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"The corpse without hands lay in the bottom of a small dinghy drifting just within sight of the Suffolk coast": First Edition of Unnatural Causes; Lengthily Inscribed by P.D. James
JAMES, P.D.
Unnatural Causes.
London: Faber and Faber, 1964.
First edition of the author's third book. Octavo, original green cloth. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Signed by the author on the title page with a transcription as follows, "The corpse without hands lay in the bottom of a small dinghy drifting just within sight of the Suffolk coast." Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box.
Price: $8,000.00 Item Number: 4328
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First Editions of The Works of William Thackeray
THACKERAY, William.
The Works of William Thackeray.
London: Various Publishers, 1840-1867.
First edition of the works of William Thackeray. Octavo, 34 volumes, uniformly bound in three-quarters morocco. From the library of Alfred Charles William Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe, with his bookplate to each volume. Harmswoth was a British newspaper and publishing magnate who exercised vast influence over British popular opinion. Gilt titles and tooling to the spine, all edges gilt. Includes: Paris Sketch Book, 2 volumes., 1840; Comic Tales and Sketches, 2 volumes., 1841; Irish Sketchbook, 2 volumes., 1843; Cornhill to Grand Cairo, 1846; Mrs. Perkins Ball, [1847]; Book of Snobs, 1848; Our Street, 1848; Vanity Fair, 1848 (With the suppressed woodcut on…
Price: $8,000.00 Item Number: 19005
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“THE SOCIAL IMPACT ON THE UNITED STATES WAS GREATER THAN THAT OF ANY BOOK BEFORE OR SINCE”: FIRST ISSUE OF UNCLE TOM’S CABIN
STOWE, Harriet Beecher.
Uncle Tom’s Cabin; Or, Life Among the Lowly.
Boston and Cleveland: John P. Jewett & Company, 1852.
First edition, first issue, with "spilt" (rather than "spiled") in Volume I, 42, line 1; "cathecism" (rather than "catechism") in volume II, 74, line 5; and all other first issue points of the author's classic work. Octavo, 2 volumes, bound in contemporary three quarters leather over cloth, gilt titles to the spine, volume with title vignettes and six wood-engravings. In very good condition with light wear and toning. A nice example, scarce and desirable in contemporary binding.
Price: $8,000.00 Item Number: 104745
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“You don’t have a home until you leave it and then, when you have left it, you never can go back": First Edition of Giovanni's Room; Signed by James Baldwin
BALDWIN, James.
Giovanni’s Room.
New York: The Dial Press, 1956.
First edition of this landmark novel. Octavo, original half cloth. Boldly signed by James Baldwin on the title page. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with a touch a shelfwear. Jacket design by Seymour Chwast. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. An exceptional example.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 140400
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“ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL WORKS IN WESTERN LITERATURE”: RARE FIRST EDITION IN ENGLISH OF OVID’S METAMORPHOSIS
OVID,.
Ovid’s Metamorphosis Englished by G. S.
London: Printed by William Stansby, 1626.
First edition of George Sandys’ famous verse translation of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, with engraved title page. Small folio, bound in contemporary calf, illustrated with engraved title by T. Cecil, and full-paged engraved portrait of Ovid by Marshall. In very good condition, names. Rare and and desirable.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 146369
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"SITTING BY NIGHT IN MY SECRET STUDY…": Rare First Edition in English of Nostradamus' True Prophecies or Prognostications
NOSTRADAMUS, Michael.
True Prophecies or Prognostications of Michael Nostradamus Physician to Henry II. Francis II. and Charles IX. Kings of France, and one of the best Astronomers that ever were. A Work full of Curiosity and Learning.
London: Thomas Radcliffe and Nathaniel Thompson, 1672.
First edition in English of Nostradamus famous prophetical work. Folio, contemporary calf, title page printed in red and black, lacking the frontispiece. In very good condition. Rare and desirable in contemporary calf.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 129189
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"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view": Rare First Book club edition of To Kill A Mockingbird; Signed by Harper Lee
LEE, Harper.
To Kill a Mockingbird.
Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott Company, 1960.
First book club edition (published the same year as the first edition) of Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Octavo, original half cloth. Boldly signed by the author, "With all good wishes, Harper Lee" on the front free endpaper. Fine in a near fine price-clipped dust jacket with a touch of shelf wear. Jacket design by Shirley Smith. Photograph of Lee on the back panel by Truman Capote. An exceptional example, rare and desirable signed.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 147955
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"I WAS MUCH SURPRISED TO HEAR FOWLS SPEAK, AS THEY WERE TO SEE SUCH A MONSTER AS I APPEARED TO BE": RARE FIRST EDITION OF ONE OF THE EARLIEST PROTO-SCIENCE FICTION NOVELS: A VOYAGE TO CACKLOGALLINIA
BRUNT, Samuel.
A Voyage to Cacklogallinia: with a Description of the Religion, Policy, Customs and Manners of that Country.
London: J. Watson, 1727.
First edition of this early 18th century satire published in imitation of Jonathan Swift's masterpiece Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, or, Gulliver's Travels. Octavo, bound in full brown morocco by Charles Thurman, Binder. Raised bands, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, embossed front and rear panels, engraved frontispiece. From the library of NASA scientist and science fiction expert Frederick I. Ordway III, best known for his contribution to the development of close personal friend, Stanley Kubrick's, epic film 2001: A Space Odyssey. Rare.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 36011
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first edition of L. M. Montgomery's Anne of the Island
MONTGOMERY, L. M.
Anne of the Island.
Boston: The Page Company, 1915.
First edition, first printing of the third title in Montgomery's beloved Anne of Green Gables series with all first issue points including stated first impression on copyright page, 1915 date in roman numerals on title page. Octavo, original cloth decorated in gilt, tissue-guarded frontispiece and mounted cover illustration in color by H. Weston Taylor, 16 pages of publisher’s advertisements bound at rear. Near fine in a later issue dust jacket with a few small closed tears.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 135042
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First Edition of F. Scott Fitzgerald's All the Sad Young Men
FITZGERALD, F. Scott.
All the Sad Young Men.
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1926.
First edition, first issue of Fitzgerald's third collection of short stories. Octavo, original green cloth. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell case.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 139276
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First British Edition of The Wild Palms; Signed by William Faulkner
FAULKNER, William.
The Wild Palms.
London: Chatto & Windus, 1939.
First British edition of the Nobel Prize-winning author's grandly inventive, heart-stopping classic novel. Octavo, original cloth. Signed by the author on the title page, "William Faulkner New York 3 March 1953." Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Rare and desirable signed with no other inscribed British edition ever appearing at auction.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 144096
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First Edition of In the Heart of the Country; Inscribed by J.M. Coetzee to his Wife
COETZEE, J.M.
In the Heart of the Country.
London: Secker and Warburg, 1977.
First edition of the Nobel Prize-winning author's second book. Octavo, original cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the title page to his first wife, “Philippe- Love from John.” Philippa Jubber and John Maxwell Coetzee were married in 1963. They had two children, Nicolas (1966–1989) and Gisela (b. 1968). In 1965 Coetzee entered the graduate school of the University of Texas at Austin, and in 1968 graduated with a PhD in English, linguistics, and Germanic languages. His doctoral dissertation was on the early fiction of Samuel Beckett. Near fine in a very good dust jacket.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 147975
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Rare First Edition of Ernest Hemingway's The Torrents of Spring
HEMINGWAY, Ernest.
The Torrents of Spring.
New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1926.
First edition of Hemingway's first novel, one of 1250 printed. Octavo, original cloth. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with light wear to the crown. An exceptional example.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 112442
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First Edition of For Whom The Bell Tolls; Signed by Ernest Hemingway
HEMINGWAY, Ernest.
For Whom The Bell Tolls.
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1940.
First edition, early printing of the novel that is regarded as one of Hemingway’s best works. Octavo, original cloth. Boldly signed by Ernest Hemingway. Near fine in an excellent near fine first issue dust jacket without the photographer's name to the rear panel. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. Rare and desirable signed by Hemingway.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 117657
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"Im not brave any more darling. Im all broken. Theyve broken me": First Edition of Ernest Hemingways Classic Novel A Farewell To Arms; In the Original First State Dust Jacket
HEMINGWAY, Ernest.
A Farewell To Arms.
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1929.
First edition of this early Hemingway classic, which established him among the American masters. Octavo, original black cloth. Fine in a near fine first state dust jacket with the misspelling "Katharine Barclay" in the blurb on the front flap. A very sharp example of this highspot of American literature.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 143083
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"So figure some way to explain to her, boy, you know women better’n I do...": Rare autograph letter signed by Jack Kerouac to close friend Ed White
KEROUAC, Jack.
Jack Kerouac Autograph Letter Signed.
1954.
Rare autograph letter signed by Jack Kerouac to close friend Ed White. Bifoliate leaf, one page covered; pencil. With envelope addressed in autograph, postmarked Jamaica, New York. The letter reads in full, "Fri. Jan. 7 Dear Ed - For reasons completely unexplainable to someone like Beverly I'd on New Year's Eve made a vow not to leave the house (my hermitage) till I'd accomplished 2 things, (1) a certain piece of writing, (2) a certain term of reading - study and tranquil meditation - so when she called last night I had nothing to say in defense of my private…
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 145634
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"Maybe when people longed for a thing that bad the longing made them trust in anything that might give it to them": Carson McCuller's The Heart is a Lonely Hunter; With a Note Signed by Her
MCCULLERS, Carson.
The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1940.
First edition, first printing with the date of 1940 on the title page of the author's first novel and masterpiece. Octavo, original cloth. With a note laid in from the author which reads, "With all good wishes from Carson McCullers Thanks for the good time at the Inn." Fine in a near fine dust jacket with some light professional restoration. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. A very sharp example, rare and desirable signed.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 138095
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“Half of what I say is meaningless; but I say it so that the other half may reach you”: Signed Limited First Edition of Kahlil Gibran's Sand and Foam
GIBRAN, Kahlil.
Sand and Foam: A Book of Aphorisms.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1927.
Signed limited edition of the author's classic work. Octavo, original half cloth over marbled boards, number 33 of 95 copies, signed by Kahlil Gibran. Illustrated with seven drawings by the author. In near fine condition.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 131582
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First edition of One City; signed by J.K. Rowling, Ian Rankin, Alexander McCall Smith and Irvine Welsh
RANKIN, Ian; Alexander McCall Smith; Irvine Welsh. Introduction by J. K. Rowling.
One City.
Edinburgh: Polygon, 2005.
First edition of this collection initiated by four of Edinburgh's most famous authors to benefit One City Trust, a charity committed to tackling social injustice and inequality in Edinburgh. Octavo, original cloth, patterned endpapers. One of 150 numbered copies signed by J.K. Rowling, Ian Rankin, Alexander McCall Smith and Irvine Welsh on the half-title page, this is number 100. Introduction by J. K. Rowling. Foreword by Rt Hon. Lesley Hinds. Near fine in the original slipcase which is in fine condition.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 124173
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First edition of Henry Fielding's The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling
FIELDING, Henry.
The History of Tom Jones, A Foundling.
London: Printed for A. Millar, 1749.
First edition, first issue of one of the most influential English novels, one only 2,000 copies printed. Octavo, bound in full contemporary polished calf with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised bands, double gilt ruling to the front and rear panels. First issued with the errata leaf present in the first volume and errata uncorrected throughout the text. In good condition. Small bookplates. Each volume house in a custom half morocco and folding chemise slipcase.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 139551
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"Once there was a little tree ... and she loved a little boy": The Giving Tree; Signed by Shel Silverstein
SILVERSTEIN, Shel.
The Giving Tree.
New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1964.
Early printing of this classic work. Octavo, original illustrated boards, illustrated. Boldly signed by Shel Silverstein on the half-title page. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Inscription to the half-title page. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. Rare and desirable signed.
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 147387
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"Jellicle Cats come out tonight, Jellicle cats come one come all: the jellicle moon is shining bright- jellicles come to the jellicle ball": Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats; Inscribed by T.S. Eliot
ELIOT, T.S.
Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats.
London: Faber and Faber Limited, 1960.
Later printing of Eliot's beloved collection of whimsical feline poems which served as the basis for Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1981 megamusical phenomenon Cats. Octavo, original yellow pictorial cloth, illustrated by T. S. Eliot. Association copy, inscribed by the author to portrait painter Sir Gerald Kelly on the front free endpaper, "For Gerald Kelly with the warm regards & admiration of the author of these verses and the illustrator, T.S. Eliot (O.P.)" Eliot and the recipient, Gerard Kelly, struck up a close friendship back in the early 1920s, and in 1960 Kelly was commissioned to paint a portrait of Eliot, which…
Price: $7,800.00 Item Number: 145467