Catalog 103, C-E
78. CAMUS, Albert. The First Man. NY: Knopf, 1995. The uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition of the last work by the author of such modern classics as The Stranger and The Plague. The manuscript of this novel was found in the wreckage of the car in which the author was killed, and it was not published until 34 years later. Fine in wrappers.
79. CAPOTE, Truman. Other Voices, Other Rooms. NY: Random House (1948). Capote's first book, a novel that was an instant sensation and went through a number of printings, putting its young author on the literary map at the age of 22. A near fine copy in a spine-tanned dust jacket chipped at the edges and folds; about very good.
80. (CAREY, Peter). "Contacts" in Under Twenty-Five. (Brisbane): Jacaranda (n.d.)[c. 1966-67]. An anthology of poetry and prose by the youth of Australia, including the first published story by Peter Carey, winner of the Booker Prize for Oscar and Lucinda and three-time winner of the Miles Franklin Award, Australia's most prestigious literary prize, including the 1998 award for his novel, Jack Maggs. Carey's piece is identified as being from a novel, but has not been published or collected elsewhere. Quarto. Foxing to page edges; near fine in a rubbed, near fine dust jacket.
81. CARTER, Forrest. The Education of Little Tree. (n.p.): Delacorte (1976). His most famous book, which was identified as "a true story" and its author as a "part-blood Cherokee who is Storyteller in Council to the Cherokee Nations." A dozen years after publication, it won a booksellers' award and became a word-of-mouth bestseller in a paperback edition published by the University of New Mexico Press. Later, Carter was discovered to be a white man from Alabama who had worked for right-wing politician George Wallace, writing racist propaganda, raising the question of "authenticity" -- whose experience as a Native American is authentic enough to bestow proper authorial "authority?" -- an ongoing issue in the Native American literary community. Carter was deemed to lack the requisite credentials, although in Little Tree he endorsed humanist values of a high order, which he ascribed to Native American traditions, such as respect for the land and one's family, honoring one's elders, promoting generosity and good faith, and abhorring brutality and, ironically, hypocrisy. Bound in the cheap "perfectbound" style, with the pages glued to the spine rather than sewn in signatures. Such bindings have proven extremely fragile over the years, which helps explain the scarcity of relatively recent titles such as this one. Spine slant, spotting to page edges; about near fine in a very good, price-clipped dust jacket with modest edgewear.
82. (CARVER, Raymond). STULL, William L. Raymond Carver Remembered: Three Early Stories. From Studies in Short Fiction, Vol 25, No. 4, 1988. Three early stories, introduced by William Stull, Carver's bibliographer, who unearthed them. Signed by Stull. Reportedly, around 25 copies of this offprint were done. Fine in cardstock covers.
83. (CASSADY, Neal). STEPHENSON, Gregory. Friendly and Flowing Savage. Clarence Center: Textile Bridge Press (1987). A small volume on "the literary legend of Neal Cassady," tracing Cassady's appearance in the fiction of Ken Kesey, Robert Stone, and, of course, Jack Kerouac; the nonfiction of Tom Wolfe, among others; and the poetry of Allen Ginsberg. With a short introduction by Carolyn Cassady. Near fine in stapled wrappers.
84. CATHER, Willa. My Mortal Enemy. NY: Knopf, 1926. The limited edition of this short novel from the period of the author's most famous and lasting works, including The Professor's House (1925) and Death Comes for the Archbishop (1927). One of 220 copies signed by the author -- a relatively small limitation: later her deluxe editions had limitations of six and seven hundred copies or more. Foxing to top edge; small chip to spine label (a fine, extra spine label is tipped inside the book, a standard publisher's practice in those days). A near fine copy in the binding with silver-leaved gold roses on black paper, lacking the slipcase.
85. CELA, Camilo José. La Familia de Pascual Duarte. (Madrid): (Ministerio de Cultura) (1991). The Fiftieth Anniversary commemoration of this Spanish Nobel Prize winner's most famous book, consisting of a group of introductory essays and a pictorial bibliography of the book's many editions. Fine in wrappers and signed twice by Cela and also signed by the compiler of the bibliography.
86. CHABON, Michael. Werewolves in Their Youths. NY: Random House (1999). The uncorrected proof copy of this new collection of stories by the acclaimed young author of The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, among others. Fine in wrappers.
87. CHANDLER, Raymond. The Lady in the Lake. NY: Knopf, 1943. The fourth of Chandler's popular hard-boiled mysteries featuring Private Eye Philip Marlowe, which, together with Dashiell Hammett's Sam Spade novels, redefined the mystery genre, introducing a distinctly American vein to it. Chandler's books have since become classics, read as much for their vivid descriptions of 1930s and 40s Los Angeles as for their complicated, engaging plots. All of the first four Marlowe books were made into movies (William Faulkner co-wrote the screenplay for The Big Sleep) but what has likely given the series its extraordinary "legs" is Chandler's effort, in the character of Philip Marlowe, to redefine the notion of the Hero in distinctly contemporary terms. The Lady in the Lake had a modest first printing of 6000 copies -- smaller than any of his novels other than his first, The Big Sleep, which had a printing of 5000 copies. Because it is a wartime book, published under the restrictions on paper usage in effect during World War II and therefore using thin, cheap paper, it is probably the scarcest of the early novels in collectible condition. This copy has a light corner bump and trace rubbing to the cloth at the corners; a near fine copy in a very good dust jacket with rubbing to the folds and modest edgewear.
88. CHEEVER, John. The Wapshot Chronicle. NY: Harper & Brothers (1957). A review copy of his third book and first novel, winner of the National Book Award. Very minor foxing to top edge and a touch of offsetting to the front endpapers; near fine in a near fine dust jacket, with review slip laid in.
89. CHILD, Lee. Killing Floor. NY: Putnam (1997). Well-received first novel, a thriller, winner of the Anthony Award for best first novel. Fine in a fine dust jacket, and signed by the author in the year of publication.
90. COEN, Ethan. Gates of Eden. NY: Morrow/Weisbach (1998). The advance reading copy of this first novel by the award-winning filmmaker who, with his brother, has made a string of critically acclaimed movies, including Fargo, Barton Fink, and others. Fine in wrappers.
91. CONNELL, Evan S., Jr. The Anatomy Lesson and Other Stories. NY: Viking, 1957. The author's first book, a collection of stories. Signed by the author. Boards bear the edge traces of a previous jacket protector; otherwise a fine copy in a near fine dust jacket with less than the usual amount of spine fading.
92. CONNELLY, Michael. The Black Echo. Boston: Little Brown (1992). The author's well-received first novel, which introduced LAPD detective Hieronymous Bosch, and won the Edgar Award for best first mystery. Fine in a fine dust jacket and signed by the author.
93. COOVER, Robert. Gerald's Party. NY: Linden Press/Simon & Schuster, 1986. A novel by the author of The Origin of the Brunists (Faulkner Award, best first novel, 1966) and The Public Burning (National Book Award nominee, 1981), among others. This copy is signed by the author on the title page and is additionally inscribed by Coover on the dedication page to a well-known writer and editor in January, 1986, the month of publication: "For ____ ____. Who stormed/ in, raised hell and livened things/ up a bit -- hey, you're welcome/ at any party I throw, now or/ whenever!/ Yours in purest unremitting/ affection/ Bob." Fine in a near fine dust jacket.
94. CORTÁZAR, Julio. 62: Modelo Para Armar. Buenos Aires: Sudamericana (1968). An experimental comic novel by this Argentine author that derives its title from his earlier novel, Hopscotch, referring to Chapter 62 of that work. As a writer, Cortázar, who lived in Paris from 1952 on, was closely associated with the school of "pataphysics," an absurdist strand of contemporary literature derived from Alfred Jarry's writings and dedicated to the "science of imaginary solutions." Foredge slightly foxed; near fine in wrappers and in the scarce original dust wrapper, which has some spine-fading but which is also near fine.
95. CORTÁZAR, Julio. Casa Tomada. (Buenos Aires): (Ediciones Minotauro) (1969). Oblong quarto in wrappers; the first edition of this imaginative work by the author of Hopscotch and 62: A Model Kit; one of Argentina's foremost experimental writers and the author of the short story on which Antonioni's acclaimed film Blow-Up was based. Spine-rubbed; near fine in oblong wrappers, with original wrap-around band (torn) laid in.
96. CORTÁZAR, Julio. Prosa del Observatorio. (Barcelona): Editorial Lumen (1972). Photographs by Cortázar of a ruined observatory, with text by the author -- part of a series commemorating the International Year of the Book. Corners and front spine fold rubbed; near fine in pictorial boards without dust jacket, presumably as issued.
97. (CROWLEY, Aleister). 1001 Notable Nativities. London: N.L. Fowler (n.d.). A small astrological manual, giving the birth signs of numerous historical personages, along with various astrological tables, and several explanatory appendices. This is the fourth edition, revised, of volume No. 11 of Alan Leo's Astrological Manuals. This copy is signed by Aleister Crowley, the noted Cabbalist and diabolist, and a practicing astrologer as well, in 1944. Crowley, in addition to being a practitioner and advocate of black magick, was an accomplished mountain climber, a sometime poet, and had been a member of the Order of the Golden Dawn, a theosophical group involved in Cabbalistic magick of which William Butler Yeats was also a member. Crowley's claim to have ascended to a higher spiritual grade was rejected by the Order, and helped precipitate the dissolution of it. He published a number of signed limited editions himself over the years -- he was well aware of the value of his celebrity, and was a notable self-promoter -- but his signature is quite scarce outside of the limited publications, especially on a volume that he would have used, rather than being an artifact. Spine a bit sunned, a few spots to covers; very good in wrappers.
98. CUNNINGHAM, Michael. The Hours. NY: FSG (1998). The advance reading copy of his third book, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the PEN/Faulkner Award, a rare literary "double." Fine in wrappers.
99. -. Same title, the trade edition, which has now gone into multiple printings. Fine in fine dust jacket and signed by the author.
100. DICK, Philip K. A Handful of Darkness. London: Rich & Cowan (1955). First edition, a collection of stories, and Dick's first book to be published in a hardcover edition. This copy, in heavy orange boards, without dust jacket, is the copy that Dick's bibliographer saw and mentioned as either a later binding state or a privately rebound copy of the second state of the book. He suggested it was the latter, and we would concur. Inscribed by the author to Tim and Serena Powers: "To Tim & Serena/ with love/ Philip K. Dick." Tim Powers was Dick's best friend, had been his roommate for a time, and was a fellow science fiction writer, whose books have won the Philip K. Dick Award twice since the award was established after Dick's death. An excellent association copy of Dick's rare first hardcover.
101. DICK, Philip K. The Crack in Space. NY: Ace (1966). Paperback original, a novel that uses the science fiction form to explore issues of race relations, at the height of the Civil Rights Movement, in the mid-1960s. Pages darkened with age, otherwise a fine copy. Inscribed by the author: "To Tim Powers - a/ good friend & drinking/ companion./ Philip K. Dick." An excellent association copy -- both personal and literary.
102. DISCH, Thomas. The Sub. NY: Knopf, 1999. The uncorrected proof copy of this forthcoming novel (July, 1999) by a prolific and critically acclaimed writer who, perhaps because his work work defies traditional categories and genres, has been called "the most formidably gifted unfamous American writer." Fine in plain printed wrappers, with cover art bound in.
103. DONLEAVY, J.P. A Singular Man. London: Bodley Head (1965). The play adaptation of his second novel, signed by the author in 1998. Cloth a bit spine- and edge-tanned; top page edges a trifle foxed; near fine in dust jacket.
104. DONOSO, José. El Charleston. Santiago: Nascimento, 1960. An early collection of short stories, the fourth book by this Chilean writer, which was not translated into English or published in the U.S. for 17 years. Pages browning with age but still near fine in self-wraps. A scarce volume, given the Chilean imprint, the fragile binding and the cheap, acidic paper used in production.
105. DONOSO, José. Tres Novelitas Burguesas. Barcelona: Seix Barral (1973). "Three bourgeois novels" by this Chilean writer, one of which was the basis for Luis Buñuel's classic film, The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie. Published in the U.S. as Sacred Families: Three Novellas. Donoso's critical volume, The Boom in Spanish American Literature: A Personal History, helped define the new and influential Latin American literature, articulate its characteristics, and identify its leading lights -- of whom the author himself was one. Inscribed by the author on the title page. Very good in self-wraps.
106. DOVE, Rita. On the Bus with Rosa Parks. NY: Norton (1999). The uncorrected proof copy of this new colleciton of poems by the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and former Poet Laureate. Fine in wrappers, with promotional sheet laid in.
107. DUBUS, Andre. The Lieutenant. NY: Dial, 1967. The author's uncommon first book, and his only novel -- a military tale not unlike William Styron's book The Long March -- a story of the peacetime military and the challenges to manhood and honor that its rigid code of morals creates. Dubus was once quoted as saying that after he wrote this novel someone introduced him to Chekhov's short stories, and he threw away the manuscript of what was to be his next novel and began writing short fiction -- of which he became one of our most acclaimed and accomplished practitioners. This copy is stamped "Sale" on the front flyleaf, but is otherwise fine in a fine, price-clipped dust jacket with a tiny spot of rubbing on the rear panel. A very nice copy of a book that seldom turns up in this condition.
108. DUBUS, Andre. The Last Worthless Evening. Boston: Godine (1986). A collection of four novellas and two stories. Minor dampstaining to lower rear board and creasing to rear pages (by all appearances, a binding flaw); a very good copy in a dust jacket with associated internal dampstaining, several creases, and one edge tear.
109. DUBUS, Andre. Meditations from a Movable Chair. NY: Knopf, 1998. The uncorrected proof copy of his last book, a collection of essays. Fine in wrappers.
110. DUBUS, Andre, III. House of Sand and Fog. NY: Norton (1998). The advance reading copy of the author's highly praised third novel, with glowing blurbs from Tobias Wolff and Larry Brown, among others. Tiny nicks to corner and spine; very near fine in wrappers.
111. EGOLF, Tristan. Lord of the Barnyard. (London): Picador (1998). The uncorrected proof copy of this highly praised first novel which, after being rejected by some 50 U.S. publishers, was published in France in a French translation. From there, world English rights were sold to Picador, which published the novel to substantial praise in England in 1998, with reviewers comparing the writing to Thomas Pynchon's and the book's publishing history to that of John Kennedy Toole's A Confederacy of Dunces. After its success in England, Grove published it in the U.S. in March, to much critical acclaim. Some creasing to covers; near fine in wrappers.
112. -. Same title. NY: Grove Press (1999). The advance reading copy of the first American edition. Fine in wrappers.
113. ELIOT, T.S. The Rock. London: Faber & Faber (1934). A play, for which Eliot wrote the choruses and dialogues and one scene. This is the first issue of the first edition, in gray wrappers with black spine lettering. One of 1000 copies printed, of 2000 copies in the total edition. Gallup A26a. Owner name (1939), spine creased; very near fine in wrappers.
114. ELKIN, Stanley. The Rabbi of Lud. NY: Scribner (1987). The uncorrected proof copy. Two pages are bound in upside down and out of order. Reviewer's notes, mostly on the rear blank. Near fine in wrappers.
115. ELLROY, James. Crime Wave. NY: Vintage Books (1999). A collection of crime reporting by the author of the award-winning My Dark Places and L.A. Confidential, among others. Issued in wrappers. Signed by the author. Fine, with an author trading card laid in from The Booksmith in San Francisco.
116. -. Another copy. Signed by the author. Fine in wrappers, without the trading card.
117. -. Same title, the uncorrected proof copy. Fine in wrappers.
118. ENGLANDER, Nathan. For the Relief of Unbearable Urges. NY: Knopf, 1999. The uncorrected proof copy of this highly praised first book, a collection of stories that has earned extraordinary praise and has gone into at least five printings in the trade edition. Fine in wrappers. The proof is considerably scarcer than the advance reading copy that was issued of this title.
119. -. Same title, the advance reading copy. Fine in wrappers.
120. EXLEY, Frederick. A Fan's Notes. NY: Harper & Row (1968). The uncorrected proof copy of the author's first book, a fictional memoir and one of the defining books of the Sixties, which helped blur the line between fiction and nonfiction much the way the New Journalism of that era did. Previously stringbound (one string missing, one string broken) galley sheets. 6 1/2" x 7 5/8"; printed on rectos only. Front cover sunned along one edge; else fine. An extremely scarce, early state of an important book; we have never seen another copy of this issue offered for sale.