Catalog 135, M-Q
236. MANKELL, Henning. Before the Frost. London: Harvill Press (2004). The hardcover issue of the latest book by the bestselling Swedish mystery writer, who uses the genre as a means to explore social issues in contemporary Sweden and Europe in general. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
237. MATHESON, Richard. The Twilight Zone Scripts. (Abingdon): Cemetery Dance Publications (1998). Fourteen Matheson Twilight Zone scripts, edited and with commentary by Stanley Wiater. Matheson, the author of such novels as Bid Time Return and I Am Legend, was one of the two authors -- Charles Beaumont being the other -- whose scriptwriting set The Twilight Zone apart from other television series of its time, and made it a standard against which all television since has been measured. Several of Matheson's scripts have come to be considered classic shows, including "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" and "Night Call," adapted from one of the author's own short stories. Wiater's commentary puts the scripts in context, as well as locating Rod Serling's show within the ongoing history of classic horror fiction and film. Of 52 lettered copies of the deluxe edition, this is an unlettered copy that belonged to Wiater. Signed by Matheson and Wiater. Pages 14-18 laid in rather than bound in; else fine in fine folding box.
238. MATTHIESSEN, Peter. Race Rock. NY: Harper & Brothers (1954). The author's first novel, published just after he returned from Paris, where he helped found the Paris Review. Inscribed by the author to his brother-in-law, Kennett Love. The book is dedicated to Deborah Love; she and Matthiessen were married from 1963 until her death in 1972. Kennett Love was a former New York Times reporter, specializing in Middle Eastern affairs. His book Suez: The Twice-Fought War is considered the standard work on the subject. This is the issue in blue cloth and black boards; the priority has not been determined. Love's ownership signature on front flyleaf (and hunting license page 112); offsetting from laid in review on pp. 42-43; spine cloth faded. Still about near fine in a supplied, very good dust jacket heavily rubbed along the folds and with a replaced chip at the spine base. Also laid in is a postcard from a bookstore, quoting the book to Love for $5.00, in 1967. An excellent association copy, being inscribed to the brother of the dedicatee.
239. McELROY, Colleen J. Music from Home. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press (1976). Poetry by this highly regard African-American writer, with an introduction by John Gardner. Inscribed by the author to poet Gwendolyn Brooks, a nice association copy. Dampstaining to foredge; mottling to boards; very good in a very good dust jacket with moderate dampstaining.
240. McMURTRY, Larry. The Last Picture Show. NY: Dial, 1966. His third novel, which fully realized the promise shown by his first two and firmly established his literary reputation. Basis for the Academy Award-winning movie, which launched the careers of several Hollywood notables. Inscribed by the author. Top corners bumped; light spine slant and top edge foxing; about near fine in a near fine dust jacket with a bit of edge sunning, a tiny spot to spine and a small abrasion over the author's name on the rear panel. A nice copy of a book that generally shows wear readily.
241. McPHEE, John. Wimbledon. A Celebration. NY: Viking (1972). Large quarto, illustrated with photographs by Alfred Eisenstadt. The text consists of two pieces by McPhee relating to Wimbledon, one of which appeared in A Roomful of Hovings; one of which appeared only in Playboy. Inscribed by McPhee in the month of publication: "For Eve Kraft, who doubles my chances when she plays doubles with me." In 1972, Eve Kraft was the women's varsity tennis coach at Princeton, where McPhee has lived and, at times, taught. She was a promoter of community tennis, the author of the Tennis Workbook series, and, in 1994, she was inducted into the USTA/Middle States Hall of Fame. A little sunning to board edges; else fine in a fine, price-clipped dust jacket. A great association copy.
242. (McPHEE, John). GIBBONS, Euell. Stalking the Wild Asparagus. Putney: Alan C. Hood (1987). The twenty-fifth anniversary edition of Gibbons' first book, a classic on the use of wild food. Printed here with a remembrance by McPhee, who once took a week-long canoe trip with Gibbons, surviving only on foraged food. Not an uncommon title, but elusive in the first printing. Fine in wrappers.
243. MERWIN, W.S. The Dancing Bears. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1954. Merwin's second collection of poems; his first was published in the prestigious Yale Younger Poets Series. Trace wear to the spine extremities; still fine in a near fine, spine-tanned dust jacket lightly rubbed at the folds.
244. MISHIMA, Yukio. The "Sea of Fertility" Tetralogy. NY: Knopf, 1972-1974. Four volumes (Spring Snow, Runaway Horses, The Temple of Dawn and The Decay of the Angel) comprising Mishima's masterwork, after the completion of which, in 1970, he committed suicide. Spring Snow is very near fine in a like dust jacket; the other volumes are fine in fine jackets. An exceptionally nice set, and uncommon thus these days. One of the major literary achievements of postwar Japan.
245. MOWAT, Farley. Lost in the Barrens. Boston: Little Brown (1956). The first American edition of his second book, published simultaneously with the Canadian edition. A novel for young adults set in the Arctic north, by the author of Never Cry Wolf and A Whale for the Killing, among many others. Inscribed by the author: "For ____/ Farley Mowat/ a G.G. guy!" The inscription refers to the Governor General's Award for children's literature that Mowat won. Edge-fading to boards; near fine in a very good dust jacket.
246. MOWAT, Farley. Never Cry Wolf. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart (1963). Perhaps his best-known book, an autobiographical account that was made into a highly praised film. Inscribed by the author. Near fine in two near fine dust jackets of two very different designs.
247. MUNRO, Alice. Selected Stories. A Tribute. (n.d.) : McClelland & Stewart (1997). A promotional booklet issued to accompany Selected Stories and including the 7-page essay "About this Book" by Munro. Also prints review excerpts by Richard Ford, A.S. Byatt, and a host of anonymous others; a brief biography; praise from the publisher; and a one-page excerpt from an interview with Peter Gzowski. Fine in stapled wrappers. Uncommon ephemeral piece.
248. NAIPAUL, V.S. Magic Seeds. (London): Picador (2004). The most recent novel by the Nobel Prize-winning author. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Books signed by Naipaul are relatively uncommon.
249. NERUDA, Pablo. Oratorio menor en la muerte de Silvestre Revueltas. (n.p.): (n.p.), (n.d.)[ca. 1940]. A lavishly illustrated broadside of a poem by Neruda written on the occasion of the death of the noted Mexican composer, Revueltas. 9" x 13", printed on very thin paper. Mild creasing, and folded at the midline; several edge tears tape-repaired on verso; a very good copy of a fragile production. Uncommon; we find no listing for it in the Neruda bibliography, and have never seen this broadside before. Reportedly it was printed for, and distributed at, a memorial service for Revueltas, and nowhere else. A scarce item, and a significant poem, by the Chilean Nobel Prize winner.
250. O'BRIAN, Patrick. The Yellow Admiral. NY: Norton (1996). The first American edition of this novel in the author's acclaimed Aubrey-Maturin series, which has been called "the best series of historical novels ever written." Fine in a fine dust jacket and inscribed by the author "In Gratitude, Pat. O'Brian." Books signed by O'Brian are quite scarce, especially those in the Aubrey-Maturin series. O'Brian died in 2000 at the age of 85, and his later books are especially uncommon signed.
251. OLIVER, Mary. The Leaf and the Cloud. (Cambridge): De Capo Press (2000). A review copy of the hardcover edition of this book-length poem by an author who has won both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
252. PLATH, Sylvia. Ariel. London: Faber & Faber (1965). The work that is widely considered her greatest poetic achievement, a series of powerful, even devastating poems written during the months leading up to her suicide. Her frank, confessional poetry helped give voice to a later generation of women writers, and she became an artistic icon for the fledgling women's movement a decade after her death. Her posthumous Collected Poems won the 1981 Pulitzer Prize. Trace shelf wear to lower board edge; still fine in a very good, price-clipped dust jacket, mildly rubbed at the folds and with minuscule chips to the spine ends, internally tape-strengthened at the crown.
253. PLATH, Sylvia. The Magic Mirror. Rhiwargor, Llanwddyn, Powys: Embers Handpress, 1989. "A Study of the Double in Two of Dostoevsky's Novels," submitted by Plath in partial fulfillment of the requirements of Special Honors in English at Smith College. Published in a total edition of 226 copies, of which this is one of 50 numbered copies bound in a special Oxford Hollow binding. Gray morocco spine; marbled boards. Trace page edge foxing; else fine in a fine dust jacket. An attractively produced and uncommon Plath limited edition.
254. PRINCE, Richard. Adult Comedy Action Drama. (Zurich-Berlin-New York): (Scalo) (1995). A book of photographs by the internationally renowned artist. Selected by Andrew Roth as one of the 101 seminal photographic books of the 20th century. Prince's photographs have been described by one writer as being "like projections from inside the vaults of the cultural unconscious." Signed by Prince in the year of publication. Quarto; fine in a fine dust jacket.
255. -. Another copy. Signed by Prince in the year of publication. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with a creased edge tear at the lower front panel.
256. PRINCE, Richard. 4x4. (Kyoto): Korinsha (1997). The true first edition of this book, published in Japan in 1997; there was an edition published in the U.S. in 1999. This copy is signed by Prince in 2003 with the added notation "True first edition/ Japan!" -- the exclamation point being an indication of how much scarcer the original edition is than the later one. Fine in self-wrappers. Laid in is an announcement of the 4x4 show in Vienna, also signed by the artist. Fine.
257. PRINCE, Richard. The Girl Next Door. (Vienna): MAK Center for Art and Architecture) (2000). The trade edition of this book of photographs that formed the core of two exhibitions at the MAK Center for Art and Architecture in Los Angeles, and MAK Vienna. Basketball hoops, biker chicks, and the unseen landscapes and architecture of rural America make up the bulk of these photographs -- some of which are re-photographed images, or appropriations -- shining new light on scenes that normally fall outside of our awareness. Signed by Prince. Fine in self wrappers. Laid in is a Prince postcard, "#3 Untitled (Sunsets)," from 1981 that is also signed by the artist. Fine.
258. PRINCE, Richard. Women. (Ostfildern-Ruit): Hatje Cantz Verlag (2004). Published on the occasion of the exhibition "Women" at Regen Projects in Los Angeles, and comprising images of women, re-photographed images of women, images of books and writing by women, images of Prince's installations of jokes about women, etc. An eclectic collection spanning a wide range of the artist's career and a number of different series of works he has done over the years. Signed by Prince in 2004. One small bump at the base of the spine, otherwise fine without dust jacket, as issued. Laid in is a Prince postcard, "Real Big Surf," from 1985 that is also signed by the artist. Fine.
259. (PRINCE, Richard.) PHILLIPS, Lisa. Richard Prince. NY: Whitney/Abrams (1992). The hardcover edition of this exhibition catalog for a 1992 show at the Whitney. With hundreds of reproductions of his art, essays by Phillips and several others, and an interview with the artist. Signed by Prince in the year of publication. Quarto; fine in a fine dust jacket. Laid in is a flyer signed by the artist of a 2001-2002 exhibition of photographs in Basel. Folded in fourths; else fine.
260. PROULX, E. Annie. Postcards. NY: Scribner (1992). Her second book of fiction and first novel. Winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award. Her second novel, The Shipping News, won both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. Fine in a very near fine, mildly spine-faded dust jacket.
261. -. Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Fine in wrappers.
262. PROULX, E. Annie. Accordion Crimes. (NY): Scribner (1996). The uncorrected proof copy of her first book after the success of The Shipping News. Dampstaining last dozen pages and rear cover, now wavy; very good in wrappers.
263. PUZO, Mario. The Godfather. London: Heinemann (1969). The first British edition of this bestseller that became, under Francis Ford Coppola's direction, an Academy Award-winning film, #2 on the AFI's list of the top 100 films of all time. Fine in a near fine, price-clipped dust jacket with internal tape strengthening at the crown and some wear to the lamination at the front flap fold. A nice copy of an uncommon edition of a modern classic.
264. PYNCHON, Thomas. Mortality and Mercy in Vienna. London: Aloes Books (n.d.)[c. 1976]. A piracy, and the first separate appearance of a story that first appeared in Epoch in 1959. The Mead bibliography lists four states and a second printing: this copy corresponds to none of those, having neither the crosses of the four states nor a publication date as implied in the description of the second printing; the cover illustration is entirely brown. Page edges browning; near fine in stapled wrappers.
265. PYNCHON, Thomas. Low-Lands. (London): (Aloes Books) (1978). Although the stated print run was 1500 copies and there is no indication of there having been more than one printing, Michaud identified three variants which he believes represent different printings. This is the presumed first printing, in smooth wrappers, with "Price 60p" on the rear cover, and the publisher's address on the verso of the title page. Near fine in stapled wrappers.
266. PYNCHON, Thomas. The Secret Integration. (London): (Aloes Books) (1980). The first printing of this piracy, which was limited to 2500 copies and later reprinted. This is the first separate appearance of a piece that Pynchon originally published in the Saturday Evening Post in 1964. Fine in stapled wrappers.
267. PYNCHON, Thomas. The Small Rain. London: Aloes Books (1982). The fourth and last of the Aloes piracies and, according to Michaud, the only one which may not have been reprinted. No statement of the limitation. Fine in stapled wrappers.
268. PYNCHON, Thomas. Entropy. Troy Town: Trystero, 1957 (actually, England c. 1983). The first printing of this piracy, in green stapled wrappers. Fine. One of the scarcest of the Pynchon piracies.
269. -. Same title, the second printing, with photomontage cover. Fine in stapled wrappers. The limitation is not given, either in the publication itself or in Mead's bibliography, but both printings of this title appear to be considerably scarcer than the Aloes Press piracies.
270. PYNCHON, Thomas. A Journey Into the Mind of Watts. (Westminster): (Mouldwarp) (1983). The first printing of this piracy, which reprints an article Pynchon originally wrote for The New York Times Magazine, shortly after the riots in Watts. Faint sunning at the spine; still fine in red stapled wrappers. Like Entropy, this title is considerably scarcer than the Aloes Press piracies.
271. (PYNCHON, Thomas). "Mortality and Mercy in Vienna" in Epoch, Vol. IX, No. 4. (Ithaca): (Cornell), 1959. The first appearance of this story by Pynchon, later collected in Stories from Epoch and then pirated in a separate pamphlet. One of Pynchon's two earliest published stories (not including his high school writings), both of which were published in the spring of his senior year at Cornell. Mead's bibliography lists this appearance in print after that of "The Small Rain" In Cornell Writer 6, No. 2, published in March of 1959 but the contributors page in this volume states that "This issue of Epoch presents the first published stories of two new writers, TOM PYNCHON and RONALD SUKENICK." Spine-darkened; else fine in stapled wrappers. A scarce, early Pynchon appearance in print.
272. (PYNCHON, Thomas). "Hallowe'en? Over Already?" in The Cathedral School Newsletter. (NY): (Cathedral School) (1999). A write-up by Pynchon on the school's Halloween picnic; his son attended the school. Approximately 500 words and the one-line bio, "Tom is a writer." Fine in stapled wrappers. A little-known Pynchon appearance in print, written with humor and with the flair for which he is known in his fiction writing.