Gifts
Looking for a unique and personal gift? A rare book is a gift they will treasure for a lifetime. There are few gifts that are as lasting and appreciated as a rare book. They hold within its pages not only historical and cultural significance, but often also a personal significance to the recipient. Whether it is a beloved childhood book that turned them on to the joys of reading or a favorite title they read in high school or college, people treasure these books like a close friend.
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Betty: A Glad Awakening; Signed by Betty Ford
FORD, Betty.
Betty: A Glad Awakening.
New York : Doubleday, 1987.
Early printing of the first lady’s autobiography. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by Betty Ford on the front free endpaper. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by David Gatti.
Price: $40.00 Item Number: 76338
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"Fly over the valley when the winds are keen, and nestle where the earth receives another generation of exhausted leaves": First edition of Edgar Lee Masters' Starved Rock
MASTERS, Edgar Lee.
Starved Rock.
New York: The Macmillan Company, 1919.
First edition of the this early collection of poetry. Octavo, original cloth. Inadvertently inscribed on the final free endpaper, “For S.D. Green…Edgar Lee Masters.” In very good condition.
Price: $65.00 Item Number: 96230
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First Edition of Betty: A Glad Awakening; Signed by Betty Ford
FORD, Betty.
Betty: A Glad Awakening.
New York : Doubleday, 1987.
First edition of the first lady’s autobiography. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by Betty Ford on the half-title page. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by David Gatti.
Price: $65.00 Item Number: 44005
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First Edition of This collection of Nadine Gordimer’s Writings; Signed by the Nobel Laureate
GORDIMER, Nadine; Edited by Stephen Clingman.
Essential Gesture: Writing, Politics and Places.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1988.
First British edition of this collection of writing by the Nobel Prize-winning author. Octavo, original cloth. Signed by Nadine Gordimer on the title page. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Edited and introduced by Stephen Clingman.
Price: $75.00 Item Number: 546
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First Edition of William T. Tilden's My Story: A Champion's Memoirs
TILDEN 2ND, William T.
My Story: A Champion’s Memoirs.
New York: Hellman, Williams & Company, 1948.
First edition of Tilden’s autobiography. Octavo, original cloth, frontispiece of Tilden, illustrated with photographs. Near fine in a rubbed jacket with some chips and wear.
Price: $75.00 Item Number: 64032
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"Farmer and artist, drudge and dreamer, hedonist and masochist, alchemist and accountant - the winegrower is all these things": Hugh Johnson's Story of Wine; signed by him
JOHNSON, Hugh.
Hugh Johnson’s Story of Wine.
London: Mitchell Beazley, 2002.
Early printing of this landmark work in wine literature. Quarto, original cloth, illustrated. Signed by the author on the half-title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Author photograph by Jeremy Dixon.
Price: $95.00 Item Number: 119742
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First Edition of Henry Paulson's Dealing with China: An Insider Unmasks the New Economic Superpower; Signed by Him
PAULSON, Henry M.
Dealing with China: An Insider Unmasks the New Economic Superpower.
New York: Twelve Books, 2015.
First edition. Octavo, original cloth. Signed and dated by Henry Paulson in the month of publication. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket with a small closed tear.
Price: $95.00 Item Number: 7377
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"Wine, women and dice kept him ever hungry, ill, and poor": Finely bound example of Richard Head's The English Rogue
HEAD, Richard and Francis Kirkman.
The English Rogue Described in the Life of Meriton Latroon, a Witty Extravagant: Being a Complete History of the Most Eminent Cheats of Both Sexes.
London: George Routledge & Sons, Ltd, 1928.
Finely bound example of Head’s famous satirical autobiography. Quarto, bound in full tree calf with green morocco spine labels lettered in gilt, illustrated with plates after the originals. In very good condition. Stamp to the half-title page.
Price: $100.00 Item Number: 109026
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"Give a chunk to a monkey, give a chunk to a fighter": Later printing of Michael Rosen's Nuts About Nuts; Signed and dated by him
ROSEN, Michael. Illustrated by Sami Sweeten.
Nuts About Nuts.
London: Diamond Books, 1999.
Early printing of British children’s author Michael Rosen’s illustrated book of poetry about nuts. Octavo, original pictorial wrappers. Signed and dated by Michael Rosen on the verso of the front panel, “Michael Rosen Aug 15 2004.” In near fine condition.
Price: $100.00 Item Number: 88124
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Inscribed by Richard Bach
BACH, Richard.
Stranger To The Ground.
New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1983.
First edition of the re-issue. Octavo, original half cloth. Warmly inscribed by the author on the half title page, who has drawn a sun and birds. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Introduction by Gil Rob Wilson.
Price: $100.00 Item Number: 12047
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First Edition of The Givenness of Things: Essays; Inscribed by Pulitzer-Prize winning Author Marilynne Robinson
ROBINSON, Marilynne.
The Givenness of Things: Essays.
New York: Farrar Straus and Giroux, 2015.
First edition of this collection of essays from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author. Octavo, original half cloth. Inscribed by Marilynne Robinson on the half-title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Strick and Williams.
Price: $125.00 Item Number: 5460
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First Edition of Henry James' The Real Thing
JAMES, Henry.
The Real Thing.
New York and London: Macmillan & Co, 1893.
First edition, second issue of one of James’ neatest tales. Octavo, original cloth. In near fine condition with light rubbing to the extremities, small tear to the front free endpaper.
Price: $125.00 Item Number: 78041
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First Edition of John Irving's A Widow for One Year; Signed by Him
IRVING, John.
A Widow for One Year.
Toronto: Alred A. Knopf, 1998.
First Canadian edition of Irving’s ninth novel. Octavo, original boards. Signed by John Irving on the title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
Price: $125.00 Item Number: 230
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First Edition of Henry James' View and Reviews
JAMES, Henry.
Views and Reviews: Now First Collected.
Boston: The Ball Publishing Company, 1908.
First edition of this series of literary essays written in James’ earlier style. Octavo, original cloth, gilt titles to the spine, gilt topstain. Introduction by Le Roy Phillips. In near fine condition. A very bright example.
Price: $125.00 Item Number: 78043
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First Edition of Fanny in France: Travel Adventures of a Chef's Daughter, with Recipes; Warmly Inscribed by Alice Waters
WATERS, Alice with Bob Carrau; Illustrations by Ann Arnold.
Fanny in France: Travel Adventures of a Chef’s Daughter, with Recipes.
New York: The Viking Press, 2016.
First edition of this work for anyone who loves France, food and adventure. Quarto, illustrated boards, illustrated endpapers. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the half-title page, “For Alexis with love, Alice Waters.” Fine in a fine dust jacket, gift inscription on the verso of the front free endpaper. Illustrated by Ann Arnold.
Price: $125.00 Item Number: 45672
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Thomas Wright's elaborately illustrated Caricature History of The Georges
WRIGHT, Thomas.
Caricature History of The Georges.
London: John Camden Hotten, c. 1867.
Finely bound example of Thomas Wright’s illustrated history of the Georges. Octavo, bound in full contemporary tree calf with gilt tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, red morocco spine label lettered in gilt, gilt ruling to the panels with gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, all edges marbled with marbled endpapers, illustrated with nearly four hundred steel and wood engravings including hand-colored frontispiece. In very good condition.
Price: $125.00 Item Number: 115309
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“Your self…is other people, all the people you're tied to, and it's only a thread”: Tom Wolfe's The Bonfire of the Vanities; Inscribed by Him
WOLFE, Tom.
The Bonfire of the Vanities.
New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1987.
First edition, second printing (published in the same year) of the author’s first novel. Octavo, original half cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author in the year of publication on the front free endpaper, “To Leslie Westoff Tom Wolfe Christmas Day 1987.” Near fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Fred Marcellino.
Price: $150.00 Item Number: 116501
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First Edition of the "first definitive History of the United Nations" The Parliament of Man; Signed by Paul Kennedy
KENNEDY, Paul.
The Parliament of Man: The Past, Present, and Future of the United Nations.
New York: Random House, 2006.
First edition. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by the author on the title page, “with compliments Paul Kennedy.” Fine in a fine dust jacket.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 5647
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First Edition of Michael Lewis' The New New Thing: A Silicon Valley Story; Inscribed by Him
LEWIS, Michael.
The New New Thing: A Silicon Valley Story.
New York: W.W. Norton, 2000.
First edition. Octavo, original half cloth. Inscribed by the author on the title page. Fine in a near fine dust jacket.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 7356
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Signed Limited First Edition of John Irving's The Cider House Rules
IRVING, John.
The Cider House Rules.
Franklin Center, PA: The Franklin Library, 1985.
Signed limited first edition of Irving’s sixth novel. Octavo, original leather, gilt titles and tooling, raised bands, all edges gilt, frontispiece by Scott Reynolds. Boldly signed by John Irving. In fine condition, with the original letter from the publisher laid in.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 117269
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First Edition of Ian Falconer's Olivia Forms a Band; Signed by Him
FALCONER, Ian.
Olivia Forms a Band.
New York: Atheneum, 2006.
First edition of the fourth book in Falconer’s acclaimed Olivia series. Quarto, original illustrated boards, illustrated throughout. Boldly signed by Ian Falconer on the title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 91657
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First edition of H.G. Wells' Christina Alberta's Father; in the rare original dust jacket
WELLS, H.G.
Christina Alberta’s Father.
London: Jonathan Cape Ltd, 1925.
First edition of Wells’ complex novel exploring individualism and society. Octavo, original cloth. Near fine in the rare original dust jacket which is in very good condition. A very nice example.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 109052
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First Edition of “an astonishing literary achievement” Anthill; Signed by Edward O. Wilson With A Drawing of an Ant
WILSON, Edward O.
Anthill.
New York: W.W. Norton , 2010.
First edition of the author’s first extended work of fiction which won the Chicago Tribune’s Heartland Prize for fiction. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by Edward O. Wilson on the title page, who has also added a drawing of an ant. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 15049
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"But none of these afford me the same mad thrill of crazy excitement as grips me when I smack a tennis ball": First edition of William T. Tilden's Match Play and the Spin of the Ball; in the original cloth
TILDEN, William J; Edited by S. Wallis Merrihew.
Match Play and the Spin of the Ball.
New York: American Lawn Tennis, 1925.
First edition of Tilden’s classic work. Octavo, original blue cloth with gilt titles and double gilt ruled borders to the spine, gilt facsimile signature to the front panel, engraved frontispiece with tissue guard, illustrated. Edited by Stephen Wallis Merrrihew. In near fine condition. An excellent example.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 96555
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“Memory fades, memory adjusts, memory conforms to what we think we remember": First Edition of Blue Nights; Signed by Joan Didion
DIDION, Joan.
Blue Nights.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2011.
First edition of this intensely personal and moving account of Joan Didion’s thoughts, fears, and doubts regarding having children, illness and growing old. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by Joan Didion on the title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Carol Devine Carson.
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 116868
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First Edition of Jane Goodall's Reason For Hope: A Spiritual Journey; Inscribed by Her
GOODALL, Jane.
Reason For Hope: A Spiritual Journey.
New York: Warner Books, 1999.
First edition of this memoir by Jane Goodall. Octavo, original half cloth, illustrated. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the title page, “For Jackie Hear your heart Jane Goodall.” Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Written with Phillip Berman.
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 112168
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Rare First Edition of M.P. Biarnez's Les Grands Vins de Bordeaux
BIARNEZ, M.P.
Les Grands Vins de Bordeaux Poeme Par M.P. Biarnez.
Paris: Typographie Plon Freres, 1849.
Rare first edition of this classic work by the “most celebrated poet of Bordeaux.” Octavo, bound in full period cloth retaining the original cloth spine, illustrated with tissue-guarded engravings. In very good condition.
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 109802
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Rare Second Edition of Reed's Liquor Licensing Laws of Ireland
REED, Andrew.
The Liquor Licensing Laws of Ireland and Innkeeper’s Guide.
Dublin: Alex Thom & Co, 1881.
Rare second edition of Reed’s Liquor Licensing Laws of Ireland. Small octavo, original cloth, paper spine label. In very good condition. Cancelled library stamp to the front free endpaper, ownership signatures to the title page.
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 105545
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First Edition of The Meaning of Human Existence; Signed By Edward O. Wilson With A Drawing Of An Ant
WILSON, Edward O.
The Meaning of Human Existence.
New York: Liveright Publishing/ Norton, 2014.
First edition of this work in which Wilson examines what makes human beings supremely different from all other species. Octavo, original cloth. Signed by Edward O. Wilson on the title page, who has also drawn a picture of an ant. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 4291
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"Once upon a time there was a beautiful girl whose mother made her a magical mossy coat": First edition of Philip Pullman's retelling of the classic folk tale mossycoat
PULLMAN, Philip.
Mossycoat.
London: Scholastic, 1998.
First edition of Philip Pullman’s retelling of the classic folk tale. Octavo, original illustrated wrappers. Inscribed by the author on the title page, “Best Wishes to Eileen, Philip Pullman Sept. 99.” In near fine condition.
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 88099
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"Give a chunk to a monkey, give a chunk to a fighter": Later printing of Michael Rosen's Nuts About Nuts; Signed and dated by him
ROSEN, Michael. Illustrated by Sami Sweeten. .
Nuts About Nuts.
London: Diamond Books, 1999.
Early printing of British children’s author Michael Rosen’s illustrated book of poetry about nuts. Octavo, original pictorial wrappers. Inscribed by Michael Rosen on the verso of the front panel, “Hello Eileen, Michael Rosen was here.” In near fine condition.
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 88125
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"He expressed the unconquerable spirit of the nation": rare limited edition Spode bone china Winston Churchill plate
[CHURCHILL, Winston S.].
The Churchill Plate.
Stoke-on-Trent, England: Spode, .
Rare limited edition Churchill Spode bone china plate. One of a limited edition of five thousand numbered plates commissioned by Thomas Goode and Co. Ltd. of London, this is number 860. The plate features a portrait of Churchill flanked by rampant lions and surrounded by a botanical gilt border. Founded by Josiah Spode in 1770, Spode pottery is renowned for perfecting the technique for transfer printing in underglaze blue on fine earthenware and credited with developing, around 1790, the formula for fine bone china that was generally adopted by the industry. In fine condition. The plate measures 10.5 inches in diameter.
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 117035
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First edition of Cees Nooteboom's Roads to Santiago; Signed by Him
NOOTEBOOM, Cees.
Roads to Santiago: Detours and Riddles in the Lands and History of Spain.
New York: Harcourt Brace and Company, 1997.
First edition. Octavo, original boards. Signed and dated in the year of publication by Cees Nooteboom on the front free endpaper. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Translated from the Dutch by Ina Rilke.
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 5715
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First Edition of A Song Flung Up to Heaven; Inscribed by Maya Angelou
ANGELOU, Maya.
A Song Flung Up To Heaven.
New York: Random House, 2002.
First edition of the final volume in Angelou’s autobiography series. Octavo, original half cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the half-title page, “Ann Sherry, Joy! from Wendy and Maya Angelou.” Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Andy Carpenter. Jacket photograph by Dwight Carter.
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 88974
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First Edition of The Ice Dragon; Signed by George R.R. Martin
MARTIN, George R.R.
The Ice Dragon.
New York: Tom Doherty Associates Book, 2014.
First edition of this fantasy novella by George R.R. Martin. Octavo, original boards, pictorial endpapers. Signed by George R.R. Martin on the title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket art and illustrations throughout by Luis Royo.
Price: $225.00 Item Number: 4345
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"I give you the end of a golden string, only wind it into a ball, it will lead you in at Heaven's gate built in Jerusalem's wall": First Edition of William Blake's Jerusalem
BLAKE, William.
Jerusalem.
New York: The Beechwood Press, 1955.
First complete edition of Blake’s great prophetic poem containing the text of Jerusalem in letterpress. Small quarto, original cloth, top edge gilt, illustrated with 100 plates, tissue-guarded frontispiece in collotype. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Foreword by Geoffrey Keynes. Uncommon in this condition.
Price: $225.00 Item Number: 112337
