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Rare & Classic, American or English Literature Books for Sale Online
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Large Paper Copy of John Muir's The Cruise of the Corwin; One of Five Hundred and Fifty Copies
MUIR, John.
The Cruise of the Corwin: Journal of the Arctic Expedition of 1881 In Search of De Long and the Jeannette.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1917.
First edition, large paper copy, one of five hundred and fifty copies, this is number 272. Octavo, original cloth. Edited by William Frederic Badè. Illustrated with plates from photographs and from sketches by Muir. In near fine condition. Kimes 348; BAL 14775
Price: $750.00 Item Number: 120838
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First edition of Rudyard Kipling's Souvenirs of France
KIPLING, Rudyard.
Souvenirs of France.
London: Macmillan and Co., Limited, 1933.
First edition of Kipling’s account of his time in France. Octavo, original blue cloth with elaborate gilt tooling to the spine and elephant roundel to the front panel, red decorative border opposite and to the title page. Near fine in the original dust jacket which is in near fine condition. Uncommon in this condition.
Price: $300.00 Item Number: 121499
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The Works of Jonathan Swifts's From the Library of Founding Father Robert R. Livingstone
SWIFT, Jonathan [Robert R. Livingstone].
The Works of Jonathan Swift: Including, Gulliver’s Travels.
Edinburgh: Printed by Mrs. Mundell, 1778.
First of 4 issues, Scotch editions, from the library of Robert R. Livingstone, with his bookplate to the pastedown of each volume. Small octavo, bound in contemporary calf, spine compartments ruled with Greek key tooling, morocco spine labels. From the library of founding father Robert R. Livingston. As one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, Livingston played an important role in the early development of the newly formed country. He was known as “The Chancellor”, after the high New York state legal office he held for 25 years. He was a member of the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence, along with Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Roger Sherman. Livingston administered the Oath of Office to George Washington when he assumed the presidency in 1789.He was a member of the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence, the administrator for George Washington’s Oath of Office when he assumed presidency in 1789, and the chief negotiator of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. In very good condition. An exceptional set with noted provenance.
Price: $15,000.00 Item Number: 119642
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First Editions of Rudyard Kipling's The First and Second Jungle Books
KIPLING, Rudyard.
The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book.
London: Macmillan, 1894-95.
First editions of both volumes of The Jungle Book. Octavo, two volumes, original blue cloth decorated and lettered in gilt, all edges gilt, engraved frontispiece with tissue guard present. Illustrated by J. L. Kipling, W.H. Drake and P. Frenzeny. In very good condition. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box.
Price: $4,000.00 Item Number: 120935
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Rare African hunting rifle from the collection of Ernest Hemingway; obtained by him in Africa and later gifted to his best friend and biographer A.E. Hotchner
[HEMINGWAY, Ernest; A.E. Hotchner].
Ernest Hemingway African Hunting Rifle.
Rare African hunting rifle from the collection of Ernest Hemingway; obtained by him in Africa and later gifted to his best friend and biographer A.E. Hotchner. The African musket-rifle measures 5 feet in length and is elaborately decorated with intricately hammered beaded and etched metal wrappings and garnet gemstones. Hemingway began collecting guns at the age of 10 when his grandfather gave him a 20 gauge shotgun. Throughout his lifetime he bought, sold, and gifted several guns from his collection and was often photographed proudly displaying a variety of rifles while bird and big-game hunting in Idaho and Africa. The present rifle was obtained during Hemingway’s 1953-1954 winter safari trip to Africa with his fourth wife Mary, during which they survived two near-fatal plane crashes and were for several weeks presumed dead. Hemingway later gifted the gun to his closest friend and biographer A.E. Hotchner. The gun is accompanied by a signed letter of provenance from Timothy Hotchner, A.E. Hotchner’s son, which reads in part, “This item was given to my father by Ernest Hemingway in his youth. My father met “Papa” in 1948 and remained close friends with him… until Hemingway’s death in 1966. Hemingway was very connected to Africa, and several of his writings were influenced by the time he spent there including Green Hills of Africa, The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber, and his classic work, The Snows of Kilimanjaro… My father proudly displayed this gun in his study, where he would tell people, including me, about its storied history. He liked to say that it probably took two people to fire it: one to pull the trigger and the other to have the barrel rested on his shoulder. My father had many keepsakes from Hemingway, including letters, photos, and matador outfits, which he sold over many years. However, this gun was perhaps his favorite, and he kept it until his death.” In very good condition. From the collection of A.E. Hotchner. Exceedingly rare with exceptional provenance.
Price: $18,000.00 Item Number: 117552
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First Edition of Robert Byron's The Road to Oxiana; In the rare Original Dust Jacket in Stunning Condition
BYRON, Robert.
The Road to Oxiana.
London: Macmillan & Company, 1937.
First edition of the author’s masterpiece. Octavo, original cloth, frontispiece, 15 plates and a map. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with a touch of wear. An exceptional example.
Price: $4,000.00 Item Number: 119727
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First Edition of Khan's The Travels of Mirza Abu Taleb Khan in Asia, Africa, and Europe; In the rare original boards
KHAN, Mirza Abu Taleb .
The Travels of Mirza Abu Taleb Khan in Asia, Africa, and Europe During the Years 1799, 1800, 1801, 1802, and 1803.
London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, & Orme, 1810.
First edition of one of the earliest by an Indian travel writer about the West, and has been described as perhaps the most significant
“reverse travelogue.” Octavo, original boards. In very good condition with some loss to the spine. We have never seen another example offered in the original boards. Housed in a custom half morocco clemise and clamshell box. Scarce.Price: $2,800.00 Item Number: 119852
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First Edition of Judith Barrett's From An Italian Garden; Signed by Her
BARRETT, Judith.
From An Italian Garden.
New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1992.
First edition of this wonderful collection of recipies. Octavo, original boards. Signed by the author on the half-title page, “Best wishes Judith Barrett.” Fine in a fine price-clipped dust jacket. Jacket illustration by Joyce Patti. Jacket design by Wendy Bass.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 119829
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First British Edition of Isak Dinesen's Out of Africa
DINESEN, Isak [Karen Blixen] .
Out of Africa.
London: Putnam, 1937.
First British edition of the author’s masterpiece, a lyrical meditation of the years she lived in Kenya, from the library of King Edward VIII. Octavo, original cloth. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket with a touch of rubbing. An exceptional example, uncommon in this condition.
Price: $6,000.00 Item Number: 118446
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H. Rider Haggard's King Solomon's Mines; inscribed by him to his sister Ella Green
HAGGARD, H. Rider.
King Solomon’s Mines.
London: Cassel & Company, 1885.
First edition, third issue of Haggard’s immensely popular Victorian adventure novel the first great “Lost World” action-adventure, a precursor to Indiana Jones. Octavo, original cloth, folding facsimile of the map of the route to King Solomon’s mines. Association copy, signed by the author opposite the half-title page with an additional note inscribed to his sister, Ella Green, pasted to the same page, “your loving brother H. Rider Haggard.” In very good condition. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. An exceptional association.
Price: $12,500.00 Item Number: 118637
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From the Library of John Steinbeck
[STEINBECK, John].
Two Russian Books From the Library of John Steinbeck.
Moscow: Various, c. 1960.
Two volumes in Russian from the library of American literary master John Steinbeck. Quarto, two volumes including a book of early Russian Orthodox paintings with many in color and a folio of loose plates featuring artwork from the Hermitage Museum. From the library of John Steinbeck. In very good condition.
Price: $950.00 Item Number: 117588
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“IT WAS A HAPPY TEAM AND A TOUGH ONE”: The Diamond Smugglers; From the Library of George Burns
FLEMING, Ian.
The Diamond Smugglers.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1957.
First edition, early printing of the thrilling true story behind one of the greatest spy operations in history. Octavo, original cloth, illustrated. Bookplate of George Burns to the front free endpaper, near fine in a very good dust jacket. Jacket design by Denis Piper. Introduction by John Blaze.
Price: $100.00 Item Number: 120918
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Signed Limited Edition of James A. Michener's Mexico
MICHENER, James A.
Mexico.
New York: Random House, 1992.
Signed limited edition of this “novel of epic proportions, abounding in visual and historical detail” (Richmond Times-Dispatch), number 343 of 400 copies. Octavo, original cloth, cartographic endpapers, slipcase. Fine in a fine slipcase.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 118391
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"In Lowestoft a boat was laid, mark well what I do say!" The Boston American's Reprint of Rudyard Kipling with The British Fleet
KIPLING, Rudyard.
Rudyard Kipling with The British Fleet.
Boston: For the Boston American, 1915.
The Boston American’s complimentary reprint of Kipling’s Fringes of the Fleet which first appeared in England in The Daily Telegraph, and in the United States in the Hearst newspapers. Octavo, original pictorial wrappers. In near fine condition. Housed in a custom half morocco and chemise case. Rare.
Price: $300.00 Item Number: 120584
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First Greek Edition of Kazantzakis' England: A Travel Journal
KAZANTZAKIS, Nikos.
Taxidevontas Aglia [England: A Travel Journal].
Athens: Pyrsos, 1941.
Rare first edition in Greek of Kazantzakis’ travelogue of England. Octavo, original wrappers. In very good condition with light rubbing.
Price: $600.00 Item Number: 116453
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First Edition of To Jerusalem and Back: A Personal Account; Inscribed by Saul Bellow to Sally Soames
BELLOW, Saul.
To Jerusalem and Back: A Personal Account.
London: Secker & Warburg, 1976.
First British edition of the Nobel Prize-winning author’s account of his journey to Jerusalem. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the title page, “For Sally from Saul Bellow with every good wish.” The recipient, British photojournalist Sally Soames, worked for The Sunday Times from 1968 until 2000 and was highly regarded for her exclusively black and white portraits of many of the most prominent figures of the 20th century including Menachem Begin, Margaret Atwood, Margaret Thatcher, Sean Connery, Rudolf Nureyev, Alec Guinness and Andy Warhol. Soames, who was known to be a warm and personal journalist, performed extensive research on her subjects and developed intimate rapports with them during her process, resulting in striking and revealing portraits. In addition to the several world leaders Soames came to know and photograph, she captured the unique personalities of some of the world’s most gifted authors, poets, and playwrights. She published two books of photographs during her lifetime: Manpower (1987) with text by Robin Morgan and an introduction by Harold Evans and Writers (1995) with a preface by Norman Mailer. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket photograph by Jill Krementz.
Price: $300.00 Item Number: 118587
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Rare Autograph Letter signed by Sir Richard Francis Burton
BURTON, Sir Richard Francis.
Sir Richard Francis Burton Autograph Letter Signed.
1885.
Rare autograph letter signed by and entirely in the hand of British orientalist Sir Richard Francis Burton. One page, the letter reads, “Dear Sir, With many thanks I wish to say that I am at present my own agent… but I will let you know in time… Bill F. Burton. Twist Feb. 23 85.” In very good condition. Accompanied by portrait of Burton. Rare and desirable.
Price: $1,500.00 Item Number: 116349
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First edition of Rudyard Kipling's Toomai of the Elephants; with illustrations from the 1937 film Elephant Boy
KIPILNG, Rudyard.
Toomai of the Elephants.
London: Macmillan and Co., Limited, 1937.
First separate edition Kipling’s story of Toomai, a young elephant-handler, the basis for the 1937 film “Elephant Boy” starring Sabu Dastagir, India’s first child actor. Octavo, original boards, illustrated with photographs from the film by Mrs. F. H. Flaherty. Very good in the original dust jacket which is in good condition.
Price: $55.00 Item Number: 121393
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First Edition of Travels In Arabia Deserta; in the rare original dust jacket
DOUGHTY, Charles M.
Travels In Arabia Deserta.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1936.
First edition of this edition of this seminal work. Quarto, 2 volumes. Near fine in near fine dust jackets, frontispiece in first volume, both profusely illustrated with maps, plans, and collotype plates, some folding, and including large folding maps at the inside of the rear covers of both volumes. With an introduction by T.E. Lawrence. Near fine in very good dust jackets.
Price: $1,100.00 Item Number: 116597
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"Here, after twenty-five years, I again take up episodes of my life in Africa": First edition of Karen Blixen's Shadows in the Grass
DINESEN, Isak. [Karen Blixen].
Shadows in the Grass.
New York: Random House, 1961.
First American edition of the sequel to the author’s masterpiece, Out of Africa. Octavo, original half cloth, illustrated, frontispiece portrait of the author. Near fine in a near fine price-clipped dust jacket. Author photograph by Cecil Beaton.
Price: $75.00 Item Number: 121946
