Catalog 102, S-T
286. SIMIC, Charles. Austerities. NY: Braziller (1982). The issue in wrappers of this collection of poety. Inscribed by the author to a fellow poet in 1984. Near fine. Laid in is a photocopied flyer from a 1984 reading, which reprints five Simic poems. Simic's book, Charon's Cosmology, was a finalist for the National Book Award in 1978.
287. SINCLAIR, April. Coffee Will Make You Black. NY: Hyperion (1994). Well-received first novel by an African-American author, about coming of age in the 1960s. Fine in a fine dust jacket, and signed by the author.
288. SINGER, Isaac Bashevis. Gifts. Philadelphia/NY: Jewish Publication Society of America, 1985. The uncorrected proof copy of this collection of stories by the Nobel Prize winner. Fine in wrappers. It is safe to assume that proofs from this small publisher were done in very small quantities.
289. SINGER, Isaac Bashevis. The Image and Other Stories. NY: FSG (1985). The uncorrected proof copy. Another collection of stories by the Nobel Prize-winning author. Fine in wrappers.
290. SNYDER, Gary. Riprap. (Ashland): Origin, 1959. His first book, a collection of poems printed in Japan and published in an edition of 500 copies in paste papers, sewn Japanese style. Snyder's poetry has spanned the era from the Beat generation, when his references to Japanese and Chinese culture and poets were esoteric, to the present day, when there has been such a cross-fertilization of cultures that references to haiku or the game of Go are completely accessible to the mainstream. Snyder himself was instrumental in creating the links to bridge that cultural gap, which is one of the lasting contributions of the cultural upheavals of the 1960s. This copy is inscribed by Snyder on the title page and bears an additional ownership signature there. Covers sunned, and paste papers separating a bit; a very good copy.
291. SNYDER, Gary. Six Sections From Mountains and Rivers Without End. San Francisco: Four Seasons, 1965. A short poetry collection, published as Four Seasons "Writing 9." This was the first publication of any portion of what Snyder considered his magnum opus. This copy is inscribed by Snyder to the publisher, Donald M. Allen "in complicity." An excellent association copy of a major work by the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet, one of the key figures in linking the "underground" poetry movement of the Beat generation to contemporary concerns--perhaps the best possible association copy, with an understated inscription that is nonetheless suggestive of its importance to the author. Fine in stapled wrappers.
292. SNYDER, Gary. Earth House Hold. (NY): New Directions (1969). Essays and journals--i.e., mostly prose--by one of the prominent Beat poets who also became an important figure in the Sixties counterculture and has continued to write both poetry and essays today. Inscribed by the author to Donald Allen "brother and teacher," with two Japanese characters. In this volume, Snyder explains that the title is derived from the Greek roots of the word "ecology," and suggests a radically revised world view, accessible through poetry and through the spiritual disciplines of the East. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with one holograph correction to the jacket copy, presumably in Snyder's hand.
293. -. Same title, the uncorrected proof copy of the first British edition (London: Cape, n.d.). Prepared from second printing sheets of the American edition. Fine in wrappers with a Compliments of the Publisher card laid in. Very scarce.
294. SNYDER, Gary. Regarding Wave. (NY): New Directions (1970). The hardcover edition of this collection of poems; there was a simultaneous wrappered issue. Inscribed by the author to the publisher of the Four Seasons Foundations books: "For Donald [Allen]/ Mid-way thru & beyond/ the dissections and/ analyses of the particular/ work we're into here/ Gary S." With additional Kokopelli drawing. Fine in a very near fine dust jacket with a tiny area where the lamination is lifting. An excellent association copy, with an inscription that calls to mind the circularity of the work in which he and the recipient were jointly engaged--a fundamental, or radical revision of the commonplace Western worldview, in which "nature" is seen as something "other" than that which is human.
295. SNYDER, Gary. True Night. N. San Juan, CA: Bob Giorgio, 1980. A poem by Snyder, illustrated, engraved, printed and hand-bound by Bob Giorgio. One of 100 numbered copies signed by the author and the artist. Oblong quarto quarterbound in cloth and paper boards, using a handmade Japanese paper. An elaborate, attractive production, and one of Snyder's scarcer titles. A little yellowing to the endpages; lower rear corner bumped; near fine in boards, without dust jacket, as issued. With prospectus laid in.
296. SNYDER, Gary. O Mama. (n.p.: n.p., n.d.). A broadside poem on the fight for survival of the Douglas fir. 6 1/2" x 9". Yet another example of Snyder's relentless insistence on his poetry's having a political edge--making a difference in the world around him. Simply stated, with a reverence for life, the poem avoids the polemics and didacticism of most such efforts. Signed by the author. Fine.
297. (SNYDER, Gary). 3 Japanese Poets. NY: Academy of American Poets, n.d. A handbill announcing a bilingual reading with Snyder, Harold Wright, and Tamura Ryuichi, Tanikawa Shuntaro and Katagiri Yuzuru. 8 1/2" x 11". Printed in black on white, folded once; near fine. Scarce Sixties ephemera.
298. (SPIEGELMAN, Art). MARCH, Joseph Moncure. The Wild Party. NY: Pantheon (1994). March's free verse novel, originally published in 1928, here with drawings and an introduction by Spiegelman, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Maus. Fine in a fine dust jacket, and signed by Spiegelman, with a publisher's presentation slip laid in.
299. (SPIEGELMAN, Art). MARCH, Joseph Moncure. "The candles flared: their flames sprang high..." (n.p.): Pantheon (n.d.). A broadside excerpt from March's The Wild Party, illustrated and signed by Spiegelman. Approximately 18" x 20", matted to 24" x 26". Both the text and the drawing depict a not particularly graphic orgy. Fine.
300. (STEADMAN, Ralph.) MITCHELL, Adrian. Who Killed Dylan Thomas? (Swansea): Ty Llên (1998). Large folio in stapled wrappers. Poems by Mitchell, heavily illustrated with drawings by Steadman. This copy is signed by Steadman, who has reportedly given up signing books these days because of the crush of requests he had been getting as a result of his ever-increasing celebrity. Lower corner slightly bumped, otherwise fine in wrappers.
301. STEGNER, Wallace. The Big Rock Candy Mountain. New York: Duell, Sloane and Pearce (1943). Stegner's third and most famous novel, and his first commercial success, an epic novel by a writer who over the years created one of the most impressive bodies of work by any American author. Much of his writing was directly related to the experience of the American West, and he is a "regional" writer in the best sense--one who brings the stories of his region to a wider audience, rather than writing only for those who already share his interest in the region. As a writer, editor and teacher, Stegner was among the most influential writers to a whole generation, with numerous students who went on to considerable literary accomplishment and acclaim, including Robert Stone, Larry McMurtry, Ken Kesey, Wendell Berry, Tillie Olsen and many others. According to his bibliographer, "this is Wallace Stegner's big book." Wartime production values, however, dictated that it be printed on cheap paper, and few copies survive in collectible condition. This is a copy of the issue in wrappers which, although the bibliographer states it was "not an uncorrected proof," appears to be much scarcer than the hardcover issue, and presumably was issued as an advance reading copy. A common practice of the day was to bind up a number of sets of sheets of the first printing to send out as review copies, prior to the books' being bound in hardcover, in order for them to reach reviewers prior to publication. It is likely that this explains this edition, and it would also explain why the two "issues" were priced identically. A surfeit of these review copies, beyond what was needed for promotion, would explain the fact that copies were used to fill orders as late as 1947, despite the fact that a second (hardcover) printing had been done earlier. Heavy spine-creasing; else a near fine copy in self-wrappers. An attractive copy of a Stegner rarity. Signed by the author.
302. -. Same title, the hardcover trade edition. Near fine in a very good dust jacket with light rubbing, two spots on the spine, and moderate edgewear.
303. STEIG, William. The Lonely Ones. NY: Duell, Sloan and Pearce (1942). A later printing of Steig's first book, which went through seven printings in its first year and had been reprinted 15 times by 1947. Inscribed by Steig. Bumped at spine crown; near fine in a very good, price-clipped dust jacket.
304. STEIG, William. Till Death Do Us Part. NY: Duell, Sloan and Pearce (1947). A collection of satirical cartoons about marriage. Inscribed by Steig. Text block bound in upside down; near fine in a very good spine- and edge-sunned dust jacket with a few small chips and tears.
305. STEIG, William. The Agony in the Kindergarten. NY: Duell, Sloan and Pearce (1950). A quarto volume, as most of his books were after his reputation as the most serious satirical cartoonist of his generation had been established. Inscribed by Steig. Small crack to the crown, a couple small spots to text block; very good in a very good, spine-tanned and price-clipped dust jacket with several edge chips.
306. STEIG, William. The Rejected Lovers. NY: Knopf, 1951. Quarto. Inscribed by Steig. Near fine in a very good, spine- and edge-darkened, price-clipped dust jacket.
307. STEIG, William. Dreams of Glory. NY: Knopf (1953). Another quarto collection of cartoons, most of which originally appeared in the New Yorker. Inscribed by Steig. Near fine in a very good, slightly dampstained, price-clipped dust jacket.
308. STEIG, William. The Steig Album. NY: Duell, Sloan and Pearce (1953). Steig's first seven books collected in this omnibus volume. Near fine in a very good, edge-chipped dust jacket. Inscribed by Steig.
309. STEIG, William. Male/Female. NY: FSG (1971). His first new collection of cartoons since 1953. Oblong quarto; fine in a fine dust jacket with a couple tiny edge nicks. Inscribed by Steig.
310. STONE, Robert. A Hall of Mirrors. London: Bodley Head (1968). The first U.K. edition of Stone's first book, which won a Houghton Mifflin Literary Fellowship Award and a William Faulkner Foundation Award for best first novel of the year. Filmed as WUSA, with Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward and Anthony Perkins, with a screenplay by Stone and Judith Rascoe. A very uncommon edition, with a single printing estimated to have been 1000 copies. This British edition reprints a glowing blurb by Wallace Stegner, with a hilarious misprint: instead of printing that "Stone writes like a bird, like an angel... like someone so high on pot that he is scraping his shoes on the stars," the U.K. edition had Stegner saying that Stone was "like someone so high on pot that he is scraping his shoes on the stairs"--a very different image, to be sure. Very near fine in a very good dust jacket, with modest edgewear, especially at the spine extremities. Uncommon.
311. STONE, Robert. "Carefully, he examined his imagined positions..." Berkeley: Black Oak Books, 1992. A broadside excerpt from Outerbridge Reach, and the first published broadside of Stone's writings. Approximately 6 1/2" x 13 1/2", printed in two colors. A fine copy, matted and framed to 9 1/2" x 16".
312. STYRON, William. Sophie's Choice. NY: Random House (1979). The uncorrected proof copy of Styron's National Book Award-winning novel, a harrowing tale of the Holocaust which was made into a movie for which Meryl Streep won an Academy Award for her portrayal of the title character. This is a fine copy in wrappers and is inscribed by the author "with thanks."
313. STYRON, William. A Chance in a Million. (n.p.): Press de la War, 1993. A facsimile edition of Styron's earliest work of fiction known extant, a seven page story dated December 8, 1941, when he was in his second year of boarding school. The paper received an "A." Of a total edition of 226, this is one of 26 lettered copies signed by the author. Fine, in saddle-stitched cardstock covers.
314. SUKENICK, Ronald. Up. NY: Dial Press (1968). A review copy of the first novel by this critically respected writer in the post-modernist vein. Inscribed by the author. Fine in a very good, price-clipped dust jacket with a small snagged tear on the rear panel. With review slip and promotional material laid in.
315. -. Same title, the advance reading copy, bound from untrimmed sheets of the first printing. Inscribed by the author. Near fine in self-wrappers.
316. SUKENICK, Ronald. The Death of the Novel and Other Stories. NY: Dial, 1969. A review copy of this collection of experimental and self-reflecting stories. Inscribed by the author. Fine in a near fine dust jacket, with review slip, photo and promotional sheet laid in.
317. SUKENICK, Ronald. Autograph Notecard Signed. October 21, 1969. Beginning, "Dear Henry Miller, I thought I saw you walking down the street in Carmel last year..." A fine notecard in envelope (sealed and opened), hand-addressed to Henry Miller (with no address), and apparently intended to accompany the presentation of Sukenick's books to him.
318. SUKENICK, Ronald. Out. Chicago: Swallow Press (1973). A review copy of the hardcover issue. Inscribed by the author. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. In addition to the review material, laid in is a three page essay by Sukenick, "About Fiction in General and Out in Particular."
319. SUKENICK, Ronald. 98.6. NY: Fiction Collective (1975). A review copy of the hardcover issue of this experimental novel of the end of the Sixties. Inscribed by the author. Fine in a near fine dust jacket, with review slip, photo and promotional material laid in. The publication date is changed by hand on the review slip.
320. -. Same title. A review copy of the simultaneous issue in wrappers. Near fine and, again, inscribed by the author.
321. TAN, Amy. The Hundred Secret Senses. NY: Putnam (1995). The third novel by the author of The Joy Luck Club, her critically acclaimed first book, which was a surprise bestseller and the basis for a well-received movie. Fine in a fine dust jacket, and signed by the author.
With epithet laid in to "extortionate" Western Massachusetts bookdealer
322. THEROUX, Paul. Sir Vidia's Shadow. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1998. The first American edition of Theroux's account of the falling out between himself and his almost lifelong friend and mentor V.S. Naipaul, a falling out reportedly precipitated or hastened by his seeing his books inscribed to Naipaul offered on the market (see Ken Lopez Catalog 89). In the book, which charts the friendship and its demise, Theroux recounts his reactions to the sale of the books (by Naipaul's second wife and then by practitioners of the "rag-and-bone trade" of bookselling) and in doing so makes several false assumptions and unsubstantiated bordering-on-libelous remarks, all of which will now be corrected or softened in later editions. Laid into this copy is a letter written to the publisher (and copying other parties including Theroux) from the bookseller who suggested the changes, thanking him (the publisher) for his consideration after agreeing to the changes. Across the bottom of this copy of the letter, presumably in the hand of Theroux (the note is unsigned) is a sentiment expressing an emphatic absence of "consideration" in this matter, with an added emphatic and obscene slur. Also included is the original mailing envelope, without return address, postmarked Hawaii. An interesting look at, seemingly, one author's attachment to his opinions even when based on spurious fact and, perhaps, insight into one of the temperaments at work in the demise of a thirty-year friendship. The book, which once belonged to the dealer Theroux called "extortionate" in the text, is near fine in a fine dust jacket; the letter is folded for mailing. Together offered at an extortionate price:
323. TYLER, Anne. If Morning Ever Comes. NY: Knopf, 1964. The first novel by the author of The Accidental Tourist and the Pulitzer Prize-winning Breathing Lessons. Written when she was just 22 years old, and published with a small first printing of only 4000 copies. Tyler's books today have first printings that run into the hundreds of thousands of copies. Light spotting to the top stain; else fine in a near fine dust jacket with light rubbing to the folds, tiny tears at the crown, and a faint orange stripe (from the top stain) on the flap folds. The spine gilt on the book itself is largely intact, which is quite unusual for this title. A very nice copy of a scarce first book.
324. TYLER, Anne. Searching for Caleb. NY: Knopf, 1976. The uncorrected proof copy of her sixth novel, which was published at a time when Tyler was critically respected but had still not reached the level of popular and commercial success that she later attained. Author and title written on spine; month on bottom page edges; "good" written in pencil on publisher's label on front cover. A bit of creasing at the corners of the front cover; light fading overall, but still near fine in tall wrappers. A very scarce proof.
325. TYLER, Anne. Typed Note Signed. December 17, 1984. Tyler declines to contribute to a magazine saying, in part: "Winter finds me as bereft of ideas as summer did. (I'm recovering from a novel--there's always some excuse.)" Folded in sixths for mailing; else fine, with the envelope included.
326. TYLER, Anne. Typescript for "Miss Cone, Miss Cone, Thank You, Thank You." Undated. [1985]. Original ribbon-copy typescript, 4 pages, on the sisters Dr. Claribel Cone and Etta Cone who, with the influence of Gertrude Stein, amassed an impressive art collection in the early part of the century. Together with a typed note signed transmitting the piece to an editor. Both the typescript and the letter are folded in thirds for mailing; the first page of the typescript has a faint fingerprint in the lower margin; else fine. Tyler manuscript material seldom appears on the market.
327. TYLER, Anne. The Accidental Tourist. NY: Knopf, 1985. The uncorrected proof copy of this novel, made into an award-winning movie that solidified Tyler's place as one of the foremost writers of her generation. This is the second issue proof, in red wrappers. Near fine.
328. TYLER, Anne. Breathing Lessons. NY: Knopf, 1988. The uncorrected proof copy of her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. This is the first issue proof, with the first leaf bound in backwards, so that "Also By Anne Tyler" appears instead of a blank. Publisher's notations ("Press Copy," "front page needs flipped," etc.) written all over this page. "P.C" written on front cover as well; else fine in wrappers.
329. -. Same title. The second issue proof, with the first leaf corrected. Bumped at mid-spine and shallow creases to front cover; about near fine in wrappers.
330. TYLER, Anne. A Patchwork Planet. NY: Knopf, 1998. The advance reading copy of her latest novel, which had a first trade printing of 250,000 copies. Fine in wrappers.