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First Edition of Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up To Me; inscribed by Richard Farina with a Drawing of a Flower
FARINA, Richard.
Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up To Me.
New York: Random House, 1966.
First edition of the author and songwriter’s first novel, warmly praised by his friend Thomas Pynchon; the only novel published in Fariña’s lifetime, as he tragically died in a motorcycle accident two days after its publication. Octavo, original half green cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author in the month of publication with a drawing of a flower on the front free endpaper, "for Virginia -Richard Farina, April 1966." The recipient, Virginia Freeman was a folk art dealer, who lived in California in the 1960s and later opened the Virginia Freeman Art Gallery in Destin, Florida. Very good in a very…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 146072
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First Edition of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Vegetable; Inscribed by Him to Legendary Actor and co-founder of Goldwyn Pictures Edgar Selwyn and in the rare original dust jacket
FITZGERALD, F. Scott.
The Vegetable: Or, From President To Postman.
New York : Charles Scribner's Sons, 1923.
First edition of what Fitzgerald called, "undoubtedly the best thing I have ever written." Octavo, original cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "Dear Mr. Swelwynn (sic)- Here's the new version of the play. Sincerely F. Scott Fitzgerald." The recipient, prominent figure in American theatre and film in the first half of the 20th century. An actor, playwright, director and producer on Broadway, he founded a theatrical production company with his brother, Archibald Selwyn, and owned a number of Selwyn Theatres in the United States. He transferred his talents from the stage to motion pictures,…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 134567
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Rare First Edition of Leonard Cohen's First Book, One of 400 copies Let Us Compare Mythologies; Inscribed by Him in the year of publication
COHEN, Leonard.
Let Us Compare Mythologies.
Montreal: McGill Poetry Series by Contact Press, 1956.
First edition of Cohen's first book, which explores philosophy, sexuality, death, a world of violent contrasts that would define his future literary and musical careers. Octavo, original cloth. With five full-page line illustrations by Freda Guttman. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author in the month of publication on the front free endpaper, "To Gery Levy, With best wishes Leonard Cohen May 1956." Near fine in a very good dust jacket with some expert restoration to the spine. An excellent example of this rare first book, which reportedly, fewer than 400 copies of the first edition were printed (Nadel, 45). Housed…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 128744
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"Don't try to comprehend with your mind. Your minds are very limited. Use your intuition": A Wrinkle In Time; Signed by Madeleine L’Engle
L'ENGLE, Madeleine.
A Wrinkle In Time.
New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1962.
First edition of the author's Newbery award-winning novel. Octavo, original half cloth. Boldly signed by Madeleine L'Engle in a contemporary hand on the title page. Accompanied by an autograph black and white photograph of Madeleine L'Engle. Near fine in the rare original jacket without the Newbery sticker to the front panel, which is near fine, name to the half-title page, price-clipped. Jacket design by Ellen Raskin. An exceptional signed first edition.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 147616
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Rare Original Goldfinger Dust Jacket Design Printing Proof; signed by Dust Jacket Designer Richard Chopping and from his personal collection
CHOPPING, Richard. [Ian Fleming].
Goldfinger. [Original Richard Chopping Signed Printing Proof].
Rare original progressive color printing proof for the iconic dust jacket design of Ian Fleming's Goldfinger, designed by Richard Chopping. Chopping's copy, retained for his personal collection and signed by him in the lower right corner. One page on archival printer's paper, this is a yellow and magenta ink progressive plate proof (printed using two of four plates combined to create the final full color image). The seventh novel in Fleming's bond series, Goldfinger was the second book with a dust jacket designed by Richard Chopping, the first being From Russia, With Love. Chopping would design all subsequent James Bond…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 124288
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First Edition of Thomas Pynchon's Second Novel The Crying of Lot 49; Inscribed by Him
PYNCHON, Thomas.
The Crying of Lot 49.
Philadelphia and New York: J.B. Lippincott, 1966.
First edition of Pynchon's classic post-modern satire, which tells the wonderfully unusual story of Oedipa Maas. Octavo, original half cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "To Herb Yellin Good Luck Thomas Pynchon." Fine in a near fine dust jacket with light wear to the extremities. Jacket design by Milton Charles. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 7204
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Rare Original Goldfinger Dust Jacket Design Printing Proof; signed by Dust Jacket Designer Richard Chopping and from his personal collection
CHOPPING, Richard. [Ian Fleming].
Goldfinger. [Original Richard Chopping Signed Printing Proof].
Rare original progressive color printing proof for the iconic dust jacket design of Ian Fleming's Goldfinger, designed by Richard Chopping. Chopping's copy, retained for his personal collection and signed by him in the lower right corner. One page on archival printer's paper, this is the magenta ink progressive plate proof (printed using one of four plates combined to create the final full color image). The seventh novel in Fleming's bond series, Goldfinger was the second book with a dust jacket designed by Richard Chopping, the first being From Russia, With Love. Chopping would design all subsequent James Bond dust jackets…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 124559
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“Solitude produces originality, bold & astonishing beauty, poetry": First Edition of Der Tod in Venedig; Inscribed by Thomas Mann to close friend and confidant Ernst Bertram
MANN, Thomas.
Der Tod in Venidig [Death in Venice].
Berlin: S. Fischer, Verlag, 1913.
First trade edition of one of the greatest novellas of the twentieth century. Octavo, original publisher's quarter vellum over marbled boards. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "An Ernst Bertram in herzlicher Wertschatzung Thomas Mann" (To Ernst Bertram in heartfelt appreciation Thomas Mann). One of the best possible association copies, as Bertram was Mann's closest friend from the late 1900s through the 1930s, when their politics separated them. Bertram was deeply influential on Mann's thinking and literary direction during the time when he was somewhat artistically lost and suffered his own writer's block. It was…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 98970
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"I am convinced that invisible & intelligent beings exist who say that they are the spirits of dead persons": rare collection of eight unsigned handwritten manuscripts by Arthur Conan Doyle; containing notes on seances and Spiritualism
CONAN DOYLE, Arthur.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Handwritten Manuscript Collection on Seances and Spiritualism.
c. 1920s.
Rare archive of eight unsigned handwritten manuscripts by Arthur Conan Doyle containing notes on seances and Spiritualism, totaling eleven pages on nine sheets, most undated but circa 1920s. Eleven pages on nine sheets, autograph manuscript ranging in size from 3.5 inches by 5 inches to 8.25 inches x 10.5 inches. For many of his later years, Doyle intensely pursued his interest in paranormal phenomena, and by the end of World War I he identified himself as a Spiritualist, believing in a spirit world and the ability to communicate with those beyond the grave. He established the specialized Psychic Bookshop in 1925, devoted entirely to the sale of spiritualistic and…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 146985
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“The supreme question about a work of art is out of how deep a life does it spring”: First Edition of James Joyce's masterpiece Ulysses; One of 750 Numbered Copies
JOYCE, James.
Ulysses.
Paris: Shakespeare and Company, 1922.
First edition of Joyce's masterpiece, one of 750 numbered copies printed on handmade paper from a total edition of 1000 copies, this is number number 276. Thick quarto, original blue and white wrappers. In very good condition with some expert restoration to the spine. Housed in a custom half morocco chemise and clamshell box.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 142260
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“I've got the key to my castle in the air, but whether I can unlock the door remains to be seen": Rare FIRST EDITIONS OF BOTH PARTS OF LITTLE WOMEN, IN ORIGINAL CLOTH
ALCOTT, Louisa May.
Little Women and Little Women, Part the Second.
Boston: Robert Brothers, 1868-69.
First editions of both volumes of Alcott's most coveted work. Octavo, two volumes in the original green cloth with gilt titles and decorations to the spine and front panel, each volume illustrated with four plates including frontispiece; those in the first part created by the author’s sister, May. Little Women is first issue with all points including Little Women priced at $1.25 in terminal advertisements. Little Women, Part Second is mixed state. Both volumes are in near fine condition with light rubbing to the extremities, contemporary inscription to volume one. Housed in a custom half morocco and chemise clamshell box.…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 147420
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“Dilemma of civilized man; body mobilized, but danger obscure": First Edition of Philip K. Dick's The Man in the High Castle; Signed by Him
DICK, Philip K.
The Man in the High Castle.
New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1962.
First edition of Philip K. Dick's Hugo Award-winning novel. Octavo, original cloth. Bodly signed by Philip K. Dick on the front free endpaper. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with a touch of shelfwear. Jacket design by Robert Galster. Photograph by Arthur Knight. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. Rare and desirable signed.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 99635
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"They were so close to each other that they preferred death to separation": First Edition of One Hundred Years of Solitude; Signed by Gabriel Garcia Marquez and lengthily signed by Translator Gregory Rabassa
GARCIA MARQUEZ, Gabriel.
One Hundred Years of Solitude.
New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1970.
First American edition of the author's magnum opus. Octavo, original green cloth. Boldly signed by Gabriel Garcia Marquez on the dedication page and additionally lengthily signed by the translator on the title page as follows, "They were so close to each other that they preferred death to separation Gregory Rabassa. Near fine in a near fine first issue dust jacket. Jacket design by Guy Fleming. Translated by Gregory Rabassa. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. A unique example.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 136198
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Rare first complete edition in English of Cervantes' masterpiece The History of Don Quixote; Thomas Shelton's famed first English translation bound in full crimson crushed levant morocco by Riviere & Son
CERVANTES SAAVEDRA, Miguel de. Translated by Thomas Shelton.
The History of Don-Quichote. The First Parte and The Second Part of the History of the Valorous and Witty Knight-Errant, Don Quixote of the Mancha.
London: Printed for Edward Blount, 1620.
Exceedingly rare first complete edition in English of Cervantes' masterpiece comprised of a second edition of the first part and first edition of the second part. Small quarto, bound in full crimson crushed levant morocco by Riviere & Son, gilt titles and elaborate gilt tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, triple gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, all edges gilt, engraved headpieces, tailpieces and initials. Engraved title pages and printed title page to the second part supplied in exact facsimile from the copy in the British Museum. No…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 139832
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Rare First Edition of The Education of Henry Adams; One of only 40 Examples
ADAMS, Henry.
The Education of Henry Adams.
Washington: Privately Printed, 1907.
Rare first edition, one of only 40 copies printed of this classic work. The text of Education was not made commercially available until 1918, following the author's death, when it was published by Houghton Mifflin. In 1919 it was awarded the Pulitzer Prize and the Modern Library named it as the best non-fiction book published in English since 1900. BAL 32; Reese Narratives of Personal Experience 2 ("certainly one of the great American biographies"). In near fine condition. Housed in a custom clamshell box.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 140067
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"For Mother & Dad with my Love": First edition of Arthur Miller's The Crucible; inscribed by him to his parents
MILLER, Arthur.
The Crucible: A Play in Four Acts.
New York: The Viking Press, 1953.
First edition of Miller's Tony Award-winning play, a bitter satire inspired by the heightened political repression and persecution of left-wing individuals during the McCarthy era. Octavo, original half cloth over patterned boards, top edge red. Association copy, inscribed by Arthur Miller on the front free endpaper to his mother and father, "To Mother & Dad With my love Arthur." Arthur Miller was the second of three children of Augusta (Barnett) and Isidore Miller. His father was born in Radomyśl Wielki, Galicia (then part of Austria-Hungary, now Poland), and his mother was a native of New York whose parents had immigrated…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 140347
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First edition of Oscar Wilde: His Life and Confessions; From the collection of young Ernest Hemingway with his ownership inscriptions to each volume
HARRIS, Frank. [Ernest Hemingway].
Oscar Wilde: His Life and Confessions.
New York: Printed and Published by the Author, 1918.
First edition of Shaw's appreciation of Wilde. Octavo, original publisher's cloth. From the library of young Ernest Hemingway with his ownership name and address to the pastedown of each volume, "Ernest Hemingway Windemere Walloon Lake Michigan" and additional ownership name to volume one, "Hemingway." Hemingway was born on July 21, 1899, in Oak Park, Illinois, an affluent suburb just west of Chicago about which resident Frank Lloyd Wright said, "So many churches for so many good people to go to." He was the second child of Clarence Edmonds Hemingway, a physician, and Grace Hall Hemingway, a musician. Each summer the…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 141864
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"one of the most important Scottish novels of the 20th century" The Quairs Trilogy; Each Inscribed by Him to George Malcolm Thomson
GIBBON, Lewis Grassic [James Leslie Mitchell].
A Scots Quair Trilogy. Including: Sunset Song, Cloud Howe, and Grey Granite.
London: Jarrolds Publishers, 1932-1934.
First editions of each volume of Gibbon's classic trilogy describing the life of Chris Guthrie, a woman from the north-east of Scotland during the early 20th century, each volume inscribed by him to George Malcolm Thomson. Octavo, original cloth, 3 volumes. Sunset Song is inscribed on the title page, "For G. Malcolm Thomson, L. Grassic Gibbon." Cloud Howe is the dedication copy, inscribed on the title page, "For the 'dedicatee' with kind regards. L. Grassic Gibbon." Grey Granite is inscribed on the title page, "For George Malcolm Thomson with good wishes L. Grassic Gibbon." Each are in very good condition.…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 124744
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"Members of the general public, such as myself, have a right to form and express their own opinions on the relationship between science and society": Rare typed letter signed by George Orwell regarding his views on science, scientists, and society
ORWELL, George.
George Orwell Typed Letter Signed.
January 9, 1946.
Rare typed letter signed by the acclaimed author of Nineteen-Eighty Four, George Orwell; part of a long correspondence with scientist Edward R. Ward regarding his views on science. One page, typescript, the letter reads: '9th January 1946 Dear Mr. Ward, Your letter has been passed on to be by "Tribune". I am sorry that in their correspondence columns I should have answered what was really an abridgement of your original letter; but I had not seen the latter, and I did not know that what was printed was a shortened version. I cannot enter into what might become a prolonged…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 133445
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Scarce First edition of John Marbecke's A Concordace; One of the finest and most complete copies obtainable
MARBECKE, John.
A Concordace, that is to saie, a work wherein by the ordre of the letters of the A.B.C. ye maie redely finde any worde conteigned in the whole Bible, so often as it is there expressed or mentioned.
London: Richardus Grafton, 1550.
Rare first edition of the first concordance in English to the Bible. Quarto, bound in full polished calf with raised bands and gilt titles to the spine, trimmed and mounted engraved title page. In near fine condition with some leaves supplied and mounted and restoration to the margins. One of the finest and most complete copies obtainable as this work is invariably found in defective condition. Housed in a custom slipcase. From the library of Anglo-Irish George Stokes with his bookplate to the pastedown and a presentation note signed by his daughter.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 122671
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First Editions of Each of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Works; Finely Bound by The Harcourt Bindery
FITZGERALD, F. Scott.
The Works of F. Scott Fitzgerald. This Side of Paradise, Flappers and Philosophers, Tales of the Jazz Age, The Beautiful and Damned, The Vegetable, The Great Gatsby, All the Sad Young Men, Taps at Reveille, Tender is the Night, The Last Tycoon.
New York: Charles Scribners, 1920-1941.
First edition, first printings of each of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s works. Octavo, 10 volumes, bound by full green morocco by the Harcourt Bindery, gilt titles to the spine, raised bands, gilt ruled to the front and rear panels, inner dentelles, marbled endpapers, twin rule to turn ins, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. F. Scott Fitzgerald signature on the front panel of each volume. In fine condition. An exceptional set.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 139788
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“Sometimes, I feel the past and the future pressing so hard on either side that there's no room for the present at all": First Edition of Brideshead Revisited; Signed by Evelyn Waugh
WAUGH, Evelyn.
Brideshead Revisited.
London: Chapman and Hall, 1945.
First edition of Waugh's masterpiece. Octavo, original cloth. Boldly signed by Evelyn Waugh on the title page. Waugh issued a pre-publication edition of the novel in a run of 50 copies. These were printed and specially bound to distribute among friends for Christmas and to solicit any revisions. Several changes were made as a result of his friends' comments, including suggested alterations by Fr. Martin D'Arcy, Cyril Connolly, and Nancy Mitford. A letter from Graham Greene, Waugh's friend and recipient of one of the 50 copies had indicated that Waugh may have only inscribed 19 of the 50 copies (Jeffrey…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 145489
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"AND FOR ALL I KNOW HE IS SITTING THERE STILL, UNDER HIS FAVORITE CORK TREE, SMELLING THE FLOWERS JUST QUIETLY" exceptionally rare FIRST EDITION, advance review copy OF THE STORY OF FERDINAND; signed by both Robert Lawson and Munro Leaf
LEAF, Munro; Illustrated by Robert Lawson.
The Story of Ferdinand.
New York: The Viking Press, 1936.
First edition, first printing, advance review copy of Munro Leaf’s beloved children’s classic, one of the most popular and enduring children's books ever published. Octavo, original half tan cloth, pictorial endpapers, illustrated by Robert Lawson. Signed by both the author and illustrator opposite the title page, "Robert Lawson" "and Munro Leaf." From the library of American publisher Charles C. Fleming with a memorandum on his Whittet Printing Co. letterhead to the front free endpaper, stamped "Received Sep 23 1936 C.C.F." indicating that the book was received in the month of publication which is stated on the copyright page. The first…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 147285
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Scarce complete First edition, first issue of Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities; in the original monthly parts; with three variant issues of part 1
DICKENS, Charles.
A Tale of Two Cities.
London: Chapman and Hall, June-December 1859.
First edition, first issue of one of Dickens’ most enduring works, with p.213 in part 7/8 mispaginated "113", and signature mark 'b' present on List of Plates at end, etched frontispiece, additional title and 14 plates by "Phiz" (Hablot K. Browne). Octavo, original blue-green wrappers. Complete with all the advertisements called for by Hatton & Cleaver, and the two rare slips in parts 1 and 5. Includes three variant issues of part 1, one with Morison's 'premises' advert, the second with Morison's 'lion' advert, and the third with the rare French version of the Morison's 'lion' advert. In near fine…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 131460
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"If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?": Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures In Wonderland; inscribed by him
CARROLL, Lewis. [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson].
Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland.
London: MacMillan and Co, 1879.
Early edition with sixty-second thousand stated on the title page of this classic work, boldly inscribed by the author on the half-title page, "Edith Mary Alice Berkeley from the Author, May 15/80." Octavo, original cloth, gilt titles to the spine, all edges gilt, publisher's cloth s, all edges gilt, housed in a modern scarlet morocco slipcase and chemise. 7 1/8 x 4 1/2 inches (18 x 12 cm); 192 pp., [2] pp. ads, half-title; electrotyped frontispiece, and 42 illustrations from the woodcuts by Dalziel after John Tenniel. In near fine condition. From the library of actor William E. Self, with his book…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 142979
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“To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance": Signed Limited Edition of Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband
WILDE, Oscar.
An Ideal Husband.
London: Leonard Smithers and Co, 1899.
First signed limited edition of Wilde's classic comedic stage play. Octavo, original lavender publisher's cloth with gilt titles to the spine and gilt flourishes to the spine and front panel. One of 100 large paper copies signed by Oscar Wilde, this is number 85. In near fine condition with a touch of toning. Housed in a custom half morocco slipcase. A superior example.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 96121
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"By mail I send you a small volume, some portions of which": Rare Herman Melville Autographed Letter Signed to his wife's cousin Ellen Marrett Gifford
MELVILLE, Herman.
Herman Melville Autograph Letter Signed.
1888.
Herman Melville autographed letter signed to his wife's cousin Ellen Marrett Gifford completely in his hand, which reads, "164 E. 26th St. Nov. 6th 1888 My Dear Mrs. Gifford: By mail I send you a small volume, some portions of which, I hope may prove more or less interesting to you- Lissie tells me she is about writing you, so I leave her to hell you whatever news there may be. Your friend H. Melville." In near fine condition. Housed in a custom chemise and clamshell box. Melville signed letters are rare.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 129820
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"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, exhibit number one is what the seraphs, the misinformed, simple, noble-winged seraphs, envied. Look at this tangle of thorns": Vladimir Nabokov's masterpiece Lolita; signed by him with an original drawing of a butterfly
NABOKOV, Vladimir.
Lolita.
New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1955.
First edition, early impression of Nabokov's lyrical masterwork. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by Vladimir Nabokov on the half-title page with an additional drawing of a butterfly. An accomplished lepidopterist, Nabokov only included butterfly drawings in books presented to those especially important to him. Near fine in a near fine price-clipped dust jacket. Author photograph by Maclean Damcron. Housed in a custom clamshell box. Rare and desirable signed.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 137049
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“An artist's only concern is to shoot for some kind of perfection, and on his own terms, not anyone else's”: Franny and Zooey; Inscribed by J.D. Salinger
SALINGER, J.D.
Franny and Zooey.
New York: Little, Brown, and Company, 1961.
First edition, second printing of Salinger's third book. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by Salinger in his cursive hand on the front free endpaper to a personal friend, "Oke, Stop over sometime, JDS 8/26/61." While Salinger was known for his reclusive behavior with regard to the spotlight of the international press, he did have close relations with the local townspeople around his New Hampshire home, who respected his privacy. This inscription shows the authentic nature of those relationships. Affixed to the verso of the front panel and front free endpaper are three newspaper clippings regarding Salinger's reputation as a…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 88131
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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": First appearance in print of Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven; In the Rare Original Wrappers
POE, Edgar Allan.
The Raven. [In The American Review: A Whig Journal of Politics, Literature, Art and Science. No. II February, 1845.
New York: Wiley and Putnam, 1845.
First appearance in print of The Raven, one of the most famous and recognizable poems ever written, which Poe considered his finest poem, calling it “the greatest poem that was ever written.” Octavo, original wrappers. In keeping with the policy of The American Review which required that poems be published anonymously or with a pseudonym, the poem, which appears on page 143 is credited to 'Quarles.' In very good condition. Rare in the original wrappers.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 136274
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Scarce Original Photograph of a Lion on Safari; taken and signed by Ernest Hemingway
HEMINGWAY, Ernest.
Ernest Hemingway Original African Safari Photograph Signed.
Original glossy black and white photograph of a lion in the distance of the African savanna, taken by Ernest Hemingway and signed by him on the verso, "Copyright by Ernest Hemingway No. 5." In fine condition. Double matted and framed. The entire piece measures 15.5 inches by 18.1 inches. Exceptionally rare and desirable.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 145731
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“The world is so full of people who have been put in boxes, who have been made to believe that they are less than they are": First edition set of the complete works of Margaret Atwood; each volume signed by Atwood and finely bound in full red levant morocco by the Harcourt Bindery
ATWOOD, Margaret.
The Complete Works of Margaret Atwood. [The Edible Woman, Surfacing, Lady Oracle, Life Before Man, Bodily Harm, The Handmaid’s Tale, Cat’s Eye, The Robber Bride, Alias Grace, The Blind Assassin, Oryx and Crake, The Year of the Flood, MaddAddam, The Heart Goes Last, Hag-Seed, and The Testaments].
Toronto: McClelland and Stewart Limited/Alfred A. Knopf Canada, 1969-2019.
Complete true first edition set of the novels of Margaret Atwood, finely bound in full morocco by the Harcourt Bindery. Octavo, 16 volumes bound in full red crushed levant morocco by the Harcourt Bindery with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in five compartments within raised gilt bands, gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt signature to the front panel of each volume, gilt scrolled inner dentelles stamp-signed by the Harcourt Bindery, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. Each volume is signed or inscribed by Margaret Atwood. In fine condition. Founded over a century ago in 1900, the…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 149507
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"You only live twice: Once when you're born And once when you look death in the face": First Edition of You Only Live Twice; Inscribed by Ian Fleming
FLEMING, Ian.
You Only Live Twice.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1965.
First edition, first state with "First published 1964" on the copyright page of the last James Bond novel published in Fleming's lifetime and the eleventh in the series. Octavo, original black cloth. Inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "For James You have my best wishes from Ian Fleming." Near fine in a very good dust jacket. Jacket design by Richard Chopping. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. Uncommon signed and inscribed as Fleming passed away in the year of publication.
Price: $24,000.00 Item Number: 19060
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“And all the lives we ever lived and all the lives to be are full of trees and changing leaves": First Edition of Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse; In the Rare Original Dust Jacket
WOOLF, Virginia.
To the Lighthouse.
London: Leonard & Virginia Woolf at the Hogarth Press, 1927.
First edition of one of Woolf’s most popular and acclaimed major novels, in the extremely rare original dust jacket designed by Vanessa Bell, Woolf’s sister. Octavo, original cloth. Near fine in the rare original dust jacket with light rubbing and wear to the crown of the spine. Jacket design by Vanessa Bell. From the library of Elizabeth Paepcke, with her signature in pencil to the front free endpaper. Paepcke, along with her husband Walter were philanthropists best noted for founding the Aspen Institute and the Aspen Skiing Company in the early 1950s, both of which helped transform the town of…
Price: $22,500.00 Item Number: 116345
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"BUT HE NEVER KNEW THAT REALLY IT WAS HIS OWN BUNNY, COME BACK TO LOOK AT THE CHILD WHO HAD FIRST HELPED HIM TO BE REAL": FIRST EDITION OF MARGERY WILLIAMS' BELOVED CHILDREN'S CLASSIC THE VELVETEEN RABBIT
BIANCO, Margery Williams.
The Velveteen Rabbit or How Toys Become Real.
London: Heinemann, 1922.
First edition, English issue (published simultaneously with the American issue) of this beloved children’s classic, “one of the first modern picture books, a perfect combination of story and pictures” (Mahony, 234), with seven beautiful color illustrations by William Nicholson. Quarto, original paper-covered pictorial boards and cloth spine, pictorial endpapers, illustrated with seven color illustrations (three double-page) by William Nicholson. In very good condition. Uncommon.
Price: $22,500.00 Item Number: 138402
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First Edition of All Quiet On The Western Front; Signed by Eric Maria Remarque
REMARQUE, Erich Maria.
All Quiet On The Western Front.
Boston: Little, Brown & Company, 1929.
First American edition of this landmark novel of the 20th century. Octavo, original beige cloth. Signed by the author in the year of publication on the front free endpaper, "1st June Eric Maria Remarque." Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Paul Wenck. Translated by A.W. Wheen. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box by the Harcourt Bindery. Signed and inscribed first editions are rare.
Price: $22,500.00 Item Number: 136034
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THE FIRST JEWISH TRANSLATION OF THE PENTATEUCH INTO ENGLISH
LEESER, Isaac.
The Law of God.
Philadelphia: C. Sherman, 5605, 1845-46.
First edition of the “first English translation of the Pentateuch in America,” the 1845 Hebrew-English Bible by one of the most prominent and influential figures in American Jewish history. Octavo, 5 volumes. Translated by Isaac Leeser. Bound in contemporary polished calf, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, rebacked. Lightly rubbed, moderate wear. A very nice example of a scarce and important work.
Price: $22,500.00 Item Number: 49020
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“It’s a Snark! was the sound that first came to their ears, And seemed almost too good to be true": Lewis Carroll's The Hunting of the Snark; in the scarce original dust jacket, of which only a few are known to exist
CARROLL, Lewis. [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson].
The Hunting of the Snark: An Agony in Eight Fits.
London: Macmillan and Co., 1876.
First edition of Carroll's whimsical nonsense poem. Octavo, original publisher's decorated cloth, all edges gilt, with nine illustrations by Henry Holiday. Near fine in the scarce original dust jacket. The jacket is complete with the top third of the front panel bent behind, hence the different shade of color. Copies of the first edition of Hunting of the Snark in the dust jacket of the utmost scarcity, with no more than a handful of copies known.
Price: $22,500.00 Item Number: 130492
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Rare First Edition of the John Le Carre’s First Book; Signed by Him
LE CARRE, John.
Call For The Dead.
London: Victor Gollancz, 1961.
First edition of the author's first book, which introduced the world to the recurring protagonist, George Smiley. Octavo, original red cloth. Signed by John le Carre on the title page. Near fine in a near fine price-clipped dust jacket with light expert restoration. With a signed letter from le Carre's secretary stating that he will sign this first edition. A sharp example, uncommon signed.
Price: $22,500.00 Item Number: 142398
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Rare First Edition of John Bunyan s The Holy War, made by Shaddai upon Diabolus
BUNYAN, John.
The Holy War, made by Shaddai upon Diabolus.
London : Printed for Dorman Newman and Benjamin Alsop, 1682.
Exceptionally rare first edition of this allegorical epic, which Macaulay said "if The Pilgrim's Progress had not been written, The Holy War would have been the greatest English allegory" (Cambridge History of English Literature). Octavo, engraved portrait frontispiece by R. White. In very good condition, final advertisement leaf present, sig.B damp-stained at lower outer corners, corner torn away from E6, small hole in G8 slightly affecting text, printing flaw on H3v affecting sidenote, short tear at head of R5, folding engraved plate, which has been skilfully remargined. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box.
Price: $22,500.00 Item Number: 148135
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"The passion spreads in wide tongues, choked and slow, meeting the gulf, hosanna silently below": First edition of Hart Crane's landmark modernist epic the bridge; inscribed by him to close friend Bob Thompson
CRANE, Hart.
The Bridge: A Poem.
New York: Horace Liveright, 1930.
First American edition of Crane's landmark modernist epic. Octavo, original blue cloth with gilt titles to the spine and front panel, illustrated with three photographs by Walter Evans. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper one month after publication, "For Bob Thompson, from his friend always- Hart Crane, Brooklyn, April 30." The recipient, Robert Thompson, was a close friend of Crane's. During the early part of 1930, Thompson and Crane spent what John Unterecker described as "wild evenings" in New York. Thompson was "a good drinking companion whom Hart in the summer would recommend to Caresse…
Price: $22,500.00 Item Number: 123618
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“THE PROBLEM WITH THE WORLD IS THAT EVERYONE IS A FEW DRINKS BEHIND”: FIRST EDITION OF ONE OF THE EARLIEST AND MOST INFLUENTIAL DETECTIVE NOVELS EVER WRITTEN; DASHIELL HAMMETT'S THE MALTESE FALCON
HAMMETT, Dashiell.
The Maltese Falcon.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1930.
First edition, first printing of one of the earliest and most influential detective stories of all time. Octavo, original cloth. Near fine in a very good second state dust jacket with professional restoration. Housed in a custom clamshell box.
Price: $22,500.00 Item Number: 139591
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“I know who I am and who I may be, if I choose": Deluxe illustrated Ibarra Edition of Don Quixote
CERVANTES SAAVEDRA, Miguel de.
El Ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quixote de la Mancha: Nueva Edicion, Corregida Por La Real Academia Española.
Madrid: Don Joaquin Ibarra, 1780.
The deluxe illustrated Ibarra edition of Cervantes' masterpiece "which is to Spanish literature what Shakespeare is to English" (Bloom). Quartos, 4 volumes. Bound in full contemporary Spanish tree calf with gilt titles and tooling to the spine, red and black morocco spine labels, elaborate double gilt-ruled borders, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt, engraved frontispiece to each volume and 31 engraved plates throughout, 2-page folding engraved map of Don Quixote's travels to the rear of volume 1. Spanish printer Joaquín Ibarra made several important technical developments in press printing, book-making, typography and paper-making. In his printed work, Ibarra sought to achieve a…
Price: $22,000.00 Item Number: 96554
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“I know who I am and who I may be, if I choose": Deluxe illustrated Ibarra Edition of Don Quixote
CERVANTES SAAVEDRA, Miguel de .
El Ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quixote de la Mancha: Nueva Edicion, Corregida Por La Real Academia Española.
Madrid: Don Joaquin Ibarra, 1780.
The deluxe illustrated Ibarra edition of Cervantes' masterpiece. Quartos, 4 volumes. Bound in full 19th century green morocco with central motif and cornerpieces stamped in blind to the panels, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, elaborate double-ruled gilt borders, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt, engraved frontispiece to each volume and 31 engraved plates throughout, 2-page folding engraved map of Don Quixote's travels to the rear of volume 1. Spanish printer Joaquín Ibarra made several important technical developments in press printing, book-making, typography and paper-making. In his printed work, Ibarra sought to achieve a perfect flow of harmonious type, inks, illustration,…
Price: $22,000.00 Item Number: 97654
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First Edition of Damon Runyon's Guys and Dolls; In the Rare Original Dust Jacket
RUNYON, Damon.
Guys and Dolls.
New York: Frederick A. Stokes, 1931.
First edition of this classic work, basis for the film starring Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra. Octavo, original cloth. A pre-publication example, with the date of August 20, 1931 stamped to the front free endpaper, very good in a very good dust jacket with some chips and wear. Introduction by Heywood Broun. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. First editions in the original dust jacket are scarce.
Price: $22,000.00 Item Number: 98358
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"The ship rushed on, nearer and nearer Earth": First Edition of Philip K. Dick's Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch; Signed by Him
DICK, Philip K.
Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch.
Garden City, NY: Doubleday and Company, Inc, 1965.
First edition of Dick's classic novel, which was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1965. Octavo, original cloth. Signed by Philip K. Dick. Fine in near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Tom Chibbaro. Exceptionally rare signed.
Price: $22,000.00 Item Number: 101458
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First Edition of Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged; Inscribed by Her
RAND, Ayn.
Atlas Shrugged.
New York: Random House, 1957.
First edition of one of the most influential novels of the twentieth century. Large octavo, original green cloth, frontispiece stamped in gilt, spine stamped in black and gilt. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "To Lillian Davison- with my best wishes- Cordially, Ayn Rand December 19, 1960." Fine in a near fine dust jacket with a touch of shelf wear. Jacket design by George Salter. Housed in a custom full morocco clamshell box with inlay to the front panel. A superior example.
Price: $22,000.00 Item Number: 138060
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"No one should be entirely judged by their past": Signed Limited Edition of Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband
WILDE, Oscar.
An Ideal Husband.
London: Leonard Smithers and Co, 1899.
First edition, signed limited edition. Octavo, original lavender publisher's cloth. One of 100 large paper copies signed by Oscar Wilde. In very good condition with some light rubbing and darkening to the extremities. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box.
Price: $22,000.00 Item Number: 16085
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“The starting point of all achievement is DESIRE. Keep this constantly in mind. Weak desire brings weak results, just as a small fire makes a small amount of heat": Signed First Edition of Napoleon Hill's Think and Grow Rich; In the rare original dust jacket
HILL, Napoleon.
Think and Grow Rich.
Meriden, Conn.: The Ralston Society, 1937.
Rare first edition of this classic bestseller, which has sold over 100 million copies. Octavo, original cloth. Boldly signed by Napoleon Hill on the front free endpaper. Near fine in a very good dust jacket, with reinforcement to the verso. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Rare and desirable in the original dust jacket and signed.
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 132909
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"I hope that this book ain't so silly and that it will always remain in the cas[s]a": First Edition of Where the Sidewalk Ends, Signed by Shel Silverstein; Inscribed to the Children of His Editor
SILVERSTEIN, Shel.
Where the Sidewalk Ends: Poems and Drawings.
New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1974.
First edition of the author's first collection of children's poetry. Stated first edition on the copyright page. Small quarto, original brown cloth, illustrated. Association copy, inscribed by Shel Silverstein with an original poem on the front free endpapers to the children of his editor and publicist William Cole, "For Alex and Rossa and Billy, I hope that this book ain't so silly and that it will always remain in the cas[s]a (The superfluous 's' has been scribbled out with footnote "Bill Cole's Incessant Editorial Meddling") of Billy and Alex Rossa (Not a bad rhyme for three such difficult names and…
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 91344
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“I was afraid I was going to die and then I was afraid I wasnt": First Edition Of the author's Masterpiece Blood Meridian; Signed by Cormac McCarthy
MCCARTHY, Cormac.
Blood Meridian, or The Evening Redness in the West.
New York: Random House, 1985.
First edition of the author's classic fifth novel. Octavo, original half red cloth. Boldly signed by Cormac McCarthy on the half-title page in a contemporary hand. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with a touch of shelfwear. Jacket design by Richard Adelson. Jacket painting by Salvador Dali. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box by the Harcourt Bindery.
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 147885
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First Edition of All Quiet On The Western Front; Inscribed by Eric Maria Remarque
REMARQUE, Erich Maria.
All Quiet On The Western Front.
Boston: Little, Brown & Company, 1929.
First American edition of this landmark novel of the 20th century. Octavo, original beige cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the half-title page, To Mary Constance Ryder with my best wishes- New York July 1945 Eric Maria Remarque." Near fine in a very good dust jacket with a few small chips and light wear. Jacket design by Paul Wenck. Translated by A.W. Wheen. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Signed and inscribed first editions are rare.
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 121588
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"Pain is truth; all else is subject to doubt": Waiting For the Barbarians; Inscribed by Nobel Prize-Winning Author J.M. Coetzee to his Wife
COETZEE, J.M.
Waiting for the Barbarians.
Johannesburg : Ravan Press, 1981.
First South African edition of this modern classic. 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. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with some toning to the spine.…
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 133608
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“Hate is a lack of imagination": First Edition of Graham Greene's The Power and the Glory; In the Rare Original Dust Jacket
GREENE, Graham.
The Power and the Glory.
London: William Heinemann, 1940.
First edition of Greene's masterpiece. Octavo, original yellow cloth. Near fine in the rare original dust jacket with some toning and light wear to the spine crown. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. Scarce in the original dust jacket and in this condition.
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 118658
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“Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past": First Editions of the Novels of George Orwell; Finely Bound by the Harcourt Bindery
ORWELL, George.
The Novels of George Orwell: Including, Burmese Days; A Clergyman’s Daughter; Animal Farm; Nineteen Eighty-Four; Coming Up For Air; Keeping the Aspidistra Flying.
London: Various Publishers, 1934-56.
First editions of the novels of George Orwell. Octavo, 6 volumes, 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. An exceptional set, rare and desirable.
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 147631
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"Whatever the weather served, that was what they ate": Rare First Edition of CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS; SIGNED BY JUDI and Ron BARRETT With Original Drawings
BARRETT, Judi. Illustrated by Ron Barrett.
Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs.
New York: Antheneum, 1978.
First edition of this children’s classic. Oblong quarto, original cloth, illustrated. Signed by Judi Barrett, with an original drawing of clouds and meatballs and by the illustrator Ron Barrett on the front free endpaper and on the pastedown on a bookplate with an original drawing Fine in a fine dust jacket. Housed in a half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. First editions are exceptionally rare, we have never seen another signed by both authors and with drawings.
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 139534
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"The world had changed to silver, and life ceased to be a struggle and became a gay adventure": First edition of Nella Larsen's Quicksand; inscribed by her
LARSEN, Nella.
Quicksand.
New York & London: Alfred A. Knopf, 1928.
First edition of Nella Larsen's first book. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "To my friend Harriet S. Wright, this tale of pride, prejudice and passion Nella Larsen." First editions of any of Larsen’s works are rare, as she disappeared from Harlem's interracial literary and arts community after her ex-husband’s death in 1942. Struggling with depression, Larsen stopped writing, returned to her previous career in nursing, moved to the Lower East Side and did not return to Harlem. Many of Larsen's old acquaintances speculated that she, like some of the characters in her fiction, had crossed the…
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 95263
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“Love of life is born of the awareness of death, of the dread of it": First Edition of The Spy Who Loved Me; Inscribed by Ian Fleming
FLEMING, Ian.
The Spy Who Loved Me.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1962.
First edition of the ninth novel in Ian Fleming’s James Bond series. Octavo, original black cloth. Inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "To Peter To Cheer him up! From Ian." Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket art by Richard Chopping. Housed in a full morocco clamshell box, the front panel mimicking the dust jacket. Rare and desirable signed and inscribed by Ian Fleming.
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 37032
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"IT IS NOT DOWN ON ANY MAP; TRUE PLACES NEVER ARE": FIRST EDITION OF HERMAN MELVILLE'S MOBY DICK; in the rare red variant cloth
MELVILLE, Herman.
Moby-Dick; Or, The Whale.
New York: Harper & Brothers, Publishers, 1851.
First edition, first issue binding of Melville’s masterpiece. Octavo, original red variant cloth (BAL’s A grain), covers stamped in blind with Harper’s circular device at the center of the front panel within a heavy blind ruled frame, plain white endpapers. Issued in a single volume, in black, green, blue, red, purple, slate or brown cloth, gilt. The first state of the binding has a circular device at center of covers that is absent from the second state binding. Much has been made of whether the earliest copies bound should have orange-coated end papers, but in fact there is no priority…
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 142813
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“Don't you know that everybody's got a Fairyland of their own?”: Rare First Edition of Mary Poppins; Signed by P.L. Travers
TRAVERS, P.L.
Mary Poppins.
New York: Reynal & Hitchcock, 1934.
First American edition of this children's classic. Octavo, original cloth, illustrated with 27 line cuts (13 full-page) and chapter tailpieces by Mary Shepard. Boldly signed by P.L. Travers on the front free endpaper. Very good in a very good dust jacket with some light rubbing and wear. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Rare and desirable signed.
Price: $20,000.00 Item Number: 96590