Catalog 115, B
8. BELLOW, Saul. The Adventures of Augie March. NY: Viking, 1953. The first edition, first issue, of the Nobel Prize winner's third novel, and the first of his three National Book Award winners -- an unprecedented accomplishment in American literature. Trace tanning to spine cloth; else fine in a near fine dust jacket with subtle color (black) added to the spine extremities. A very nice copy of one of the high spots of postwar American fiction.
9. BORGES, Jorge Luis. El "Martín Fierro." Buenos Aires: Columbia, 1953. A short volume of essays on Martín Fierro, a 19th-century epic poem of the gaucho which is an Argentine classic and provides one of the defining myths of the Argentine national character. Inscribed by the author. Borges went blind in 1955 and, although one sees books signed by him after that date -- in a shaky hand, done from memory -- inscribed books later than this are virtually unknown. A bit of darkening to the covers and rubbing to the spine folds; near fine in self-wrappers. A nice copy, inscribed by the author who has been called the greatest writer not to receive the Nobel Prize, a fact, it was said, that reflected more poorly on the Prize than on the writer.
10. BORGES, Jorge Luis. "El doctor Francisco Laprista..." (n.p.): (n.p.), 1954. A manuscript poem by Borges -- "Poema Conjetural," originally published in his 1943 collection Poemas -- illustrated by prominent Argentine artist Santiago Cogorno. 9 1/4" x 13 1/4". Signed by Borges and Cogorno. Original pencil drawing by Cogorno, one of the most highly respected Argentine artists who, among numerous other awards, won the Art Critics' Prize in 1966 as the best artist of his generation. Borges was famous by the early 1950s, and considered among the most important Argentine writers -- if not the most important -- but his literary success did not translate into economic well-being. He once commented ruefully that, if a printer printed 300 copies of one of his books (the size of the editions of several of his early titles), most of them would be given away and read only by friends and family: they would not translate into sales. In the late 1940s he had a boring job at a small branch library in Buenos Aires, where he would surreptitiously spend most of the day reading, and in the early Fifties his economic situation was dire. He conceived the plan to capitalize on his fame, and that of his friends and fellow artists, by creating small manuscripts which could be sold for some extra money. Borges had been in the forefront of the Argentine avant garde since the early 1920s, and by the Fifties he counted most of the important artists and writers in Buenos Aires as his friends. He enlisted Cogorno to illustrate this manuscript version of a poem he had written some years earlier. Cogorno had recently had a one-man show in St. Moritz, Switzerland, and had been displaying his tempera paintings at the Galería Plástica de Buenos Aires for the past three years. He had another one-man show in Basel, Switzerland the same year this was done. A rare collaboration between two of the greatest Argentine artists of their time. Fine.
11. -. Same title. The same poem as above -- this time, however, only a fragment of the complete poem is written out in manuscript -- illustrated by Argentine artist Raul Russo. Signed by Borges and Russo. Russo was an artist most well-known for his watercolors, and this poem is illustrated with two paintings by him. A member of the faculty in architecture at the University of Buenos Aires and a professor of Art in the School of Fine Arts, Russo had won first prize in the competition among the Society of Watercolorists and Engravers on the theme of "The City of Buenos Aires" in 1948. He went on to garner numerous other awards over the course of his career and to be elected to the National Academy of Fine Arts. This copy bears another illustration by Russo on the verso, where it is again signed by Borges and Russo, and where it is also signed by Santiago Cogorno, Ricardo Molinari (an important Argentine poet), and ten others. An elaborate production: one can only speculate what would have brought together such a large grouping of literary and artistic notables, but it is indicative of Borges' need to create something that would be attractive and saleable for some extra money. 6 1/4" x 9 3/8". Fine.
12. BORGES, Jorge Luis and GUERRERO, Margarita. El Libro de los Seres Imaginarios [The Book of Imaginary Beings]. Buenos Aires: Kier, 1967. Collaborative effort illustrated with color plates by Silvio Baldessari of the "imaginary beings" that give the book its title. An expansion and revision of a book originally published in 1957 entitled Manual de zoología fantástica. Signed by Borges. Quarto, wrappers; tape shadows to the endpages; light general wear; very good. An important book, uncommon signed.
13. BOWLES, Paul and WILLIAMS, Tennessee. Three. NY: Hargail Music Press (1947). Sheet music by Bowles for a poem by Tennessee Williams. Bowles and Williams collaborated a number of times during the period prior to Bowles's first novel, The Sheltering Sky (1949), when his primary creative work was as a composer. Miller E40, approximately 1000 copies printed. Broadsheet, folded to make four pages. 9 1/8" x 12 1/8". Minor chipping and dampstaining to edges; very good. Scarce.
14. BOWLES, Paul. The Sheltering Sky. London: Lehmann (1949). The first edition of Bowles's landmark first novel, a tale of Westerners abroad in North Africa, and one of the seminal novels of the Beat generation and an influential book in the decades since. One critic commented that Bowles was "a master of cruelty and isolation and the ironies of the search for meaning in an inadequately understood environment." Bowles's expatriates, in their search for meaning, their explorations of the North African cultures and their experimentation with the drugs of northern Africa, were the model for many who followed, more or less, in their footsteps in the 50s and 60s and since -- much as Jack Kerouac's characters in On the Road have provided a model for succeeding generations. Printed in an edition of only 4000 copies. This copy has a slight spine slant and foxing to the page edges; near fine in a near fine dust jacket with light edge wear. One of the more attractive copies to have come on the market in recent years.
15. BOWLES, Paul. Desultory Correspondence. (Zurich): Memory/Cage Editions (1997). The text of an interview by Florian Vetsch with Bowles about Gertrude Stein. Also includes "My Last About Money" by Stein. Stein was a longtime friend of Bowles and something of a mentor; he met her when he was a young aspiring writer and she was already a well-established literary figure. She helped him publish his early poems, but discouraged him from writing poetry and later, when he began writing seriously, he heeded her advice and stuck mainly to writing prose. Fine without dust jacket, as issued.
16. (BOWLES, Paul). Mohammed Ben Aboula. Dessin I. Tangier: (n.p.) (Privately published) 1962. A collection of eight original drawings and paintings done on 10" x 12" sheets, seven on rectos only, and stapled into illustrated wrappers, with Aboula's name, the date and place penned on the front cover. According to Harold Norse -- the influential Beat poet who lived in the "Beat Hotel" with Ginsberg, Burroughs and Corso in Paris in the early Sixties, and from whom this piece derives -- Aboula was a protégé of Bowles in Tangier, although not much is known about him and he doesn't appear in the Bowles biographies. Norse also stated that the first work in the series, a pastel, was done by Bowles himself. Miller's bibliography does not mention this work, and this is presumably the only copy. A few pages detached, glue stains on the backs of two paintings which have offset slightly on the paintings of the opposing page, covers a bit soiled and paint stained; the pastel by Bowles is fine, the book overall is very good.
17. BOYLE, Kay. "Thunderstorm in South Dakota." (n.p.): (n.p.), 1965. A fair copy of this Boyle poem, typewritten on a single sheet and signed by the author. 8 1/2" x 11"; folded in approximate thirds; else fine.
18. BOYLE, T. Coraghessan. The Road to Wellville. Franklin Center: Franklin Library, 1993. The limited edition of this elaborate, satirical historical novel based on the life of Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, a turn-of-the century health crusader and inventor of Kellogg's Corn Flakes (along with "peanut butter...[and] some seventy-five other gastrically correct foods"). Also the basis for a film. Leatherbound, all edges gilt, with a silk ribbon marker bound in. Signed by Boyle and with a special introduction by him for this edition, tracing his literary obsession with food, drink and waste. Fine.
19. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. The Galilee Hitch-Hiker. (San Francisco): (White Rabbit Press) (1958). His scarce second book, published in an edition of 200 copies the same year as his nearly-impossible-to-find first book, The Return of the Rivers. 1958 owner signature; mild edge-tanning with a small stain at the rear top edge; still near fine in saddle-stitched parchment wrappers with a cover illustration by Kenn Davis.
20. -. Same title, the second edition. (San Francisco): [O'ar] (1966). This edition was limited to 700 copies. Inscribed by the author to Don [Allen], of the Four Seasons Foundation, which published Brautigan's Trout Fishing in America in 1967, and other titles by him afterward (The Pill, In Watermelon Sugar). A great association copy: Allen picked up Brautigan's book (Trout Fishing) and published it after Grove Press had dumped him when A Confederate General from Big Sur bombed. With virtually no advertising or promotion, Trout Fishing went through multiple printings and sold 25,000 copies and made Brautigan one of the key writers of the younger generation. Brautigan's literary career was thus revived at a point where it might otherwise have stalled. Fine in saddle-stitched wrappers.
21. -. Same title, the publisher's printed broadsheet. 8 1/2" x 11". Announcing the publication of the second edition with three brief "reviews" and reproducing Brautigan's signature and his fish. Fine. Uncommon ephemeral piece.
22. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. The Octopus Frontier. San Francisco: Carp Press, 1960. Brautigan's uncommon fourth book, and his third collection of poems. Although there is no indication of the size of the edition either in the book itself, in Lepper, or in the bibliography published in 1990, all of Brautigan's books that precede Confederate General from Big Sur are exceptionally scarce and seem to have either been done in very small quantities or to have disappeared over the years as such slight, fragile volumes are wont to do. Signed by the author. Fine in stapled wrappers.
23. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. A Confederate General from Big Sur. NY: Grove (1964). His first novel. Brautigan's writings influenced an entire generation and, although he fell out of literary favor for a time -- culminating in his suicide in 1984 -- there has been a resurgence of interest in his writings as he has come to be seen as an American original whose whimsy, sensitivity and humor epitomized his time. One very slight corner bump; else fine in a fine dust jacket. Laid in is a Grove Press invitation to the publication party. An exceptional copy.
24. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. September California. [San Francisco]: [San Francisco Arts Festival Commission] [1964]. An attractive broadside illustrated by Richard Correll. Limited to 300 copies signed by Brautigan and Correll. According to Lepper, "most" copies were signed. This was issued as part of a portfolio of broadsides by various poets but here is offered separately. A fine copy of a scarce, early Brautigan item, and his first to be issued as a signed limited edition. A bit of fairly imperceptible creasing; otherwise fine.
25. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. Karma Repair Kit: Items 1-4. [San Francisco]: Communication Company [1967]. Broadside poem. 8 1/2" x 11", printed in black on white. An ephemeral production which was given away for free on the streets of Haight-Ashbury during the Summer of Love. Fine.
26. -. Same title. This is the issue printed in red and black on white. Very faint horizontal crease and, on verso, a boldly written message about a car accident, shadows of which are visible from the front. An unfortunate, but not unthematic use of this broadside. About near fine.
27. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace. [San Francisco]: Communication Company [1967]. Broadside poem. 8 1/2" x 11", printed in black on white. Like the other Communication Company broadsides, this was printed to be distributed free on the streets during the Summer of Love. This is the issue with the faint "illustration," the most prominent portion of which is the phrase "loudspeaker current." Fine.
28. -. Same title, the issue with the bold illustration of hand-drawn animals and a photograph of a computer bank. 8 1/2" x 11". Fine.
29. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. Flowers for Those You Love. [San Francisco]: Communication Company [c. 1967]. Broadside poem. 8 1/2" x 11", printed in black on white. A short poem that is also a health advisory for its intended audience, the street people of San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury. Previously folded in thirds and with a couple of small, faint spots. Near fine.
30. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. Love Poem. [San Francisco]: Communication Company [c. 1967]. Broadside poem. 8 1/2" x 11", printed in black on white. Another scarce ephemeral piece. Fine.
31. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. The Beautiful Poem. [San Francisco]: Communication Company [1967]. Broadside poem. 8 1/2" x 11", printed in black on white. Previously folded in thirds; else fine.
32. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. Trout Fishing in America. [NY]: [Dell] [1967]. Publisher's sample pages for the back cover copy of the Dell paperback reprint of this title. Includes the original typescript of the cover copy; the typeset version, copyedited; an insert adding author name; and the final typeset version. Uncommon publisher's ephemera. Fine.
33. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. The Pill Versus the Springhill Mine Disaster. San Francisco: Four Seasons (1968). Writing 20 in the Four Seasons Foundation series, a collection of poems. This is the limited edition: one of 50 hardcover copies signed by the author. There was also an issue in wrappers. This was Brautigan's second publication by Don Allen's Four Seasons Foundation and the success of the first, Trout Fishing in America, apparently inspired Allen to issue a hardcover deluxe edition of Brautigan's next book, something he had done earlier with Michael McClure's work. Fine without dust jacket, as issued.
34. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. In Watermelon Sugar. San Francisco: Four Seasons Foundation (1968). Writing 21 in the Four Seasons Foundation series. This is the limited edition: copy #2 of 50 hardcover copies signed by the author. There was also an issue in wrappers and, like The Pill, the limited edition was the only hardcover issue of this title. A lyrical book that defies easy categorization: a novel in the form of a number of short, related prose poems. Fine without dust jacket, as issued.
35. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. The San Francisco Weather Report. [San Francisco]: G. Mackintosh [1968]. Broadside poem. 8" x 13", printed on newsprint that is now age-toned; else fine. Originally distributed free. An attractively printed item and a lovely, characteristic Brautigan poem.
36. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. The Abortion: An Historical Romance 1966. NY: Simon & Schuster (1971). The uncommon hardcover edition of this novel, which was also issued simultaneously in softcover. Signed by the author in the month after publication. Fine in a very near fine dust jacket, with a tiny bit of rubbing at the base of the spine but almost entirely free of the spine fading that so often afflicts this title. A beautiful copy.
37. -. Same title. Publisher's sample pages and layouts. Includes the cover copy; the list of titles by the same author; the title page; the dedication page; the contents page without page numbers; page one with partial text; the cover layout; the jacket layout; and a sample page with listed specs. All items fine and, in all likelihood, a unique set.
38. -. Same title, a Taiwanese piracy. Fine in a near fine, yellow dust jacket.
39. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. Five Poems. [Berkeley]: Serendipity Books, 1971. Five poems published as a single broadside and given away free at the International Antiquarian Book Fair in New York City in 1971. 17" x 11". One slight corner bump; else fine.
40. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. The Hawkline Monster. NY: Simon & Schuster (1974). The uncorrected proof copy of the first of Brautigan's "genre" novels -- inventive takes on established conventions in fiction, this one being, as he called it, "A Gothic Western." Very slight crown bump; else fine in wrappers. Uncommon.
41. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. The Tokyo-Montana Express. NY: Targ Editions (1979). An attractive limited edition of a portion of the book of the same name, which was published the following year. One of 350 copies signed by the author. Fine in a very near fine, glassine dust jacket.
42. -. Same title. NY: Delacorte/Lawrence (1980). Brautigan's penultimate book, published four years before he committed suicide, reportedly in large part because of the increasingly negative critical reception his writings were getting. This is the publisher's copy of this collection of short prose pieces depicting stops on a mythical train route from Montana to Tokyo -- the two poles of Brautigan's literary universe at that time -- and imbued with Brautigan's characteristic gentle whimsy and humor. Hand-bound in full leather with raised bands, gilt stamped, top edge gilt, and marbled endpapers. While it is not known how many copies would have been done in this way, a reasonable guess would be that there were only two -- one for the author and one for the publisher. We have seen such specially bound copies of modern literary titles from time to time, but always in the authors' own collections, never on the market, and we have only ever seen single copies of a given title. Near-unique, and thus one of the scarcest of all Brautigan items. Very slight rubbing at extremities of spine, but still fine. From the library of Seymour Lawrence, the publisher of this title.
43. BRAUTIGAN, Richard. The Edna Webster Collection of Undiscovered Writings. Berkeley/Forest Knolls: Burton Weiss and James Musser, 1999. Of a total edition of 75 copies, this is one of 65 numbered copies signed by Keith Abbott, who provides the introduction. An attractive limited edition, which publishes a number of poems Brautigan wrote in his youth in Oregon, before leaving for California at the age of 21. Fine, without dust jacket, as issued.
44. (BRAUTIGAN, Richard). Four New Poets. (San Francisco): Inferno Press (1957). Four poems by Brautigan in this small anthology -- his first book appearance, and preceding his first solely-authored book by a year. This copy is signed by Brautigan and dated August 24, 1971. Very near fine in glossy wrappers. Scarce, and especially so signed.
45. BROKAW, Tom. The Greatest Generation Speaks. NY: Random House (1999). The first trade edition of Brokaw's follow-up book on the generation that came of age during World War II, this one consisting of letters and reflections by members of that generation. Signed by Brokaw. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
46. BURGESS, Anthony. A Clockwork Orange. London: Heinemann (1962). The true first edition of Burgess' alarming and controversial view of a future beset by violence, technological excess and authoritarianism, made into a classic film by Stanley Kubrick in 1971. Small stain page 101; near fine in a very good dust jacket with several closed edge tears and a small chip at the lower edge of the front panel. A nice copy of the first issue book (black binding) in the first issue jacket (16s price).
47. BURROUGHS, William S. "LEE, William." Junkie. Confessions of an Unredeemed Drug Addict. NY: Ace (1953). Burroughs' pseudonymous first book, a paperback original bound back-to-back with Maurice Helbrant's Narcotic Agent. Signed by the author. Very slight creasing and a touch of rubbing; else fine in wrappers. Burroughs, along with Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac, came to be viewed as the leaders of the Beat Movement, widely considered to be the most influential literary movement of the postwar era. A very nice copy of a cheaply made and fragile book, which began one of the most remarkable literary careers of our time.
48. BURROUGHS, William S. The Naked Lunch. Paris: Olympia (1959). The first issue of the first edition of his second book, one of the all-time great drug novels and a high spot of Beat and postwar American literature -- one of the "big three" volumes of the Beat movement, along with Kerouac's On the Road and Ginsberg's Howl. Published only in paperback in Paris by Maurice Girodias' important small press, in an edition of 5000 copies, three years before it could be published in the U.S. Signed by the author. Slight bump to spine base, and text block beginning to separate there as the glue dries; still a very near fine copy in a very near fine dust jacket with trace sunning and wear at the edges. In custom folding chemise and slipcase.
49. -. Another copy. Signed by Burroughs in 1996. Uneven sunning and a bit of creasing to covers; rubbing to the folds. A very good copy, without dust jacket. With letter of provenance laid in: Burroughs signed this for a bookseller in Lawrence, Kansas, where he lived during the last years of his life.
50. -. Same title. NY: Grove Press (1959)[c. 1962]. The first American edition and first hardcover edition. Naked Lunch was not published in this country until three years after its original publication in Paris, and then only after a number of high-profile literary figures argued its case as a novel of great literary merit and import. It was published by the maverick publisher Barney Rosset, of Grove Press, in a tiny edition of 3500 copies -- a smaller number than was done of the scarce French paperback edition in 1959. A fine copy in a near fine dust jacket with a bit of rubbing to the corners and mild fading to the spine lettering. A very attractive, crisp copy -- much nicer than usually seen.
51. BUSCH, Frederick. The Night Inspector. NY: Harmony Books (1999). A historical novel of 19th century New York in the aftermath of the Civil War, in which Herman Melville, a customs inspector who is by then largely forgotten as a writer, is a one of the characters. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.