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"Poets are almost always wrong about facts. That's because they are not really interested in facts: only in truth": First Edition of William Faulkner's The Town; Signed by Him in the year of publication
FAULKNER, William.
The Town.
New York: Random House, 1957.
First edition, first state with the 5/57 at the bottom of the front flap of the dust jacket. Octavo, original cloth. Signed by the author on the title page in the year of publication, "11 Nov 57 Best wishes William Faulkner." With the publisher's advance review copy slip dated May 1, 1957 laid in and a copy of the jacket photograph of Faulkner by Phyllis Cerf laid in. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket with only light rubbing to the crown of the spine, bookplate. Jacket design by Push Pin Studios. Rare and desirable signed in the year…
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 125095
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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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Rare silver gelatin print of French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre; inscribed by him
SARTRE, Jean-Paul .
Jean-Paul Sartre Signed Photograph.
Rare silver gelatin print of French philosopher, novelist, and playwright Jean-Paul Sartre. Inscribed by him in the upper left corner of the image, "A M. Satoru Yamano, sympatheque hommage, Jean-Paul Sartre." In near fine condition. Matted and framed. The entire piece measures 14 inches by 11 inches.
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 123541
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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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"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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“Solitude produces originality, bold & astonishing beauty, poetry": Thomas Mann's Death In Venice; Inscribed by Him
MANN, Thomas.
Death in Venice.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1930.
First edition of this translation of Mann's classic novel. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "Dedicated to Mr. Carl Lammle by Thomas Mann 15.VII.36." Translated from the German by H.T. Lowe-Porter. Introduction by Ludwig Lewisohn. Near fine in the rare original dust jacket with some expert restoration to the extremities. Rare and desirable signed and inscribed, this is the first example of this edition we have encountered.
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 140382
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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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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland; Signed by Salvador Dali
LEWIS CARROLL [CHARLES. L. DODGSON]; ILLUSTRATED BY SALVADOR DALI,.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
New York: Maecenas Press & Random House, 1969.
Limited illustrated edition of Lewis Carroll's beloved children's classic, signed by and with twelve illustrations by Salvador Dali. Folio, loose portfolio as issued in original brown silk chemise decorated in gilt, illustrated with an original three-color etching as a frontispiece and 12 striking full-page color photogravures (heliogravures) after Dalí's original gouache paintings. One of 2500 numbered copies signed by Salvador Dali on the title page. Housed in the original tan leather-backed clamshell case, lacking imitation bone clasps. In very good condition.
Price: $9,500.00 Item Number: 147228
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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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"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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"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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"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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"Many thanks for your lucid thoughts and interest in my work": First edition of Bombs Away: The Story of a Bomber Team; inscribed by John Steinbeck to Legendary literary critic Edmund Wilson
STEINBECK, John.
Bombs Away: The Story of a Bomber Team.
New York: The Viking Press, 1942.
First edition of Steinbeck's riveting account of his experiences with several bomber crews of the U.S. Army Air Forces during WWII. Octavo, original cloth, illustrated with 60 photographs by John Swope. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "Dear Mr. Wilson, Many thanks for your lucid thoughts and interest in my work, John Steinbeck." The recipient, Edmund Wilson, was an American literary critic and progenitor of the Library of America publication series. His critical works helped foster public appreciation for many of the foremost American writers of the 20th century including F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway,…
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 109635
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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
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Rare First Edition of William Bligh's A Narrative of the Mutiny on Board His Majesty's Ship Bounty; in the rare original boards
BLIGH, Lieutenant William.
A Narrative of the Mutiny on Board His Majesty’s Ship Bounty; and the Subsequent Voyage of Part of the Crew, In the Ships Boat from Tofua, one of the Friendly Islands, To Timor, Dutch Settlement in the East Indies.
London: Printed for George Nicol, 1790.
First edition of Bligh's firsthand account of "one of the most remarkable incidents in the whole of maritime history [which ultimately absolved him] from any blame that might be levelled against him because of the incident" (Hill). Quarto, original boards, lacking the spine, engraved folding plan "A copy of the draft from which the Bounty's launch was built", three engraved folding charts J. Walker after W. Harrison. In good condition. Scarce in the original boards.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 109832
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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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“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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“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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"I suppose we'll get used to being grown-up in time": first edition of L. M. Montgomery's Anne of the Island; In the Exceptionally rare Dust Jacket
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, correct dust jacket blurbs and price ($1.25). 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. Fine in the scarce original dust jacket with a small chip to the spine. Exceptionally rare and desirable. Copies of this title in the original dust jacket are of the utmost…
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 130579
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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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"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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"And roots, if they are to bear fruits, must be kept well in the soil of the land": Rare First Edition of The Good Earth; Signed by Pearl S. Buck
BUCK, Pearl S.
The Good Earth.
London: Methuen & Co., 1931.
First British edition of the author's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and masterpiece. Octavo, original light brown cloth. Signed by Pearl Buck on the title page. Near fine in the rare dust jacket which shows light wear to the extremities with minute expert restoration. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Rare signed.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 2928
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First Edition of Frank O'Hara's Meditations In An Emergency; inscribed by Frank O'Hara to his college roommate
O'HARA, Frank.
Meditations In An Emergency.
New York: Grove Press, 1957.
First edition of O'Hara's classic work of poetry. Octavo, original cloth, number 28 of an unknown number cloth-bound copies produced in the first print run. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the half-title page, "For my darling Hal in Hell's despite - Love, Frank." The recipient, Hal Fondren was O'Hara's roommate at Harvard College. After graduating, O'Hara moved to New York City and shared Fondren's apartment ion East 49th Street before attending graduate school at the University of Michigan. Near fine in a very good slipcase. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. An exceptional association.
Price: $9,200.00 Item Number: 132649
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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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The Beauties of Mozart, Consisting of the most Admired Sonatas Duetts and Concertos of this Esteemed Author
MOZART, Wolfgang Amadeus.
The Beauties of Mozart, Consisting of the Most Admired Sonatas Duetts and Concertos of this Esteemed Author.
London: Printed & Sold by Preston, c. 1810.
Rare edition of this compilation of Mozart's sonatas. Quarto, bound in full diced morocco, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, front and rear panels, marbled endpapers, 6 parts in 1, each part engraved throughout, titles incorporating small oval portrait vignette. In near fine condition.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 143842
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First edition of William Faulkner's The Town; from the library of Cormac McCarthy with his ownership signature
FAULKNER, William. [Cormac McCarthy].
The Town: A Novel of the Snopes Family.
New York: Random House, 1957.
First edition, first printing of the second novel in Faulkner's celebrated Snopes trilogy with line 8 on page 327 repeated as line 10. Octavo, original publisher's cloth. From the library of Cormac McCarthy with his ownership signature to the front free endpaper. McCarthy has been widely praised as not only a disciple of Faulkner, but his literary heir. Both authors' biblically influenced prose formed the basis of a large body of tragically intertwined, powerful narratives filled with a nostalgic yearning for an earlier, ancestral, rural America. In many ways, McCarthy picked up where Faulkner left off, further exploring and elaborating…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 143641
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First Edition of The Life & Times of Michael K; Inscribed by the Nobel Prize-Winning Author J.M. Coetzee to His Wife
COETZEE, J.M.
Life & Times of Michael K.
South Africa: Ravan Press, 1983.
First edition of the author's first Booker Prize-winning novel. Octavo, original cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author to his first wife on the title page, “Philippa 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 near fine dust jacket. Jacket photograph by Marcus…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 146865
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"If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more": THE COMPLETE WORKS OF JANE AUSTEN; Finely Bound by Sangorski and Sutcliffe, one of only 250 examples
AUSTEN, Jane.
The Works of Jane Austen [Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, Persuasion, Mansfield Park, and Emma].
Boston: Roberts Brothers, 1892.
One of only 250 examples of the work of Jane Austen. Octavo, 12 volumes, bound in full calf and marbled boards by Sangorski and Sutcliffe, gilt titles to the spine, raised bands, all edges gilt, inner dentelles, frontispieces. In near fine condition. An exceptional set.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 125892
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First edition, signed limited issue of New Poems 1942: An Anthology of British and American Verse; one of only 26 copies available for sale signed by 31 contributors including Dylan Thomas and W.H. Auden
WILLIAM, Oscar [Editor]; Dylan Thomas; Wallace Stevens; W.H. Auden; Marianne Moore; Robinson Jeffers; Randall Jarrell; Delmore Schwartz; Conrad Aiken; Muriel Rukeyser; Stephen Spender; Robert Penn Warren.
New Poems 1942: An Anthology of British and American Verse.
Mount Vernon, N.Y: Peter Pauper Press, 1942.
First edition, signed limited issue of the second in a series of wartime poetry anthologies selected by Oscar Williams, this being the first to be issued as a signed limited edition. Octavo, original three quarter buckram over marbled boards, top edge gilt. One of 26 lettered copies available for sale and signed by 31 of the 32 contributors (W. R. Rogers is absent as is the case with all copies), this is copy V (of 58 as 32 copies were reserved for the contributors). Signed by Conrad Aiken, Kenneth Allott, W. H. Auden, George Barker, John Peale Bishop, R. P.…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 138329
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First Edition of Shel Silverstein's Uncle Shelby's Story of Lafcadio, The Lion Who Shot Back; Signed by Him with a Drawing
SILVERSTEIN, Shel.
Uncle Shelby’s Story of Lafcadio, The Lion Who Shot Back.
New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1963.
First edition of the first children's book which started Silverstein's incomparable career. Small quarto, original cloth, illustrated. Boldly signed on the half-title page by the author who has added a drawing. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. We have never seen another signed example.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 138198
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First Edition of Watership Down; Inscribed by Richard Adams
ADAMS, Richard.
Watership Down.
London: Rex Collings, 1972.
First edition of the author's first and most beloved work. Octavo, original brown cloth, folding map. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author withing two months of the publication date on the front free endpaper, "To Jessie and Derek Hinrich with best wishes from Richard Adams January 1973." Fine in a fine dust jacket. The nicest example we have ever seen.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 143483
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Rare first edition of Sinclair Lewis' Babbitt; With a Humorous Autographed Letter Signed by Him
LEWIS, Sinclair.
Babbitt.
New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1922.
First edition, first issue of with "Purdy" for "Lyte" on Page 49 line 4 & "my" on line 5. Octavo, original cloth. With a humorous autographed letter signed from Lewis which reads, "Hartford, Connecticut Monday, Nov. 27, 1922, Louis My manly head is bowed up with grief. Either Gracie or I got balled up on dates. If your maid has a regrettable habit of being out Sunday evenings, just have some sandwiches and coffee -- we want only the light of your countenances --well, and maybe a drink. Let thy humble servant know, o master. We'll be staying at the…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 138103
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"Make A Place On Your Bookshelf... If You Love Classic Narrative, Quest Stories, Adventure Stories Of High Order Transformed By One Of The Lapidary Masters Of Contemporary American Fiction, Now Is Your Hour Of Triumph" Each Volume Signed By Cormac McCarthy and Three Times Each by Chip Kidd
MCCARTHY, Cormac.
All the Pretty Horses; The Crossing; Cities of the Plain.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1992-1998.
First editions of each title in the author's acclaimed Border Trilogy. Octavo, original half cloth, three volumes. The Crossing is a presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the half-title page, "For Jim and Brenda with love Cormac." The other two volumes are signed by Cormac McCarthy and additionally signed three times in each volume by legendary jacket designer Chip Kidd. Each are fine in fine dust jackets. Jacket design by Chip Kidd.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 142694
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"SUFFERING HAS BEEN STRONGER THAN ALL OTHER TEACHING, AND HAS TAUGHT ME TO UNDERSTAND WHAT YOUR HEART USED TO BE. I HAVE BEEN BENT AND BROKEN, BUT - I HOPE - INTO A BETTER SHAPE": Charles Dickens' Great Expectations; attractively bound
DICKENS, Charles.
Great Expectations.
London: Chapman and Hall, 1861.
First edition, second impression of Dickens’ popular Victorian bildungsroman. Octavo, bound in three quarter morocco over marbled boards with gilt tooling to the spine in three compartments within raised gilt bands, morocco spine labels lettered in gilt, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. Second impression lacking the advertisements, quite likely as issued. Edition statements neatly removed from titles. In very good condition. Rare and desirable.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 132084
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"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times": First Edition, First Issue of Charles Dickens' A Tale Of Two Cities
DICKENS, Charles.
A Tale of Two Cities.
London: Chapman and Hall, 1859.
First edition, first issue of one of Dickens' most enduring works, with p. 213 misnumbered "113," the signature mark "b" at the foot of the plate list, and the misspelling "affetcionately" on line 12, p. 134. Octavo, bound in full contemporary calf, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, panels decoratively triple-ruled in gilt with gilt floral cornerpieces, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. Sixteen plates after H.K. Browne including frontispiece and title vignette. In near fine condition.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 104577
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"The more identities a man has, the more they express the person they conceal": First British Edition Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy; Signed by John Le Carre and his father Ronald Cornwell
LE CARRE, John.
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.
London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1974.
First British edition of the author's seventh novel and what many consider to be his finest. Octavo, original cloth. Signed by author on the title page, "with best wishes John le Carre" and by the author's father, "and much love from his father Ronnie July 1974." Ronald Cornwell was the father of le Carre and was a known associate of the Kray twins. The family was continually in debt. The father–son relationship has been described as "difficult". Rick Pym, a scheming con man and the father of A Perfect Spy protagonist Magnus Pym, was based on Ronnie. When his father…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 136011
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The Bombay Edition of Rudyard Kipling; Bound in Full Morocco by Sangorski and Sutcliffe; With Volume One Signed by Him
KIPLING, Rudyard.
The Works of Rudyard Kipling: The Deluxe Signed Edition. [Including Plain Tales from the Hills; The Phantom Rickshaw; The Light That Failed; Gunga Din; The Jungle Book; The Second Jungle Book; Captains Courageous; Kim; Just So Stories].
London: Macmillan & Company, 1897-1919.
The Bombay edition of Rudyard Kipling's collected works. Octavo, 30 volumes, bound in full morocco by Sangorski and Sutcliffe, gilt titles to the spine, gilt tooling and ruling to the spine, front and rear panels, raised bands, inner dentelles, top edge gilt, marbled endpapers. One of 1,050 sets with volume one signed by Rudyard Kipling. In very good condition.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 114945
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"Parting is such sweet sorrow, That I shall say good night till it be morrow": The Shakespeare Head Press limited edition of The Works of William Shakespeare
SHAKESPEARE, William.
The Works of William Shakespeare.
Stratford-on-Avon: The Shakespeare Head Press, 1904.
The Shakespeare Head Press limited edition of the complete works of William Shakespeare. Octavo, ten volumes bound in full crushed levant morocco by Brentanos, gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, double gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt, tissue-guarded engraved frontispiece portrait to each volume. One of one thousand numbered copies, this is number 98. In fine condition. An exceptional set.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 139577
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First Edition of Henderson the Rain King; Inscribed by Saul Bellow to Fellow Writer Christopher Hitchens
BELLOW, Saul.
Henderson the Rain King.
New York: The Viking Press, 1959.
First edition of Bellow's fourth book. Octavo, original half cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the title page to fellow writer Christopher Hitchens, "For Christopher with good wishes Saul Bellow." Hitchens wrote, "When I think of Bellow, I think not just of a man whose genius for the vernacular could seem to restate Athenian philosophy as if run through a Damon Runyon synthesizer, but of the author who came up with such graphic expressions for vulgarity and thuggery and stupidity—the debased currency of those too brutalized to have retained the capacity for wonder" (Christopher Hitchens). Hitchens signature on…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 39004
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"Can I live without you?" The Académie française edition of the complete works of Gustave Flaubert; one of only 50 sets elaborately bound and illustrated
FLAUBERT, Gustave.
The Complete Works of Gustave Flaubert.
New York and London: M. Walker Dunne, 1904.
The limited Académie Française edition of the complete works of Flaubert. One of only 50 sets produced on Japon paper, this is number 40. Octavos, 10 volumes, bound in full morocco with gilt titles and elaborate floral gilt tooling to the spine and front panel, raised gilt bands, fleuron cornerpieces within gilt frames and central gilt floral spray with red and white morocco inlays to the front and rear panel, gilt turn-ins, purple morocco doublures, purple silk endpapers, top edges gilt, other edges uncut, frontispiece to each volume and numerous plates my Clare Victor Dwiggins in both black and white and…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 95353
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“ALL THAT HITCHHIKIN. ALL THAT RAILROADIN. ALL THAT COMIN BACK TO AMERICA”: FIRST EDITION OF JACK KEROUAC’S LONESOME TRAVELER; WITH A RARE AUTOGRAPH NOTE SIGNED BY JACK KEROUAC LAID IN
KEROUAC, Jack.
Lonesome Traveler.
New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1960.
First edition of Kerouac's deeply personal collection of autobiographical vignettes. Octavo, original half-cloth, illustrated with drawings by Larry Rivers. Laid in is an autograph letter signed by Kerouac which reads, "Dec. 3 1962 Dear Louis, Voila, contracts signed - Glad to hear too of Deutsch London reprint contract which means I can pay for my Sins - Jack Kerouac Tell Sterling I see him Dec. 29 or 28 & You too J." Here, Kerouac refers to his novel Big Sur, first published in September of 1962 by Farrar, Straus and Cudahy, and subsequently by Deutsch in London. He also refers…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 117094
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“ROUND AND ROUND WE SPIN, WITH FEET OF LEAD AND WINGS OF TIN”: FIRST EDITION OF CAT’S CRADLE; SIGNED BY KURT VONNEGUT WITH A SELF-PORTRAIT SKETCH
VONNEGUT, Kurt.
Cat’s Cradle.
New York: Holt, Rinehart Winston, 1963.
First edition of Vonnegut’s absurdist satire of the clash between science and religion in the nuclear age. Octavo, original half cloth, top stain green. Boldly signed by Kurt Vonnegut on the front free endpaper with a self-caricature. Near fine in a very good price-clipped dust jacket. Jacket design by Ben Feder, Inc. Housed in a black moire silk drop-back box with red morocco spine label. Rare and desirable signed and with a self-caricature.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 146918
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"Hi-dee-ho, here I go, Lookin' for my missin' piece": First edition of Shel Silverstein's The Missing Piece; inscribed by him with an original drawing
SILVERSTEIN, Shel.
The Missing Piece.
New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1976.
First edition of Silverstein's classic work, published by Ursula Nordstrom. Octavo, original illustrated cloth, illustrated. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the pastedown and front free endpaper "For Frank - Thank you for making the road less rocky - And thank you for believing in this book ~ Love Shel." Silverstein has added a drawing of the book's protagonist rolling along on a level path. Fine in a fine price-clipped dust jacket.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 135135
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“I have always depended on the kindness of strangers”: First Edition of A Streetcar Named Desire; Signed by Marlon Brando, Jessica Tandy, Kim Hunter and Karl Malden
WILLIAMS, Tennessee.
A Streetcar Named Desire.
New York: New Directions, 1947.
Early printing of Williams' classic play, which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1948. Octavo, original illustrated boards. association copy, inscribed or signed by several cast members for producer Danny Selznick. Signed by Marlon Brando, Kim Hunter, Jessica Tandy, and Karl Malden. Inscribed by Kim Hunter on the verso of the first blank: "Love and best wishes always, Danny- one of my Favorite people- Kim." Selznick's ownership inscription on the lower corner of the half-title page. Danny Selznick is a producer and the youngest son of David O. Selznick; it was Selznick's mother, Irene Mayer Selznick, who produced the…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 87896
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Rare early printing on Cervantes' masterpiece Don Quixote; with numerous illustrations after the drawings of renowned royal painter Antoine Coypel
CERVANTES SAAVEDRA, Miguel de.
Vida Y Hechos Del Ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quixote De La Mancha: Con Muy Bellas Estampas Gravadas Sobre Los Dibujos de Coypel, Primer Pinto de el Rey de Francia.
En Haia [The Hague]: Por P. Gosse y A. Moetjens, 1744.
Rare early printing and one of the most highly coveted editions of Cervantes' masterpiece. Octavo, 4 volumes, bound in full calf, gilt titles and elaborate gilt tooling to the spine, burgundy spine labels, triple gilt ruled, marbled endpapers, all edges red, ribbons bound in, with numerous engravings after the drawings of Antoine Coypel, renowned for the paintings he produced for King Louis XIV of France including those decorating the ceiling of the Royal chapel at Versailles. In near fine condition. An exceptional example.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 92807
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"The dust jacket is meant to represent the killer Chigurh, but in reality is a stock shot of a guy out jogging at sunrise": SIGNED limited First Edition of Cormac McCarthy’s No Country For Old Men; One of only 75 Copies and signed by Chip Kidd
MCCARTHY, Cormac.
No Country For Old Men.
New Orleans: B.E. Trice Publishing, 2005.
Signed limited first edition of this “harrowing, propulsive drama… about a stone-cold killer, a small-town sheriff, and an average Joe” (New York Times), one of only 75 copies. Octavo, bound in three quarters leather over marbled boards, gilt titles to the spine. Signed by Cormac McCarthy. Additionally signed twice with a note by the legendary dust jacket designer Chip Kidd below McCarthy's signature which reads, "The dust jacket is meant to represent the killer Chigurh, but in reality is a stock shot of a guy out jogging at sunrise- Chip Kidd Chip Kidd." Fine in a fine slipcase. A unique…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 125722
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First edition of W.R. Burnett's The Dark Command: A Kansas Iliad; signed by John Wayne, Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, Walter Pidgeon, and Gabby Hayes
BURNETT, W.R. [John Wayne; Roy Rogers; Gene Autry].
The Dark Command: A Kansas Iliad.
New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1938.
First edition thus of Burnett's best-selling novel adapted into the popular Western of the same name which was nominated for two Academy Awards and stands as the only film where Western icons Wayne and Rogers appeared together. Octavo, original cloth. Signed on the front free endpaper by John Wayne, Roy Rogers, Walter Pidgeon, and Gabby Hayes and inscribed on the rear free endpaper by Gene Autry. Very good in a near fine dust jacket. Ownership name. With a note from the author laid in. A wonderful example of this classic work signed by five icons of American Westerns.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 132134
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"The veritable Bible of Christmas": COMPLETE SET OF DICKENS' CHRISTMAS BOOKS, INCLUDING FIRST EDITIONS OF THE CHIMES, THE BATTLE OF LIFE, AND THE HAUNTED MAN AND THE GHOST'S BARGAIN
DICKENS, Charles.
The Christmas Books: A Christmas Carol; The Chimes; The Cricket on the Hearth; The Battle of Life; The Haunted Man and The Ghost’s Bargain.
London: Chapman and Hall/Bradbury & Evans, 1843-48.
Complete set of Charles Dickens' Christmas Books. Octavo, 5 volumes, original cloth with gilt titles and tooling to the spine and front panels, all edges gilt. A Christmas Carol, in Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas is a second edition in brown cloth with red and blue title-page dated 1843, 'Stave One' and corrected text, Smith's second state, plates hand-colored (2 repaired), spine repaired, new endpapers, 1843; first edition of The Chimes; A Goblin Story with advertisement leaf for the tenth edition of A Christmas Carol, first state of vignette title-page, recased, 1845, Chapman & Hall; fourteenth edition of…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 141205
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"One of the most splendid editions of Homer ever delivered to the World": First edition of the Foulis Homer
HOMER,.
Homeri Opera. [The Iliad and Odyssey of Homer].
Glasgow: Robert & Andrew Foulis, 1756-1758.
First edition of the Foulis Homer; the typographic masterpiece of the Foulis Press, and one of the finest editions of Homer. Folio, 4 volumes bound in full tree calf, rebacked with gilt titles and Greek key ruling to the spine, morocco spine labels lettered in gilt, Greek key ruling to the front and rear panels, text in Greek. Vols. I and II lacking the half-titles as usual. Provenance: John Hope (1868-1936) with his stamp to the title pages. Ownership signatures of Henry Schwab. In very good condition. Housed in a custom slipcase. An excellent example of this typographic gem.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 143357
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Rare presentation copy of Robert Bloomfield's The Farmer's Boy; presented by Herman Melville to his sister
BLOOMFIELD, Robert. [Herman Melville].
The Farmer’s Boy.
London: Sampson, Low, Son & Co, 1858.
Later printing of the poem that made Robert Bloomfield's reputation. Octavo, original publisher's cloth elaborately stamped in gilt, all edges gilt, illustrated with thirty engravings from drawings by Birket Foster, Harrison, Weir, and G.E. Hicks. Presentation copy, inscribed on the verso of the front free endpaper, "Fanny Melville from Herman Xmas 1876.” Presentation inscription likely in the hand of Melville's wife. Herman Melville was born in New York City on August 1, 1819, to Allan Melvill (1782–1832)[3] and Maria (Gansevoort) Melvill (1791–1872). Herman was the third of eight children in a family of Scottish and Dutch descent. His siblings, who…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 144051
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First Edition of The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test; Signed by Tom Wolfe, Ken Kesey and Phil Lesh
WOLFE, Tom [Ken Kesey; Phil Lesh].
The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test.
New York: Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, 1968.
First edition of the classic account of Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters during their bus trip across America in the late 1960's. Octavo, original cloth. Boldly signed by Tom Wolfe with his characteristic signature on the title page. Additionally signed on the front free endpaper by Merry Prankster Ken Kesey and legendary bassist Phil Lesh on the title page. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket with just a touch of shelfwear. Jacket design by Milton Glaser.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 144225
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Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter; Elaborately Bound in full morocco by Bennet
HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel.
The Scarlet Letter.
London: Methuen & Co. Ltd, 1920.
First edition thus of Hawthorne’s masterpiece. Quarto, bound in full morocco by Bennett, elaborate gilt tooling to the spine, with scarlet leather onlay of the letter A on the front panel, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt, illustrated with 31 mounted color plates by Hugh Thomson. In fine condition. Housed in a linen slip case and chemise box. An exceptional example from The Bennett Book Studios, a fine book bindery in New York City established in the late 1920s by bookman and binder Whitman Bennett. From the library of bibliophile and Grolier Club member David Allen Fraser.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 133264
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“It's in vain to recall the past, unless it works some influence upon the present": First Edition In Parts of Charles Dickens' David Copperfield
DICKENS, Charles.
The Personal History of David Copperfield.
London: Bradbury and Evans, May 1849-November 1850.
First edition in parts of "the most perfect of all the Dickens novels" (Virginia Woolf). Octavo, original blue-green illustrated serial issue wrappers being twenty parts in nineteen with the majority of preliminary advertisements present, frontispiece, vignette title-page and forty engraved plates. In excellent condition, an unrestored example of Dickens' classic work, with some of the backstrips with small chips. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. A very nice example.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 96702
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"Thine is the victory without the battle- the crown without the conflict": Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin Uncle Tom's Cabin; Lengthily signed by her
STOWE, Harriet Beecher.
Uncle Tom’s Cabin; Or, Life Among the Lowly and A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1892.
Finely bound example of the author's classic work. Octavo, bound in full morocco, gilt titles to the spine, raised bands, gilt ruled to the front and rear panels, top edge gilt, volume with title vignettes and six wood-engravings. Lengthily signed by the author as follows, "There is no death to such as thou dear Eva, neither darkness nor shadow of death. Thine is the victory without the battle- the crown without the conflict Uncle Tom's Cabin Chap 24 Harriet Beecher Stowe April 17 1893." In near fine condition. A unique example.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 117857
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"Turn up the lights—I don’t want to go home in the dark": Rare Manuscript Edition of the Works of O. Henry
O. HENRY [WILLIAM SYDNEY PORTER],.
The Complete Works of O. Henry: The Manuscript Edition.
Garden City, NY: Doubleday, Page and Company, 1912.
The manuscript edition of the Works of O. Henry, limited to 125 examples. Octavo, 12 volumes, bound in original half vellum. In fine condition. The manuscript is bound into volume one. An exceptional set.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 121390
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First Greek Edition of "one of the most widely read books of modern Greek literature " Nikos Kazantzakis' Captain Michalis; Signed by Him
KAZANTZAKIS, Nikos.
Captain Michalis or Freedom and Death.
Athens: 1953.
First Greek edition of Kazantzakis' classic novel. Octavo, original wrappers. Signed by Nikos Kazantzakis on the title page. Near fine in a very good dust jacket. First editions are rare, signed examples exceptionally so.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 5746
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"I am sorry but I think it's better that the creative process of writers continue to be a mystery": Rare Collection of Signed Author Questionnaires; completed and signed by Ray Bradbury, Norman Mailer, Shirley Jackson, and Rod Serling
BRADBURY, Ray; Norman Mailer; Shirley Jackson; Rod Serling.
Ray Bradbury, Norman Mailer, Shirley Jackson, and Rod Serling Autograph Questionnaires.
Rare collection of four mimeographed questionnaires sent by James A. Sherlock, a graduate student of City College of New York, to Ray Bradbury, Norman Mailer, Shirley Jackson, and Rod Serling, completed and signed by each. Eight pages, dated November, 1960, partially printed the questionnaire begins with a typed letter signed by James A. Sherlock politely requesting each author's responses to several questions for "an original research project aimed at uncovering certain educational factors in the lives of successful writers" with the goal of "find[ing] out if the average successful writer considers his high school education in English a help or…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 123507