Holiday List, M-O
135. MARKHAM, Beryl. West With the Night. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1942. Advance reading copy in pictorial wrappers, reproducing the dust jacket art--a fairly typical approach to issuing softbound advance copies in the Thirties and Forties. Modest wear along folds; small chip at base of spine; very good in wrappers. The first edition of this landmark autobiography of the pioneering female aviator is itself scarce; the advance copy much more so.
136. MATTHIESSEN, Peter. Partisans. NY: Viking, 1955. Long galley proofs of his second novel. Tall sheets printed on rectos only, string-tied at the top, with plain card-stock covers with publisher's info sheets and label on front cover. This copy was given to a writer friend of Matthiessen, who appears to have been an informal copy editor, and has marked a number of spots in the text with pencil, pointing out misspellings, correcting foreign syntax and vocabulary, etc. Casual inspection shows that these changes were all incorporated into the final book. Page edges slightly rough; top cover sheet is browned with age and worn. An exceedingly scarce state of this book, unlikely to have been done in quantities greater than a mere handful. This is the only copy of the proof that we have heard of, and it is a significant copy, in that it is in all likelihood the one responsible for these numerous small, but not insignificant, changes throughout. Signed by the author. In an attractive, custom quarter leather clamshell box.
137. MATTHIESSEN, Peter. Under the Mountain Wall. NY: Viking (1962). His third book of nonfiction, recounting the Harvard-Peabody Expedition to New Guinea. This is the rare first issue, with the photos in the wrong place and the Table of Contents not corrected to account for it. Virtually all copies of this edition were withdrawn by the publisher prior to publication and sold to a book club, which tipped in a replacement contents page. This copy is near fine in a near fine dust jacket with a small gutter nick at the front spine fold. While this is not an uncommon title, we have only ever seen three copies of the first issue.
138. MATTHIESSEN, Peter. The Snow Leopard. NY: Viking (1978). The limited edition issued by the trade publisher (the Franklin Library edition is the true first edition). A National Book Award-winning volume, recounting a trip to the Himalayas with naturalist George Schaller in the hopes both of encountering a snow leopard in the wild and of coming to terms with his wife's death. One of 199 copies, bound in coarse blue cloth, different from the trade binding, in publisher's printed acetate jacket. A fine copy of the scarcest issue of this important title, which was never released commercially but was distributed only to friends of the author and publisher. Although not called for, this copy is signed by Matthiessen.
139. MATTHIESSEN, Peter. In the Spirit of Crazy Horse. NY: Viking (1983). The uncorrected proof copy of Matthiessen's controversial and suppressed book about the confrontation between American Indian activists and the FBI in the early Seventies at Pine Ridge Reservation near Wounded Knee that left two federal agents and one Indian dead, and resulted in AIM activist Leonard Peltier imprisoned for life, convicted of the agents' murder in a case that as Matthiessen describes it was rife with government malfeasance. Matthiessen, his publisher, and even some bookstores who had stocked the book were the targets of lawsuits brought by two government officials who claimed they were slandered by the hard-hitting book, which made no bones about its advocacy of the Indians' case. Until a landmark Supreme Court decision upholding Matthiessen's (and Viking's) First Amendment rights, the book was shelved with remaining copies of it being pulped; paperback publication, as well as foreign publication, were blocked for nearly a decade. A significant volume, both for the incendiary nature of its content, as well as the First Amendment battle surrounding its publication and suppression. Author's name written on lower page edges; otherwise fine in mildly spine-tanned wrappers. Signed by the author.
140. -. Same title, the trade edition. Warmly inscribed by the author, in part: "with many thanks/ for Leonard [Peltier]/ and kindest regards." Near fine in a very near fine dust jacket.
141. MAUGHAM, W. Somerset. The Moon and Sixpence. NY: George Doran (1919). One of Maugham's most successful and influential novels, and his first after the success of Of Human Bondage. This is the first American edition, first issue, in a variant dust jacket with blurbs from the American press (no priority established). Light offsetting to endpapers; a very near fine copy in a near fine dust jacket with slight rubbing to spine folds and a small chip at the crown. A very nice copy of one of his scarcest and most important books.
142. MAXWELL, William. They Came Like Swallows. NY: Harper & Brothers, 1937. The true first edition of the author's scarce second novel, with "First Edition" explicitly indicated on the copyright page. Most copies of this title that turn up have no statement, and are in fact book club copies. The rear panel of the dust jacket also differs from the more common book club edition, which is often mistaken for a first. This copy has slight spotting to bottom page edges, otherwise near fine in a price-clipped dust jacket that has been laminated for protection and is thus remarkably well preserved. It is also inscribed by the author "with best wishes"--a somewhat uncommon signature. In all, a very desirable copy of a very difficult book.
143. McCARTHY, Cormac. The Orchard Keeper. NY: Random House (1965). McCarthy's first book, which won a Faulkner Foundation Award for best first novel of the year. Inscribed by the author: "For ____ _____/ Best Wishes/ Cormac McCarthy." Although the book was successful enough to go into a second printing, fewer than 3000 copies were sold in total, and it was a quarter century before McCarthy's All the Pretty Horses won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award and brought him recognition beyond the small, passionate circle of devotees who had been reading him and collecting his books all along. This book is notorious for several flaws: the front flap tends to detach at the fold, from slightly excessive scoring in the bindery, and the white jacket is susceptible to yellowing and soiling. This is a very near fine copy (slight fading to top stain, a minute corner tear) in a near fine dust jacket: strongly corner clipped on the rear flap fold; slight hints at the edge of a previous jacket protector; a small, razor-thin slice on the rear panel; and an inch of scoring separation at the lower front flap fold. Overall an extremely attractive copy of a scarce first book, and seldom found signed: the author apparently prefers to retain a degree of privacy despite his having been thrust into the literary limelight with the success of the first two volumes of his "Border Trilogy."
144. -. Another copy; an advance review copy, with some spotting to the top stain, but otherwise a fine copy in a very near fine, price-clipped dust jacket with a hint of a horizontal shadow near the lower edge, possibly from a previous dust jacket protector. Overall an extremely attractive copy of a scarce first book, which is very scarce as a review copy. Despite the small flaws of both these copies, both are much nicer than usual and nearly as fine as one might hope for.
145. McCARTHY, Cormac. Suttree. NY: Random House (1979). His fourth book, which many have considered his best, at least until the Border Trilogy (and some even still). A very scarce book, which sold fewer than 3000 copies in the original edition. Very slight soiling to the page edges (it was probably read once); very near fine in like dust jacket with a tiny spot of rubbing on the rear spine fold. An attractive copy.
146. McCARTHY, Cormac. Blood Meridian. NY: Random House (1985). A review copy of his fifth book, a powerful novel of the Old West, based on an actual series of events in 1849-1850 in Texas and Mexico, and rendered with an eye to bringing to life the surreal violence of the time and place. Fine in a fine dust jacket, with review slip, photo and promotional material laid in.
147. McGUANE, Thomas. The Sporting Club. NY: Simon & Schuster (1969). Uncorrected proof copy of the author's first book. Tall, pad-bound wrappers, with glue strip spine. A very fragile format and the earliest state of his first book to have surfaced. McGuane was the first of the contemporary writers who have turned the state of Montana, once known primarily for its big sky and wide open spaces, into a latter-day American Bloomsbury, with perhaps the highest per capita concentration of fine writers of anyplace in the country. This is a fine copy of a scarce and important debut, protected in a custom clamshell box. The only copy of this proof that we have seen, its fragile format practically ensuring that most copies will have fallen apart over the years.
148. McGUANE, Thomas. The Bushwhacked Piano. NY: Simon & Schuster (1971). Uncorrected proof copy of his second book, winner of the Richard and Hilda Rosenthal Foundation Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, for a novel of "considerable literary achievement." Very tall, pad-bound wrappers, with mesh spine. Again, a very fragile format and a fine copy. Rare.
149. McMURTRY, Larry. Leaving Cheyenne. NY: Harper & Row (1963). His second novel, one of the "50 best books on Texas," according to A.C. Greene. McMurtry's first two books are quite scarce and of the two this is likely the scarcer. Fine in an about near fine, price-clipped dust jacket: the spine is only very slightly faded; several short edge tears have been internally tape-repaired. Still, quite an attractive copy of this uncommon book. Inscribed the author "with good wishes," apparently an early inscription (i.e., a full and legible signature). In a custom folding chemise and slipcase with leather spine labels.
150. MERTON, Thomas. The Tower of Babel. (Hamburg): (Laughlin) (1957). A morality play in two acts by Merton, with woodcut illustrations by Gerhard Marcks. Tall folio, handsomely printed on handmade paper for James Laughlin in an edition of 250 numbered copies signed by Merton and Marcks. This was apparently the author's copy, as indicated in pencil on the cardboard slipcase. It bears library markings on the lower corner of the front cover and a small rubber stamp on the front pastedown indicating it came from the Monastic Library of the Abbey of Gethsemani, Merton's abbey. Other than the library marks, which illuminate the book's provenance, and a small bump at the lower front corner, this is a fine copy in a near fine slipcase. A scarce book under any circumstances, this is an especially attractive copy of it.
151. MILLER, Henry. Max and the White Phagocytes. Paris: Obelisk Press [1938]. The second volume in the Villa Seurat series, published in an edition of 1,000 copies by Obelisk, which had published Tropic of Cancer in 1934 and Black Spring in 1936. A fine copy, in self-wraps. A large, fragile book, seldom found in this condition. In custom folding chemise and slipcase.
152. MILNE, A.A. Winnie-the-Pooh. London: Methuen (1926). First edition of this children's classic whose characters, based on the author's son's stuffed animals, have since become a part of the culture. Trace wear to the boards at the extremities, and a very slight bow; very near fine, lacking the dust jacket. A very attractive copy of a high spot of 20th century children's literature.
153. MILNE, A.A. The House at Pooh Corner. London: Methuen (1928). The sequel to Winnie-the-Pooh. Lightly sunned at the top edge; a fine copy in a near fine dust jacket with a small, faint stain at the lower portion of the spine. While not nearly as scarce as its predecessor, this book is quite uncommon in fine condition in dust jacket.
154. 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 he committed suicide. Spring Snow has a tiny tear on the front flap fold; The Decay of the Angel has a nick at the crown; otherwise the volumes are fine in fine dust jackets with small stickers on the front flaps covering three of the four prices. An exceptionally nice set, and uncommon thus these days.
155. NICHOLS, John. The Milagro Beanfield War. NY: Holt Rinehart Winston (1974). The acclaimed first book in his New Mexico Trilogy, which was made into a movie. This is a fine copy in a very near fine, unfaded dust jacket with just a hint of shelf wear to the lower edge. A nice copy of a book that has become quite scarce in recent years.
156. OATES, Joyce Carol. By the North Gate. NY: Vanguard (1963). Her first book, a collection of stories. This is a fine copy in a very near fine dust jacket with very slight wear at the spine extremities and a mere touch of the spine-fading that routinely shows up on this book. Signed by the author. A nice copy of this prolific and important author's first book.
157. OATES, Joyce Carol. Do With Me What You Will. NY: Vanguard (1973). The uncorrected proof copy. This proof had a sheet taped over the last few paragraphs of text instructing the reader to "See attached next page." A new, revised ending is taped in on the following blank pages. This revised ending approximates the one that appears in the published book, but there were minor editorial changes in between. Thus, this proof together with a copy of the trade edition would reveal three different versions of the ending: the original; the first version of the revised ending; and the final version of the revision. The small instructional sheet has detached but is present, and the original text beneath it bears offsetting but is still quite legible. This is otherwise a fine copy in wrappers and is signed by the author. A textually interesting proof.
158. OATES, Joyce Carol. Crossing the Border. NY: Vanguard (1976). The uncorrected proof copy. As Oates's proofs often seem to, this copy has several pieces of revised text tipped in throughout the book. Fine in tall wrappers and inscribed by the author in the year after publication.
159. O'BRIAN, Patrick. Master and Commander. London: Collins, 1970. The first British edition of the first of his acclaimed Jack Aubrey maritime novels (preceded by the American publication of it). Foxing to page edges; a very good copy in a very good edgeworn dust jacket creased along the front spine fold. Extremely scarce.
160. O'BRIAN, Patrick. Post Captain. London: Collins (1972). The correct first edition of the second of the Jack Aubrey novels. Light foxing to top edge and slight spine roll; still near fine in a near fine dust jacket with modest rubbing to the top edge of the front panel and a bit of peeling to the lamination on the rear panel. An attractive copy of one of the scarcest books in the series.
161. O'BRIEN, Tim. Northern Lights. NY: Delacorte (1975). His second novel, a tale of two brothers in the wilderness of northern Minnesota, one of them a war veteran, the other a veteran of the protests against that war. A cheaply-made, "perfectbound" book, it is difficult to find in nice condition, rivaling his first book, If I Die in a Combat Zone, for scarcity. This is a very fine copy in a very fine dust jacket. A virtually immaculate copy; the nicest we've seen, with no hint of the loosening of the hinges that typically afflicts this title.
162. O'BRIEN, Tim. Speaking of Courage. Santa Barbara: Neville, 1980. His first limited edition, a chapter that was excised from Going After Cacciato and later appeared, in a much reworked version, in The Things They Carried. Of a total edition of 326 copies, this is one of 26 lettered copies, bound in full leather and signed by the author.
163. O'BRIEN, Tim. Typescript for "Underground Tests." March 18, 1985. 22 pages, with a typed letter signed transmitting the pages. According to the letter, this is a later draft of this story, reworked and retyped by O'Brien following editorial suggestions. All pages fine, with several bearing additional holograph corrections. The letter is also fine save for the mark of a paper clip, and it also bears holograph additions: two postscripts entreating that the editor keep the original title ("To Be Wanted" had been suggested) and reinsert Ebenezer's "buffalo" speech. Manuscript material by Tim O'Brien is very uncommon.
164. O'BRIEN, Tim. The Nuclear Age. NY: Knopf, 1985. His fourth novel, about safety and sanity and a man compelled to dig a bomb shelter in his back yard to save his family even if it means losing them in the process. This is one of the dedication copies, inscribed on the half-title: "To Mom and Dad,/ With Love,/ Tim." The book is dedicated: "For my mother and father,/ for Kathy and Greg,/ and for Ann." Tape shadows on boards from previous jacket protector; else near fine in near fine, slightly spine-faded dust jacket.
165. O'BRIEN, Tim. Corrected Galleys for "The Ghost Soldiers." May 25, 1986. Ten typeset sheets, 11" x 8 1/2", corresponding to twenty numbered text pages, extensively corrected in holograph by O'Brien. Together with an autograph note signed conveying the galleys to an editor at Esquire magazine. "The Ghost Soldiers" was published in Esquire and later was incorporated into O'Brien's award-winning volume, The Things They Carried, which has been called the best work of fiction to come out of the Vietnam war. O'Brien is known as a relentless reviser of his work, and his comments in the letter accompanying these sheets indicates that, despite his "extensive cuts & revisions," he still felt the piece "needs even more work... but at least this repair job will hold until I get around to doing a book of short stories." Fine, with the original mailing envelope.
166. O'CONNOR, Flannery. Typed Note Signed. June 10, 1962. A brief note to a representative of Doubleday in which O'Connor declines to read (presumably for review or comment) the novel of another woman author. 6" x 9". Folded in thirds for mailing; staple holes upper left corner; else fine. Signed in full. O'Connor declines with regrets and wishes that "the novel will have a good reception." The book in question was Doris Grumbach's first novel, The Spoil of Flowers. O'Connor autograph material is quite scarce.
167. O'HARA, Frank. Meditations in an Emergency. NY: Grove (1957). First major collection of poems by the legendary writer who, together with John Ashbery and Kenneth Koch, was instrumental in defining the "New York school" of poetry in the Fifties, an enormously fertile era in the arts. The New York poets, who became the heroes to a later generation in the Sixties and Seventies, created and legitimized a kind of writing free from the cramping constraints of literary strictures, a freedom seized upon by the beat generation and its successors. In the arts, O'Hara and Ashbery were part of a "crowd" that included such soon-to-be-luminaries as Larry Rivers, Willem and Elaine de Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler and Robert Motherwell, Robert Rauschenberg, Jasper Johns, Jackson Pollock, and others. This is one of 75 copies of the limited edition of O'Hara's book, this copy having been inscribed by the author to noted composer John Gruen, another in the circle of artists on the New York scene in the Fifties, who has written two highly praised memoirs of that period. In his book, The Party's Over Now, Gruen recounts not only the pivotal role that O'Hara played in that circle--"he sort of impinged himself on all of our psyches...there are at least forty people who could say Frank O'Hara was his best friend..."--but he also recounts the circumstance of the presentation of this particular volume, and the inscription O'Hara wrote when Gruen asked him to inscribe it: "For John -/ looking forward to/ our first recital in/ Town Hall and later/ at the Sands-/ Frank." O'Hara was offhandedly referring to the collaborations he and Gruen had been working on, which Gruen also recounts: "There was a poem I especially liked...[and] I decided to have a piano roll be the accompaniment... I asked Frank and Jane Freilicher to read the poem together. I assigned each specific lines to read and the result seemed wonderfully outrÉ." Freilicher was one of O'Hara's closest friends, and was the dedicatee of this volume. This copy has the poem in question, "To the Film Industry in Crisis," marked in pencil by Gruen with "J"'s and "F"'s and brackets indicating the beginning and ending of each of Jane's and Frank's sections, plus other marginal notes by Gruen pertaining to the collaboration. A remarkable, unique, historic copy of a rare book by one of the most influential poets of a generation. Signatures loosened and binding worn; a good copy in a worn original slipcase, in an attractive custom clamshell box. One of the finest association copies imaginable by a poet of the seminal and profoundly influential New York school. Together with a fine review copy of Gruen's book, The Party's Over Now (NY: Viking, 1972), which recounts the time and the events.
168. OLSEN, Tillie. Tell Me a Riddle. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1961. The author's first book, a highly praised collection of stories that later came to be one of the key works in the renaissance of women's writing that accompanied the feminist movement in the late 1960's and 1970's. This is the scarce hardcover issue, reportedly done in an edition of about 300 copies. Warmly inscribed by the author in the year of publication, under the front flap: "For _____ -/ His book by right of his nurturing care and concern -/ In unforgetting indebtedness of love -." Near fine in a spine-sunned, near fine jacket, worn at the base of the spine. A very scarce book, and exceptionally so inscribed.
169. ORWELL, George. Animal Farm. London: Secker & Warburg, 1945. Orwell's first book to receive widespread public acclaim, an allegorical tale of tyranny, specifically pointed at the degeneration of the Russian revolution. Paper clip marks to the front flyleaf and front jacket flap; very near fine in a very good dust jacket rubbed at the folds and internally tape-strengthened at the crown. A small, fragile wartime book, and scarce; this copy is much nicer than most that turn up.