriel Nasser. A superior example.
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 142349
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“Love is never any better than the lover": First Edition of Toni Morrison's First Book The Bluest Eye; Signed by her
MORRISON, Toni.
The Bluest Eye.
New York: Holt Rinehart & Winston, 1970.
First edition of Morrison's classic first book. Octavo, original half cloth. Boldly signed by Toni Morrison on the title page. Near fine in a very good first issue dust jacket with the $5.95 price and 1070 on the bottom of front flap, with some expert restoration. Dust jacket design by Herb Lubalin and Jay Tribich. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell slipcase.
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 142255
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“For every man in the world functions to the best of his ability, and no one does less than his best, no matter what he may think about it": First Edition of John Steinbeck's The Pearl; Inscribed by Him
STEINBECK, John.
The Pearl.
New York: The Viking Press, 1947.
First edition of this classic story of simplicity, based on a Mexican folk tale. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the half-title page, "For Maggie and Larry with love John Steinbeck." Near fine in a near fine first-issue dust jacket with Steinbeck looking to the left on the rear panel. Drawings by Jose Clemente Orozco. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box.
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 103774
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"The history of mankind is the history of the attainment of external power. Man is the tool-using, fire-making animal...Always down a lengthening record, save for a set-back ever and again, he is doing more": First Edition of H.G. Wells' The World Set Free; inscribed by him to George Bernard Shaw
WELLS, H.G. [George Bernard Shaw].
The World Set Free: A Story of Mankind.
London: Macmillan and Co., Limited, 1914.
First edition, first issue of Wells' prophetic novel predicting the arrival of atomic weaponry with the publisher listed as Macmillan and Co. Limited (as opposed to Ltd.), 8 pages of advertisements at rear, and no statement of printing to the copyright page. Octavo, original cloth stamped in blind with gilt titles to the spine and front panel, top edge gilt. Association copy, inscribed by H.G. Wells to George Bernard Shaw, "G.B.S. from H.G." Like Wells, George Bernard Shaw used writing fiction as a vehicle to disseminate his political, social and religious ideas. Wells and Shaw connected when Wells joined the…
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 109903
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"If you miss A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, you will deny yourself a rich experience": First Edition of A Tree Grows In Brooklyn; Inscribed by Betty Smith in the month of publication
SMITH, Betty.
A Tree Grows In Brooklyn.
New York: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1943.
First edition of Smith's classic first novel about a young girl's coming-of-age at the turn of the twentieth century. Octavo, original green cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper in the year of publication, "For Foster and Marian Best Love Betty Smith Aug. 23, 1943." Near fine in a near fine first issue dust jacket with some professional restoration. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery.
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 103855
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FIRST EDITION, FIRST PRINTING OF MARK TWAIN'S ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN; FROM THE LIBRARY OF WILLIAM SAFIRE
TWAIN, Mark. [Samuel Clemens].
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Tom Sawyer’s Comrade).
New York: Charles L. Webster and Company, 1885.
First edition, first issue of Mark Twain’s masterpiece. Octavo, bound in full dark green morocco with morocco spine label lettered in gilt, raised bands to the spine, mar top edge gilt, with 174 illustrations by Edward W. Kemble. With all of the agreed upon first issue points for the clothbound book: page 9 with “Decided” remaining uncorrected (to “Decides”); page 13, illustration captioned “Him and another Man” listed as on page 88; page 57, 11th line from bottom reads “with the was,” instead of “with the saw”. Other points of bibliographical interest included in this copy are the frontispiece portrait…
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 127896
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The earliest known first edition, presentation copy of Potter's The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle; warmly inscribed by her in the month following the book's publication
POTTER, Beatrix.
The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle.
London: Frederick Warne and Co, 1905.
The earliest known first edition, presentation copy of Potter's popular children's story. Octavo, original boards with embossed titles and pictorial cover label, pictorial endpapers, illustrated with 26 color plates by the author. Presentation copy, warmly inscribed by the author on the front pictorial endpaper in the year of publication, "For Theresa Thorp with love from Beatrix Potter Oct 15th 05." The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle was published only one month prior to Potter's inscription in September 1905, this is the earliest traceable presentation copy inscribed by Potter. In very good condition. Front hinge reinforced, loss to the crown and foot…
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 135913
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"The largest single engraving enterprise ever undertaken in England": Rare Finely Bound Complete Set of Boydell's Monumental illustrated edition of the Dramatic Works of Shakespeare
SHAKESPEARE, William. Revised by George Steevens.
The Dramatic Works of Shakespeare.
London: Printed by W. Bulmer and Co. for John and Josiah Boydell, George and W. Nicol., 1802.
Rare finely bound complete set of "by far the largest single engraving enterprise ever undertaken in England", John Boydell's magnificent illustrated folio edition of the dramatic works of Shakespeare. Folio, 9 volumes. Bound in three quarters morocco with gilt titles to the spine, all edges marbled. Elaborately illustrated with 96 plates engraved by the most eminent British engravers and painters of the era including Richard Westall, Thomas Stothard, George Romney, Henry Fuseli, Benjamin West, Angelica Kauffman, Robert Smirke, James Durno, John Opie, Francesco Bartolozzi, Thomas Kirk, and Henry Thomson. Edited by George Steevens, one of the greatest Shakespearean scholars of…
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 109329
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First Edition of Graham Greene's Brighton Rock; Inscribed by Him
GREENE, Graham.
Brighton Rock.
New York: The Viking Press, 1938.
First American edition, preceding the British edition by one month of Greene's chilling expose of violence and gang warfare in the pre-war underworld is a classic of its kind. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "For Richard Graham Greene." Near fine in near fine dust jacket with light rubbing and wear. Jacket design by George Salter. Housed in a custom clamshell box. First editions signed and inscribed are scarce
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 98352
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“True sorrow is as rare as true love": First Edition of Stephen King’s First Book Carrie; Lengthily Inscribed by Stephen King to New York Yankees MVP Bobby Richardson
KING, Stephen.
Carrie.
Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc, 1974.
First edition of the novel that launched King's career, with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page and 'P6' in the gutter of page 199. Octavo, original maroon cloth, compliments stamp to the front pastedown, "With Compliments of Doubleday & Company, Inc." Presentation copy, lengthily inscribed by the author on the title page, "For Bobby Richardson - Thanks for the neat baseball cards. Say - you didn't ever play ball with the Yankees, didja? (Just joking) - Stephen King 3/7/90." The recipient, Bobby Richardson played for the New York Yankees from 1955 through 1966, winning five straight Gold Glove Awards at second base and…
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 147126
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"Greed, for lack of a better word, is good": Rare original shooting script from the classic 1987 Film Wall Street; with an autograph note signed by Oliver Stone laid in and again signed by Stone
STONE, Oliver. [Sylvia Miles].
Original Wall Street Shooting Script.
Oaxatal Productions, Inc, 1987.
Rare original shooting script from the classic 1987 film Wall Street with an autograph note signed by Oliver Stone and boldly signed by Stone on the title page. Quarto, bound in a spiral-bound folder. Third draft, second revision dated 4/15/87. Bound with an additional fifth revision. From the collection of Sylvia Miles with an autograph note addressed to her and signed by the film's director Oliver Stone laid in which reads, "Please look at role of 'Sylvia' for Wall Street for Saturday. Oliver Stone." American actress Sylvia Miles was a fixture in New York City society, having lived there her…
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 116582
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“Clocks slay time... time is dead as long as it is being clicked off by little wheels; only when the clock stops does time come to life": First Edition of William Faulkner's Masterpiece The Sound and the Fury
FAULKNER, William.
The Sound and the Fury.
New York: Jonathan Cape and Harrison Smith, 1929.
First edition, first printing of Faulkner’s masterpiece. Octavo, original half cloth over black and white patterned paper boards. Very good in a very good second state dust jacket with Humanity Uprooted priced at $3.50 instead of $3.00 on the rear panel. Housed in a custom clamshell box.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 139490
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"Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December; And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor": The Amontillado edition of the works of Edgar Allan Poe
POE, Edgar Allan.
The Works of Edgar Allan Poe. [Including: The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Gold Bug, Raven, Eureka].
New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, [1884].
The Amontillado edition of the works of Edgar Allan Poe. Octavo, 8 volumes bound in full morocco by P.B. Sanford with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in 6 compartments within raised gilt bands, double gilt ruling to the panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt, tissue-guarded engraved frontispiece to each volume by R. Swain Gifford, Frederick Church and others, etched engraved vignettes to the title pages. One of 315 numbered copies signed and dated by the publisher on the limitation leaf of each volume, this is number 290. In fine condition. Rare and desirable.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 118042
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“THERE WASN’T MUCH FISH, JUST A FEW STRAY BITS OF BARE BACKBONE”: FIRST EDITION IN ENGLISH OF SOLZHENITSYN’S ONE DAY IN THE LIFE OF IVAN DENISOVICH; INSCRIBED BY HIM
SOLZHENITSYN, Alexander. [Solzhentizyn].
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich.
New York: E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc, 1963.
First edition in English, preceding the first British edition, of the Nobel Prize-winner’s first published work. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the half-title page, "To Anne Roberts A. Solzhenitsyn Dec. 2004." Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by the Duquesnes. Jacket photograph by Sovfoto. Translated by Ralph Parker. Introduction by CBS newsman Marvin Kalb with a special foreword by Alexander Tvardovsky, Editor-in-Chief ofÂNovy Mir, the leading dissident literary journal during the late years of the Soviet Union.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 140674
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“The closest I ever got to the sound I hear in my mind": Blonde on Blonde; Signed by Bob Dylan
DYLAN, Bob.
Blonde on Blonde.
1966.
Original pressing of one of the greatest albums of all-time. Boldly signed by Bob Dylan on the front panel. The cover photograph of Blonde on Blonde shows a 12-by-12 inch close-up portrait of Dylan. The double album gatefold sleeve opens to form a 12-by-26 inch photo of the artist, at three quarter length. The artist's name and the album's title only appear on the spine. A sticker was applied to the shrink wrap to promote the release's two hit singles, "I Want You" and "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35". The cover shows Dylan in front of a brick building, wearing a suede jacket…
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 114175
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"Poet, Singer, Great heart, may our god bless your name, and the womb that held you, and the breasts that gave you milk. and may god forgive us all"; First Edition of Kahlil Gibran's Jesus The Son of Man; Warmly Inscribed by him
GIBRAN, Kahlil.
Jesus: The Son of Man.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1928.
First edition of Kahlil Gibran's masterful retelling of the story of Jesus of Nazareth. Octavo, original cloth, illustrations by the author. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author in the year of publication on the front free endpaper, "For Roy and D. from Howard and Bill With the blessing upon you four, and with the gratitude of Kahlil Gibran 1928." Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Rare and desirable inscribed and in the original dust jacket.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 89433
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"It’s the Lord’s will that I should kill you. So that makes it all right": First Edition of By the Pricking of My Thumbs; Inscribed by Agatha Christie
CHRISTIE, Agatha.
By the Pricking of My Thumbs.
London: Published for The Crime Club by Collins, 1968.
First edition of this thrilling Tommy and Tuppence Beresford detective novel. Octavo, original green cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "To Helen [Gilbertson] With best wishes for Xmas from Agatha Christie." Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Kenneth Farnhill. Housed in a custom full tan morocco slipcase with chemise by M.J. Adjarian. From the Richard Manney collection. An exceptional example.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 146507
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Rare First Edition of Mary Wollstonecraft's second novel Valperga
SHELLEY, Mary Wollstonecraft.
Valperga: or, the Life and Adventures of Castruccio, Prince of Lucca. By the Author of ‘Frankenstein’.
London: G. and W.B. Whittaker, 1823.
Rare first edition of Shelley's second novel, which has been called "a meditation on political, psychological, and sexual power" and is considered by many to be her finest work. 12mo., bound in 19th century three quarter calf over marbled boards by Bumpus, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, morocco spine labels, raised bands. In very good condition, contemporary name. A very sharp example.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 117880
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“The timeless in you is aware of life's timelessness. And knows that yesterday is but today's memory and tomorrow is today's dream": Scarce First Edition of Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet
GIBRAN, Kahlil.
The Prophet.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1923.
First edition of the author's masterpiece. Octavo, original publisher's black cloth decorated in gilt, illustrated with 12 collotype plates by the author. In near fine condition. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box by the Harcourt Bindery. A scarce and desirable example of the elusive title. The first printing consisted of a run of 2,000, of which Knopf sold 1,159 copies.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 126298
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“Please, sir, I want some more”: First Edition of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist
DICKENS, Charles.
Oliver Twist.
London: Richard Bentley, 1838.
First edition, second printing with "By Boz" to each title page and the "Church" plate. Octavo, three volumes, bound in full brown calf, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, triple ruled gilt to the front and rear panels, marbled endpapers, inner dentelles, top edge gilt. Original cloth bound in at rear of each volume. In near fine condition with light rubbing.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 15010
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First edition of Walt Whitman's Two Rivulets: Including Democratic Vistas, Centennial Songs, and Passage to India; one of only 100 copies signed and dated by Walt Whitman and with an autograph note signed by him tipped in
WHITMAN, Walt.
Two Rivulets: Including Democratic Vistas, Centennial Songs, and Passage to India.
Camden, New Jersey: Author's Edition, 1876.
Scarce first edition, first issue with the blank leaf between 'As a Strong Bird' and 'Memoranda' and single leaf of advertisements for Whitman’s books inserted between the back flyleaves. One of only 100 copies. Octavo, bound in full morocco with gilt titles and elaborate gilt tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, triple gilt ruling to the panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentetlles, gilt top stain, marbled endpapers. With the frontispiece sepia photograph of Whitman signed and dated by him, "Walt Whitman 1881." From the library of Richard Hoe Lawrence with an autograph note by Whitman…
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 114654
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"And the voice of his devotion filled my soul with strange emotion; for its tones by turns were glad, sweetly solemn, wildly-sad": First Edition of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's Poems on Slavery; inscribed by him
LONGFELLOW, Henry Wadsworth.
Poems on Slavery.
Cambridge: John Owen, 1842.
First edition of Longfellow's collection of poems published in support of the United States anti-slavery efforts. Small octavo, bound in full pebbled morocco by Bradstreet's with gilt titles and raised bands to the spine, inner dentelles. Presentation copy, inscribed by Longfellow on the half-title page, "Rev. R. C. Waterston from the Author.” The recipient, Reverend Robert Cassie Waterston, was a noted Unitarian clergyman of Boston, the majority of his library is now housed in the Massachusetts Historical Society. In near fine condition. Bookplate. Housed in a custom clamshell box.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 101568