London, Chatto & Windus, (1962). The uncorrected proof copy of the last novel by Huxley, the counterpoint to his classic, Brave New World. Huxley began exploring Eastern religions and mysticism in the 1930s, after he had written Brave New World; in the early 1950s he experimented with mescaline and other psychedelic drugs, finding a strong parallel between the drug-induced state and the mystical experiences he had previously only read about. He wrote two short books on his drug experiences -- The Doors of Perception and Heaven and Hell -- describing the psychedelic experience in terms borrowed from oriental mystical traditions, and attempted in this, his final work of fiction, to use the novel form to articulate a vision of the society that could emerge from a shared experience of spiritual ecstasy. Publication date rubber-stamped on front cover. Spine slanted, lightened and lightly creased; overall near fine in wrappers. Not a particularly uncommon book, but scarce in proof form. [#009778] SOLD