Catalog 142, D-F
63. DELILLO, Don. Love-Lies-Bleeding. NY: Scribner (2005). The uncorrected proof copy of DeLillo's third produced play. Uncommon. Fine in wrappers.
64. DICK, Philip K. Now Wait for Last Year. Garden City: Doubleday, 1966. Written the year after Dick won the Hugo for The Man in the High Castle, this is a novel of a benign future dictatorship on earth, fighting to avert an alien takeover. The plot involves a time travel-inducing drug, "JJ 180," which later became the name of a punk rock band in the Seventies -- one of the many ways in which Dick's writings have worked their way into the youth subculture over the years. Very mild offsetting to endpages and faint top edge foxing; near fine in a near fine dust jacket with foxing on verso. A very nice copy of one of the notoriously cheaply-made Doubleday editions from that period.
65. DICK, Philip K. and POWERS, Tim. Postscript. September, 1981. Typewritten postscript by Dick on a photocopy of a letter by Powers submitting a story to The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. Beneath Powers brief, staid request that the editor consider his story, Dick has typed a postscript, of approximately 75 words; in part: "I always read your wonderful magazine. Sometimes I understand the stories and sometimes I don't. Could you ask your authors to use smaller words? I like stories with real small words, and, if possible, pictures so I can see how the characters look. I especially try to imagine how the female characters look..." Etc. Not signed by Dick or Powers (except in photocopy), but beneath the postscript Powers has written "PKD added the P.S." in ink. Fine. Letter of provenance available.
66. DIDION, Joan and DUNNE, John Gregory. Play It As It Lays. NY/Los Angeles: F.P. Films/The Play It Company, 1971 (1972). The screenplay of Didion's third book, second novel. Mimeographed filmscript, dated November 1971, with pink and blue revision pages laid in from December 1971 and January 1972. The second screenplay that Didion worked on with Dunne after the success of their collaboration on The Panic in Needle Park. They later collaborated on A Star is Born and on the film adaptation of Dunne's novel True Confessions. This is an original script, dating from the time when they were reproduced by mimeograph machine -- a self-limiting process in a way that photocopying, which is most widely used today, is not. 3-hole punched and claspbound in gold covers with printed title. Near fine, in custom slipcase. Scarce.
67. DIDION, Joan. The White Album. NY: Simon & Schuster (1979). The uncorrected proof copy of her second collection of essays, her first since Slouching Toward Bethlehem and following up on, and expanding, that volume's chronicling of the dissolution of American moral culture in the late 1960s and beyond. Like the Beatles album from which this volume took its title, this collection is now considered something of a classic, with essays that may not have had quite the immediate impact of some of her earlier pieces but have had "legs" -- i.e., a certain kind of timelessness that some of her previous writings may not have had. Near fine in wrappers. An important collection of essays.
68. DOCTOROW, E.L. World's Fair. NY: Random House (1985). The publisher's presentation edition, leatherbound, using sheets of the first edition. Top edge gilt, silk ribbon marker bound in. Signed by the author on a tipped-in leaf. Winner of the National Book Award. Corners rubbed; else fine. Never issued for sale, presentation editions like this are usually prepared in tiny numbers by the publisher for a small handful of people associated with the creation of the book. They seldom appear on the market.
69. (DOVE, Rita). PLUSH, Vincent. Cartographies. (Folly Beach): Self-Published, 1994. Three compositions by Plush, a major Australian composer, using as lyrics three Rita Dove poems: "Mississippi," "Primer for the Nuclear Age," and "Horse and Tree." The latter is dedicated to Lou Harrison, the avant garde American composer and this copy is inscribed by Plush to Lou Harrison, "old friend, cherished colleague,/ and inspirational figure/ every best wish for your 75th, 76th, 77th birthday." Harrison was a major figure in avant garde music in America for over fifty years, teaching at Black Mountain College and later collaborating with John Cage, among others. This is both a rare and significant work, and association, within the context of 20th century music, and also an extremely scarce publication of work by Rita Dove, the African-American poet and Pulitzer Prize winner, probably representing the first time her poetry had been set to music, preceding any of the compositions listed in her CV at the University of Virginia, where she teaches, by two years. 8 1/2" x 11"; ringbound; fine.
70. DURRELL, Lawrence. "Harbor at Lesbos." (1958). An impressionistic, panoramic painting of the harbor and the surrounding hills of the Greek island of Lesbos. Durrell spent a number of years living on the island of Corfu, also in Greece, and his travel writings are renowned for their evocative sense of the what he called the "spirit of place." In 1957, he had settled in the south of France, had published the first volume -- Justine -- of what would be his masterwork, "The Alexandria Quartet," and he had also published Bitter Lemons, set in Greece. Throughout Durrell's writing career, the Mediterranean has been the greatest source of his inspiration, and this artwork epitomizes his sense of attraction and connection to the beauties of that place -- i.e., its spirit. Watercolor and pastel. 19 1/2" x 25". Signed "Larry."
71. (ELIOT, T.S.). "The Waste Land" in Dial, Vol LXIII, No. 5. (Greenwich): (Dial Publishing), 1922. The first U.S. appearance of one of the most important poetic achievements of the 20th century. Slight offsetting on first page of text from frontispiece and a repaired tear on frontispiece page; owner blindstamp to cover; rebound, without advertisements or rear cover, in gilt-stamped red quarter leather and black cloth and slipcase. Near fine. An attractive presentation of this major poem.
72. FAULKNER, William. This Earth. NY: Equinox, 1932. The editor's copy of this poem, published by the Equinox Cooperative Press, with illustrations by Albert Heckman. One sheet folded to make four pages and stringbound in buff cardstock covers. This copy has tape and blue printer's ink on the second page. Covers separating at spine as is often the case with this fragile item, otherwise a near fine copy, and presumably unique.
73. FFORDE, Jasper. "Hammerfall" in Fforde Ffestival. Swindon: Fforde Ffestival, 2005. One of 500 numbered copies of the program for the first Fforde Ffestival, which includes the first appearance of a 10-page Professor Mycroft story by Fforde, as well as a program of events ("World Cup Croquet," "Literary Karaoke") and much information about Swindon, the site of Fforde's Thursday Next novels. Fforde has gained a significant following combining parody, fantasy, and metafiction, as well as by engaging his readership in unanticipated, sometimes unprecedented, ways. Fine in stapled wrappers.
74. FOER, Jonathan Safran. The Unabridged Pocketbook of Lightning. (London): Penguin (2005). Published as Pocket Penguin 11 and including the short story "A Primer for the Punctuation of Heart Disease," first published in The New Yorker; three excerpts from Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close; and an Author's Note, which explains the title of this item. Signed by the author. Fine in wrappers.
75. FOOTE, Horton. "Tomorrow." (n.p.): Filmgroup [1972]. Poster for the film Tomorrow, based on a William Faulkner short story, and with a screenplay by Foote. Signed by Foote. Faulkner's story first appeared in the Saturday Evening Post in 1940 and was collected in Knight's Gambit in 1949. It was adapted for television in 1960 before being brought to the big screen by Foote and director Joseph Anthony in what many critics believe is the best screen adaptation ever of a Faulkner work. 27" x 41". Folded in eighths with tiny holes at the intersections of the folds; else fine.
76. FORD, Richard. Rock Springs. NY: Atlantic Monthly (1987). His fourth book and first collection of stories. Inscribed by the author: "For ____/ Why would you blow your brains out? Don't! Forget that./ Richard (6' 3")." Fine in a fine dust jacket with an announcement for a reading by Ford laid in.
77. FORD, Richard. Independence Day. NY: Knopf, 1995. A sequel to Ford's third novel, The Sportswriter, and winner of both the Pulitzer Prize and the PEN/Faulkner Award, a rare literary double. Signed by the author. Fine in a near fine, mildly spine-sunned dust jacket.
78. FORD, Richard. The Lay of the Land. NY: Knopf, 2006. The advance reading copy of Ford's sequel to Independence Day. Signed by the author. Fine in wrappers.
79. -. Same title. (London): OSCAR/Random House, 2004. An advance excerpt published to accompany Ford's UK reading tour. Signed by the author. Fine in stapled wrappers with publicity flyer laid in. The first appearance in print of Ford's new, still unpublished, novel, preceding its scheduled publication by almost two years.
80. (FORD, Richard). Fathers and Sons. (Vancouver): Raincoast Books (1998). An anthology edited by Alberto Manguel. Signed by Manguel and by Richard Ford at his contribution, "Great Falls." A conversation with Ford serves as the set up for Manguel's introduction. Only issued in wrappers. Fine. Uncommon signed, and a scarce and significant Ford appearance in print, via Manguel's recounting of their conversation in his introduction.
81. FRANCIS, Dick. Slayride. NY: Harper & Row (1974). The uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition of this mystery novel set in the world of horse racing by the former jockey turned mystery writer. Francis won a Grand Master award for his life's work from the Mystery Writers of America, as well as three Edgars, numerous other awards for his writing, and being named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1984. Near fine in tapebound wrappers with publication information sheet taped to front cover. An uncommon format for a proof, indicative of a small number having been done.
82. FRAZIER, Charles. Cold Mountain. NY: Atlantic Monthly (1997). His first book, a Civil War novel and a publishing phenomenon: after a modest 25,000 copy first printing, the book went into dozens of additional printings, eventually selling more than a million copies in hardcover and winning the National Book Award -- a rare combination of literary and commercial success for any work of fiction, let alone a first novel. Signed by the author in the year of publication. Fine in a fine dust jacket with the John Berendt blurb attached on a label to the front panel (not exactly an issue point, as some copies had this affixed on publication day, while others didn't).
83. FROST, Robert. A Further Range. NY: Henry Holt (1936). Later printing. Inscribed by the author to Sidney and Bill Watt "from their great friend Robert Frost" and dated in 1958. A nice inscription. Boards mildly mottled; near fine, lacking the dust jacket.
84. FROST, Robert. The Poems of Robert Frost. NY: Modern Library (1946). Later printing, inscribed by the author: "Beejie Watt/ from her friend/ Robert Frost/ Lafayette/ March 20 1958." "Beejie" was the young daughter of Sidney and Bill Watt, good friends of Frost. Very good, lacking the dust jacket.
85. FROST, Robert. Five Holiday Greetings. 1945-48 and 1959. A group of keepsakes, each containing a single Frost poem and issued as holiday greetings, including On Making Certain Anything Has Happened [Spiral Press, 1945] 1/2600 copies; A Young Birch [Spiral, 1946] 1/3445; One Step Backward Taken [Spiral, 1947] 1/3050; Closed for Good [Spiral, 1948] 1/2275; and A-Wishing Well [Spiral, 1959] 1/10,760. The first four show minor wear; near fine. The fifth is slightly soiled, with a few light creases; very good. From the Watt family, as are the inscribed books listed above. For the five:
86. (FROST, Robert). Bread Loaf Anthology. Middlebury: Middlebury College Press, 1939. Frost provides the preface, "The Doctrine of Excursions" to this anthology from the famous writers' workshop, which he co-founded and taught at for many years. Frost won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry four times, more than any other poet, and read a poem at President John F. Kennedy's inauguration. He was the U.S. Poet Laureate in 1959. Owner bookplate front pastedown; spine-and edge-sunned; very good, lacking the dust jacket. Signed by Robert Frost.
87. FUSSELMAN, Amy. Bunny Rabbit, Nos. 1-5. (NY): (Self-Published) (1994-1995). The first five issues of Fusselman's self-published periodical, including the self-titled #1 and also "Fear of People," "Uptighty,""Rummy Bride" and "The Germans." Issues #3 and #4 are inscribed by the author on the rear covers. Each issue is fine in stapled wrappers with a small sandpaper accent on the front cover. Fusselman gained fame as a "McSweeney's author" in 2000-2001; her early publications are extremely scarce. For all: