First Edition
First Edition Books for Sale Online
Raptis Rare Books maintains an extensive collection of rare and first-edition books from a variety of authors and publishers. Navigate through our full selection of first-editions below to find a particular item you're looking for, ask a question, or order online today!
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"There are moments which are made up of too much stuff for them to be lived at the time they occur": First Editions of Tinker, Tailor Soldier Spy; The Honourable Schoolboy and Smileys People; Each Signed by John Le Carre and Alec Guiness
LE CARRE, John.
The Karla Trilogy] Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy; The Honourable Schoolboy; Smiley’s People.
London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1974-1979.
First editions of each title in the author's acclaimed Karla Trilogy. Octavo, original cloth, 3 volumes. Each volume is signed by John le Carre on a bookplate attached to the title page and actor Alec Guiness, who played George Smiley in the Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy series. He has signed on a slip of paper attached opposite to the title page. Each is near fine in near fine dust jackets. An exceptional set, uncommon in this condition and signed.
Price: $5,500.00 Item Number: 143890
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"No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's": First Edition of H.G. Wells' Classic Novel; The War of the Worlds
WELLS, H.G.
The War of the Worlds.
London: William Heinemann, 1898.
First edition, first issue of this science fiction cornerstone. Octavo, original grey cloth lettered in black. Currey's state (A) with 16 pages publisher's advertisements at end dated Autumn 1897. In near fine condition, small name to the front free endpaper and title. An exceptional example.
Price: $5,500.00 Item Number: 143783
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“There's a light in a woman's eyes that speaks louder than words": First Edition, First Issue of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles
CONAN DOYLE, Sir Arthur.
The Hound of the Baskervilles, Another Adventure of Sherlock Holmes.
London: George Newnes, 1902.
First edition, first issue of the third Sherlock Holmes novel, and widely considered as the best of the series. Octavo, original black and gilt stamped pictorial red cloth, illustrated by Sidney Paget. In near fine condition.
Price: $4,000.00 Item Number: 143782
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First Edition of Katherine Anne Porter's Ship of Fools
PORTER, Katherine Anne.
Ship of Fools.
Boston: Little Brown and Company, 1962.
First edition of this classic bestseller from the Pulitzer Prize winner which dramatizes the rise of totalitarianism in the 1930s in a sweeping story of a transatlantic cruise featuring a cast of unforgettable characters. Octavo, original cloth. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Rob Howard. Photograph of Katherine Anne Porter by Arthur B. Long.
Price: $125.00 Item Number: 143780
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First Edition of The Education of a Coach; Signed by David Halberstam
HALBERSTAM, David .
The Education of a Coach.
New York: Hyperion Books, 2005.
First edition of this work, which focuses on the New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick. Octavo, original half cloth. Boldly signed by David Halberstam on the title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by GTC Art & Design.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 143779
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First Edition of Baseball: An Illustrated History; Inscribed by Ken Burns in the Year of Publication
WARD, Geoffrey C. and Ken Burns.
Baseball: An Illustrated History.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1994.
First edition of this companion book to the classic documentary series. Quarto, original cloth, illustrated throughout. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author in the year of publication on the front free endpaper, "To Hugh Cox Ken Burns Nov. 12, 1994." Fine in a near fine price-clipped dust jacket.
Price: $475.00 Item Number: 143777
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First edition of Robert Parker's Burgundy: A Comprehensive Guide to the Producers Appellations and Wines; Signed by Him in the year of publication
PARKER, Robert M.
Burgundy: A Comprehensive Guide to the Producers, Appellations, and Wines.
New York: Simon and Shuster, 1990.
First edition of Parker's most ambitious and comprehensive work on Burgundy. Octavo, original half cloth, illustrated with maps by Jeanyee Wong and drawings by Christopher Wormell. Signed by the author in the year of publication on the front free endpaper, "10/4/90 To Tom Lovejoy- All the very best in wine and life Robert Parker." Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Koppel & Scher.
Price: $475.00 Item Number: 143776
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FIRST EDITION OF JOHN F. KENNEDY'S PROFILES IN COURAGE
KENNEDY, John F.
Profiles in Courage.
New York: Harper & Brothers, 1956.
First edition of Kennedy's Pulitzer Prize-winning work. Octavo, original half cloth, with eight pages of black-and-white photogravures. Near fine in a very good dust jacket. Jack design by Phil Grushkin. Jacket photograph by Hank Walker.
Price: $1,250.00 Item Number: 143775
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"In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer": First American Edition of Albert Camus Classic Novel The Stranger
CAMUS, Albert.
The Stranger.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1946.
First American edition of Camus' first novel and masterpiece. Octavo, original beige cloth. Near fine in a very good dust jacket, contemporary inscription to the front free endpaper, abrasion to the front panel. Jacket design by Warren Chappell. Translated by Stuart Gilbert.
Price: $2,250.00 Item Number: 143774
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First Edition of Countdown; Inscribed by Frank Borman
BORMAN, Frank.
Countdown.
New York: Silver Arrow Books, 1988.
First edition of the astronaut's classic autobiography. Octavo, original half cloth, illustrated. Presentation copy, warmly inscribed by the author on the half-title page, "To Marge and Bill With Friendship and very Best Wishes! Frank Borman." Fine in a very good dust jacket. Jacket design by Mike Stromberg. Written with Robert J. Serling.
Price: $600.00 Item Number: 143859
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First edition of The Founders of Modern Finance: Their Prize-winning Concepts and 1990 Nobel Lectures; inscribed by Harry M. Markowitz
MARKOWITZ, Harry M.; William F. Sharpe; Merton H. Miller.
The Founders of Modern Finance: Their Prize-winning Concepts and 1990 Nobel Lectures.
Charlottesville: The Research Foundation of The Institute of Chartered Financial Analysis, 1991.
First edition of this collection of the Nobel lectures of Harry M. Markowitz, William F. Sharpe, and Merton H. Miller. Octavo, original wrappers. Presentation copy, inscribed by Harry M. Markowitz on the title page, "Dear William: Best wishes, Harry Markowitz." In very good condition.
Price: $650.00 Item Number: 115906
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"A person always doing his or her best becomes a natural leader, just by example": First Edition of Joe Di Maggio's Lucky To Be A Yankee; Bound in Full Morocco By the Harcourt Bindery
DI MAGGIO, Joe [DiMaggio].
Lucky To Be A Yankee.
New York: Rudolph Field, 1946.
First edition of this early autobiography by Joltin' Joe Di Maggio. Octavo, bound in full morocco by the Harcourt Bindery, gilt titles to the spine, raised bands, gilt ruled to the front and rear panels, inner dentelles, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. Introduction by James A. Farley. Foreword by Grantland Rice. In fine condition.
Price: $1,200.00 Item Number: 140408
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"THE MOST FAMOUS AND INFLUENTIAL AMERICAN POLITICAL WORK”: EXCEPTIONALLY RARE FIRST EDITION OF THE FEDERALIST
[HAMILTON, Alexander; James Madison; John Jay].
The Federalist: A Collection of Essays, Written in Favour of the New Constitution, As Agreed Upon by the Federal Convention, September 17, 1787.
New York: Printed and Sold by J. and A. McLean, 1788.
First edition of The Federalist, one of the rarest and most significant books in American political history. 12mo, bound in half calf over marbled boards, raised bands, gilt titles to the spine. In very good condition with light toning to the pages. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell and chemise box. An exceptional example of this cornerstone of Americana.
Price: $250,000.00 Item Number: 143916
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First Edition of Harold Pinter's The Collection and the Lover
PINTER, Harold.
The Collection and the Lover.
London: Methuen and Co, 1963.
First edition of this classic work by the Nobel Prize-winning playwright. Octavo, original cloth. Near fine in a very good dust jacket. Housed in a custom half morocco chemise and clamshell box. An exceptional presentation.
Price: $750.00 Item Number: 143521
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AMERICAS "BEST WAR NOVEL": FIRST EDITION OF THE NAKED AND THE DEAD, INSCRIBED BY NORMAN MAILER TO PAUL BARTEL
MAILER, Norman.
The Naked and the Dead.
New York: Rinehart and Company, 1948.
First edition of the author's classic first book. Thick octavo, original black boards. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the half-title page, "To Paul after the pleasure of our first meeting Norman Mailer Oct. '87." The recipient, Paul Bartel was a director, actor and the creator of such films as Eating Raoul, Death Race 2000, Lust in the Dust, among others. Very good in a very good price-clipped dust jacket. Housed in a custom half morocco chemise and clamshell box. Jacket design by Karov.
Price: $1,800.00 Item Number: 118122
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“Ev’ry valley shall be exalted, and ev’ry mountain and hill made low: the crooked straight and the rough places plain": Rare First Edition, Third Issue of Handel's Messiah An Oratorio in Score
HANDEL, George Frideric.
Messiah An Oratorio in Score.
London: Randall & Abell, c.1767.
Rare first edition, third issue of this classic work. Quarto, bound in full diced morocco, raised bands, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, front and rear panels, marbled endpapers, 3 leaves, 188 and 35 pages, printed subscribers' list and index, engraved music. In very good condition, worming to margins, damp-staining to lower outer corner of a few leaves, small paper loss to lower outer corner of pages 93-94. First editions are rare.
Price: $15,000.00 Item Number: 143841
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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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Rare Second Edition of Malthus' An Essay on the Principle of Population
MALTHUS, Thomas Robert [T.R.].
An Essay on the Principle of Population, as It Affects the Future Improvement of Society.
London: T. Bensley, 1803.
Rare second edition of this cornerstone text of modern economics. Quarto, bound in full diced morocco, raised bands, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, front and rear panels, marbled endpapers. In very good condition. An exceptional presentation.
Price: $7,500.00 Item Number: 143843
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Rare First Edition of Malthus' Principles of Political Economy
MALTHUS, Thomas R. [T.R.}.
Principles of Political Economy Considered With a View to Their Practical Application.
London: John Murray, 1820.
Rare first edition of Malthus' classic work. Octavo, bound in full diced morocco, raised bands, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, front and rear panels, marbled endpapers. In near fine condition. An exceptional presentation.
Price: $8,200.00 Item Number: 143844
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“We all remember what we need to remember”: First Edition of Joan Didion's A Book of Common Prayer; Signed by Her
DIDION, Joan.
A Book of Common Prayer.
New York: Simon & Schuster, 1977.
First edition of Didion's classic fourth book. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by Joan Didion on the title page. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Janet Halverson. An exceptional example, uncommon signed.
Price: $1,250.00 Item Number: 119714
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"But there are no absolutes in human misery and things can always get worse": First Edition of Suttree; Signed by Cormac McCarthy
MCCARTHY, Cormac.
Suttree.
New York: Random House, 1979.
First edition of the author's fourth novel and what many consider to be his finest. Octavo, original half cloth. Boldly signed by Cormac McCarthy on the half-title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Jack Ribik. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. An exceptional example.
Price: $11,000.00 Item Number: 140912
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First Edition of Amos Oz's A Tale of Love and Darkness; Signed by Him
OZ, Amos.
A Tale of Love and Darkness.
New York: Harcourt, Inc, 2004.
First American edition of "one of the most enchanting and deeply satisfying books"(The New Republic). Octavo, original boards. Boldly signed by Amos Oz on a University of the Negev bookplate with a portrait of David Ben-Gurion. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Claudine G. Mansour. Translated from the Hebrew by Nicholas De Lange.
Price: $500.00 Item Number: 107479
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Rare 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. Octavo, bound in three quarters morocco, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, sixteen plates after H.K. Browne including frontispiece and title vignette. In very good condition, name to the front free endpaper.
Price: $5,500.00 Item Number: 143955
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First Edition of HRH The Prince of Wales Watercolours; Inscribed by King Charles
PRINCE CHARLES ,.
HRH The Prince of Wales Watercolours.
Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1991.
First edition of this wonderfully illustrated work by the Prince of Wales. Oblong quarto, original cloth, illustrated throughout. Presentation copy, inscribed by author, "Jimmy” All best wishes for Xmas 1992 from, Charles." The recipient was BBC television and radio personality Sir Jimmy Savile. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Rare and desirable signed.
Price: $3,000.00 Item Number: 143952
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"When you were sick in bed and out of town, it was a thing of beauty and was sent to live its life out as an ornament": FIRST EDITION OF STEEPLE BUSH; INSCRIBED BY ROBERT FROST
FROST, Robert.
Steeple Bush.
New York: Henry Holt & Company, 1947.
First edition of this collection of poems by the Pulitzer-Prize winning poet. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "Robert Frost Bread Loaf 1947 For Irby Cauthen." The recipient was an English professor at the University of Virginia. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket.
Price: $750.00 Item Number: 143950
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First edition in English of Sigmund Freud's A General Introduction to Psychoanalysis; Finely Bound by the Harcourt Bindery
FREUD, Sigmund.
A General Introduction to Psychoanalysis.
New York: Horace Liveright, 1920.
First edition in English of the most popular and widely translated of Freud's works, containing 28 lectures regarding his views on the unconscious, dreams, and neuroses. Octavo, bound in full morocco by the Harcourt Bindery, gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt inner dentelles stamp-signed by the Harcourt Bindery, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. Authorized translation with a preface by G. Stanley Hall. In fine condition. An exceptional presentation.
Price: $1,400.00 Item Number: 143669
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“But legends are part of great events, and if they help keep alive the memory of gallant self-sacrifice, they serve their purpose": Walter Lord's A Night To Remember; Finely Bound by the Harcourt Bindery
LORD, Walter.
A Night To Remember.
New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1955.
First edition of this classic work, which mainly served as the basis for the 1997 film Titanic. Octavo, bound in full morocco by the Harcourt Bindery, illustrated, gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt inner dentelles stamp-signed by the Harcourt Bindery, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. In fine condition. An exceptional presentation.
Price: $1,400.00 Item Number: 143668
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"These woods are lovely, dark and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep": First edition, first printing of New Hampshire; Inscribed by Robert Frost and in the Rare Original dust jacket
FROST, Robert; Woodcuts by J.J. Lankes.
New Hampshire.
New York: Henry Holt & Company, 1923.
First edition, first printing of Robert Frost's first Pulitzer Prize-winning collection. Octavo, original cloth, woodcuts by J.J. Lankes. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author, "Robert Frost to Penelope Otis 1961." Near fine in the rare dust jacket. Housed in a custom half morocco chemise and clamshell box. Uncommon signed and in the original dust jacket.
Price: $8,200.00 Item Number: 143960
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“But his soul was mad. Being alone in the wilderness, it had looked within itself": First Edition of Joseph Conrad's Youth
CONRAD, Joseph.
Youth: A Narrative and Two Other Stories.
Edinburgh and London: William Blackwood and Sons, 1902.
First edition, first issue containing the first appearance in book form of Heart of Darkness—“one of the most powerful short novels in the English language” (Farrow, 14). Octavo, original illustrated cloth with gilt titles to the spine. In near fine condition with a touch of shelfwear. Housed in a custom half morocco and chemise clamshell box. An exceptional example.
Price: $4,000.00 Item Number: 129842
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First Edition The Road; Signed by Cormac McCarthy on a Bookplate, and three times by Jacket Designer Chip Kidd
MCCARTHY, Cormac.
The Road.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006.
First edition of McCarthy’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of a post-apocalyptic world, a work of “stunning, savage beauty,” adapted to the screen in 2009 starring Viggo Mortensen and Charlize Theron. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by Cormac McCarthy on a laid in bookplate. Signed by jacket designer Chip Kidd three times; on the front panel, the front free endpaper and on the rear panel. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Chip Kidd.
Price: $2,200.00 Item Number: 139588
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“At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napoleon. And my ambition has been growing steadily ever since”: First Edition of Salvador Dali's Les Diners De Gala; inscribed by him to famed French chef Jean Vergnes with an original drawing
DALI, Salvador.
Les Diners de Gala.
New York: Felicie, Inc. Publishers, 1973.
First edition of this extravagant, lavishly illustrated cookbook created by Dalí in honor of his wife, Gala. Quarto, original color-printed pictorial cloth, pictorial endpapers, illustrated throughout. Translated by Captain J. Peter Moore. Association copy, inscribed by Salvador Dali with a double-page inscription and drawing on the copyright page and opposite page, "For Jean Vergnes 1976 Le oen de la Cuisine Dali." Dali has added an original portrait of Vergnes and a dripping spoon. With an additional presentation card inscribed by famed American restaurant critic Gael Greene laid in on Greene's custom stationary, "To Jean Vergnes with love from his great…
Price: $7,200.00 Item Number: 143318
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"I'd come from a long ways off and had started a long ways down": First edition of Bob Dylan: Chronicles: Volume One; signed by Bob Dylan
DYLAN, Bob.
Bob Dylan: Chronicles.
New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004.
First edition of Dylan's revealing autobiography. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by the author on the title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Coco Shinomiya. PSA/DNA LOA and sticker to the title page.
Price: $12,500.00 Item Number: 143531
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First Edition of Roald Dahl's Danny the Champion of the World; Signed by Him
DAHL, Roald.
Danny the Champion of the World.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1975.
First edition of this work by the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Octavo, original cloth, illustrated by Jill Bennett. Boldly signed by Roald Dahl on the title page. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Time magazine listed it as one of the 100 Best Young-Adult Books of All Time.
Price: $1,400.00 Item Number: 143039
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“I am your number one fan": First Edition of Misery; Signed by Stephen King
KING, Stephen.
Misery.
New York: The Viking Press, 1987.
First edition of this "classic King...full of twists and turns and mounting suspense" (Boston Globe). Octavo, original half cloth. Boldly signed by Stephen King on the title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Neil Stuart.
Price: $2,500.00 Item Number: 143978
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First editions of Jacques Pepin's La Technique and La Methode; La Technique inscribed by Pepin to fellow legendary French chef Jean Vergnes
PEPIN, Jacques [Jean Vergnes].
La Technique: The Fundamental Techniques of Cooking: An Illustrated Guide. [With] La Methode: An Illustrated Guide to the Fundamental Techniques of Cooking.
New York: Times Books, 1978-1979.
First editions of the legendary French-American chef's most popular works on the fundamental techniques of cooking. Quarto, 2 volumes, original half cloth, illustrated with photographs by Leon Perer. La Technique is a fourth printing. Association copies, La Technique is inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper to fellow chef and personal friend Jean Vergnes and his wife Pauline. The recipient, Jean Vergnes, was a classically trained and highly acclaimed French chef, best-known as the co-founder of the famed Manhattan eatery Le Cirque, which opened in 1974. Vergnes had a major influence on American restaurant culture for more than…
Price: $2,500.00 Item Number: 143120
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Rare association copy of STEPHEN HAWKING'S LANDMARK WORK A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME; signed by Stephen Hawking with his thumbprint and signed by his wife Jane Hawking
HAWKING, Stephen W. Introduction by Carl Sagan.
A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes.
London: Bantam Press, 1991.
Later printing of Hawking’s groundbreaking work. Octavo, original cloth, illustrated by Ron Miller. Association copy, inscribed by Jane Hawking on the title page, "For Frank Williams, in admiration Jane" and signed by Stephen Hawking with his thumbprint. The recipient, Sir Francis Owen Garbett Williams was a British businessman, racing car driver, and the founder of the Williams Formula One team. He was the team principal from its foundation in 1977 until 2020. During that period, the team won nine constructors' championships and seven drivers' championships. Hawking was a loyal supporter and fan of the Williams Formula One team. He visited…
Price: $17,500.00 Item Number: 142109
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First Edition of William Faulkner's Sartoris
FAULKNER, William.
Sartoris.
New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1929.
First edition of Faulkner’s work set in Yoknapatawpha County, and introduces many of the characters that appear in his later fiction. Octavo, original cloth. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Housed in a custom half morocco chemise and clamshell box. A very nice example.
Price: $3,800.00 Item Number: 95802