Catalog 118, L-M
134. LEE, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. Philadelphia: Lippincott (1960). Her only book, a huge bestseller that was reprinted dozens of times upon publication, won the Pulitzer Prize, was selected for two different book clubs, and was made into an Academy Award-winning movie. It has sold several million copies in the decades since, never going out of print. While hardcover copies abound because of the numerous printings and book club editions, the first edition (which has been estimated at having been 5000 copies) is not only very scarce, it is virtually impossible to find in collectable condition due to a number of factors: a large percentage of copies of the first printing went to libraries; the dust jacket is unlaminated and printed in dark ink, which tends to rub and show the white paper through the ink; and, because it is one of the best-loved books in American literature, copies tend to have been read, handled, passed around, and re-read -- and show the wear and tear of such use. This copy is mildly spine-toned with the rear hinge starting; near fine in a professionally restored, price-clipped dust jacket, strengthened at the folds and with appropriate colors added, although there is still white flaking visible on the predominantly black spine. A high spot of postwar American literature. With a custom quarter leather clamshell box.
135. -. Same title. London: Heinemann (1960). The first British edition. Signed by the author. The British edition is considerably more common than the American edition, but signed copies of either edition are exceedingly scarce. Trace top edge foxing; else fine in a near fine, slightly rubbed, price-clipped dust jacket. In a custom quarter leather clamshell box.
136. LEE, Harper. Romance and High Adventure. Birmingham: Cather & Brown Books, 1993. The first separate publication of a paper Lee presented to the Alabama History and Heritage Festival in 1983. One of 100 numbered copies signed by the publisher, Patricia Cather. Fine in stapled wrappers. An extremely scarce "A" item by Lee, who has never published another book since the success of her novel To Kill a Mockingbird.
137. LEHANE, Dennis. Prayers for Rain. NY: William Morrow (1999). Inscribed by the author: "For ____ ____,/ What are you doing alive?/ I thought I killed you/ a whole book ago./ [smiley face]/ All my best/ Dennis Lehane/ 7/2/99." Lehane had borrowed the recipient's name for a character killed in Gone, Baby, Gone. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
138. LONDON, Jack. "Tramping with Kelly Through Iowa" in The Palimpsest, Vol. VII, No. 5. Iowa City: State Historical Society of Iowa, 1926. The issue prints consists of London's diary from 1894, as he campaigned across Iowa with Kelly's Industrial Army, along with the editor's comment on it. One spot front cover; else fine in wrappers.
139. LOPEZ, Barry Holstun. Desert Notes. Kansas City: Sheed Andrews McMeel (1976). His first book, a collection of "narrative contemplations" of the desert, told in a poetic, lucid prose, the clarity and simplicity of which is uncommonly suited to the subtleties of perception and expression it contains. A thin book, published by a small midwestern publisher more noted for its religious titles than its books for the general trade, this book has become quite scarce in recent years. Fine in a fine dust jacket with trace wear at the crown.
140. -. Another copy. Inscribed by the author. Owner name on front pastedown; small spine bump; near fine in a very good, supplied dust jacket with light wear to the top edge and some shallow tactile water rippling.
141. LOPEZ, Barry. Looking in a Deeper Lair: A Tribute to Wallace Stegner. Eugene: Lone Goose (1996). A limited edition of this Pushcart Prize-winning essay about Stegner, based on a talk given in 1995. One of 150 numbered copies, of a total edition of 179. Signed by Lopez. Attractively designed, printed and bound by Sandy Tilcock of Lone Goose Press. Fine in wrappers.
142. LOPEZ, Barry. Anotaciónes. (San Francisco): Pacific Editions, 2001. A story by Lopez, one paragraph with 16 footnotes, first published in Manoa in 1994 as "Rubén Mendoza Vega...," and issued here in a limited edition designed by Charles Hobson and taking the form of an accordion book with the main text and fictionalized bibliography, and an 18-piece jigsaw puzzle printing the 16 footnotes on one side and an image of stacked cigar boxes on the other. One of 30 copies signed by Lopez and Hobson. Each copy in the edition is housed, with the puzzle pieces, in an actual, unique cigar box modified with collage and averaging 9" x 7" x 2". Enclosed in a corrugated board chemise. A fascinating production by one of the leading book artists in America. Fine.
143. (LOPEZ, Barry). The Sound of Writing. NY: Doubleday (1991). The advance reading copy of this collection of stories that were first heard on National Public Radio. This copy is signed by Barry Lopez at his contribution, "Remembering Orchards." Other contributors include John Updike, Ethan Canin, Edward Abbey, Rick Bass, Louise Erdrich, T.C. Boyle, Ursula LeGuin, Joy Williams, Reynolds Price and Lewis Nordon, among others. Mild bump to upper outer corner; very near fine in wrappers.
144. LORENZO, Carol Lee. Nervous Dancer. Athens: University of Georgia Press (1995). A collection of stories, the author's first book for adults after three children's books. Winner of the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
145. LOVECRAFT, H.P. The Outsider and Others. Sauk City: Arkham House (1939). A posthumous collection of 36 stories and one essay published, two years after Lovecraft's death, by August Derleth and Donald Wandrei, who founded Arkham House for the purpose of publishing Lovecraft. This was the first book published by the press, which went on to become the preeminent American publisher of horror, "weird fiction," and dark fantasy that was not commercial enough for mainstream publishers: Arkham published the first books by such writers as Ray Bradbury and Fritz Leiber, who later came to dominate the field of fantasy. Published in an edition of 1268 copies, this is widely considered the most important book published by the press, and collects all of the author's stories that the editors could find -- only two of which, "The Shunned House" and "The Shadow Over Innsmouth," had been published in book form before -- as well as his seminal essay, "Supernatural Horror in Literature." A large, heavy book with an unlaminated dust jacket illustrated by Virgil Finaly, this title is extremely scarce in fine condition. This copy is fine in a very near fine dust jacket with trace wear to the top edge and very slight rubbing to the spine, but still a beautiful copy -- the nicest we have seen in many years.
146. MACLEOD, Alistair. Island. (Toronto): McClelland & Stewart (2000). The collected stories of one of Canada's most acclaimed authors, reprinting the contents of his first two story collections and including two long, previously uncollected stories. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
147. MAILER, Norman. The Gospel According to the Son. NY: Random House (1997). A short novel, written from the perspective of Christ, and using the form of the novel to not only explore the Gospels but also to recreate the time and place in which Jesus lived. Signed by Mailer. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
148. MATTHIESSEN, Peter. Wildlife in America. NY: Viking, 1959. Matthiessen's first book of nonfiction, a survey of the effect of the Europeans on the fauna of North America and a classic in the field of conservation literature. Shortly after publication, the publisher reported that President John F. Kennedy had added the book to the White House's permanent library. Matthiessen was one of the first primarily "literary" authors to devote his energy to writing about ecological issues, eventually incorporating them and the political questions that they raise into his fiction in a way that set the stage for the generation of socially conscious writers to come. His interest in non-Western ways of perception and knowing -- drawn from tribal traditions as well as from the mystical heritage of the East -- combined with his social concerns to raise the standard for serious, environmentally conscious writers of fiction and other literature. Fading to top stain; else a fine copy in a near fine dust jacket with light rubbing to edges and rear spine fold.
149. MATTHIESSEN, Peter. In the Spirit of Crazy Horse. (n.p.): (n.p.) (1983). A samizdat edition of Matthiessen's controversial and suppressed book about the Pine Ridge killings of two FBI agents during a confrontation with militants of the American Indian Movement, a crime for which, he persuasively argues, Leonard Peltier was wrongfully convicted. Lawsuits filed against Matthiessen, his publisher, and even a pair of bookstores that carried the book in South Dakota, succeeded in suppressing the book for nine years before the Supreme Court threw out the case on First Amendment grounds. This edition, which we have seen only once before, was pirated during the years that the book was unavailable through normal channels. Very good in plain white printed wrappers, with just the title and author indicated. A significant edition of an important book in First Amendment history.
150. MAXWELL, William. All the Days and Nights. NY: Knopf, 1995. The uncorrected proof copy of a collection of short fiction that spans his entire writing career -- over 50 years. Fine in wrappers.
151. McCANN, Colum. Fishing in the Sloe-Black River. London: Phoenix House (1994). The first book by this young Irish writer, winner of the 1994 Rooney Prize for Irish Literature. This is the simultaneous hardcover issue: most copies were issued in paperback. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
152. McCANN, Colum. This Side of Brightness. London: Phoenix House (1998). His highly praised third book. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
153. McCARTHY, Cormac. Outer Dark. (London): Deutsch (1970). The first British edition of his second book. Faint foxing to top edge; else fine in a near fine dust jacket. With a bookplate signed by the author laid in. A scarce edition, in all likelihood having had a much smaller printing than the American edition, which is itself quite scarce.
154. McCARTHY, Cormac. Cities of the Plain. New Orleans: B.E. Trice (1998). The limited edition of the third book in the Border Trilogy. One of 300 numbered copies, quarterbound in leather and signed by the author. This is the smallest limitation of any of McCarthy's books (aside from the sold-out deluxe issue of this title). Fine in a fine slipcase.
155. McCOURT, Frank. Angela's Ashes. (NY): Scribner (1996). The author's first book, a memoir that won the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and the Los Angeles Times Book Award, and was made into a well-received film. A surprise bestseller, it had a relatively small first printing and was reprinted dozens of times, spending more than two years on The New York Times bestseller list and ending up with over two and a half million copies in print in the U.S. alone. It has been translated into 25 languages. This copy is signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
156. McCRACKEN, Elizabeth. Desiderata. [Cyberspace]: Boldtype (1997). A five-page essay by McCracken on the ways we document our lives, written for an online literary magazine. McCracken is a Granta 20 author; her first book, a collection of stories, won a New Writers award and her second, a novel, was a National Book Award finalist. This is an uncommon item, never issued for print publication. Signed by the author. Fine.
157. McDERMOTT, Alice. Charming Billy. NY: FSG (1998). Her fourth book, winner of the National Book Award. Signed by the author. Fine in fine dust jacket.
158. McGUANE, Thomas. Ninety-Two in the Shade. NY: FSG (1973). Photocopied typescript of McGuane's third novel, reproducing the author's and the copyeditor's corrections. 227 pages, plus prelims. Double-spaced, loose sheets in accordion folder with the publisher's label affixed, identifying the sheets as "A Set of Galleys." Fine. The typescript provides a look at an early version of the text of what may be McGuane's best-known novel, in part because of the movie that was made from it. The manuscripts of this novel are institutionalized, including the original from which this photocopy was made, and presumably there would have been very few copies made of it at the time.
159. McMURTRY, Larry. In a Narrow Grave. Austin: Encino Press, 1968. McMurtry's fourth book and first book of nonfiction, a collection of essays on Texas. Done by a small press in Austin, the first printing was so rife with typographical errors that it was destroyed; reportedly only 15 copies survived. This is the second, corrected printing. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket. A beautiful copy of an important early McMurtry book.
160. McMURTRY, Larry. Somebody's Darling. NY: Simon & Schuster (1978). A Hollywood novel by an author who is very familiar with the subject: numerous McMurtry books have been filmed, and he himself has written many screenplays, both produced and unproduced. Signed by the author. Fine in dust jacket.
161. McMURTRY, Larry. It's Always We Rambled. An Essay on Rodeo. NY: Frank Hallman, 1974. A limited edition of this essay, one of 300 numbered copies, signed by the author. This copy is additionally inscribed by McMurtry "with my good wishes" on the first blank. Fine without dust jacket, as issued.
162. McPHEE, John. A Sense of Where You Are. NY: FSG (1965). The first book by this Pulitzer Prize-winning author, a profile of former New Jersey Senator Bill Bradley done at the time when he was a Princeton basketball player and Rhodes scholar. A portion of this book first appeared as a "Profile" in The New Yorker, where McPhee's prose in the 1960s and 1970s helped elevate nonfiction writing to the realm of literary art. Inscribed by McPhee: "For Babe Baldwin/ who would have/ re-opened his menagerie/ if this boy had spent a/ year at Deerfield./ Affectionately/ John McPhee/ October 23, 1965." Presumably "this boy" refers to Bradley, the subject of the book, rather than McPhee as the author himself did spend a year at Deerfield, attending the school as a post-graduate after graduating from Princeton High School. Faint dampstaining to front pastedown; near fine in a very good, slightly spine-faded dust jacket with dampstaining visible on the verso and to a lesser extent on the front flap and lower back panel. Housed in a custom clamshell box. An attractive copy of McPhee's scarcest book, with a nice inscription.
163. McPHEE, John. The Survival of the Bark Canoe. NY: FSG (1976). A portrait of a New Hampshire man who made birch bark canoes in the 1970s in the same manner that the American Indians did prior to the arrival of Europeans on this continent -- using the same materials and tools -- and also an account of a 150-mile canoe trip in Maine in one of the vessels, reminiscent of Thoreau's accounts in The Maine Woods. Inscribed by the author. Near fine in a very good, spine-tanned dust jacket with several tiny spots on the rear panel and a bit of dampstaining to the verso. One of his more uncommon titles, particularly signed.
164. MELVILLE, Herman. Moby-Dick or The Whale. NY: Harper & Brothers, 1851. The first American edition of Melville's classic work, which had been published in a slightly expurgated version a month earlier in England in three volumes, entitled The Whale. Interestingly, although now widely viewed as "the greatest work of American fiction" and "the central masterpiece of American literature," Moby Dick -- while it signaled a sea change in Melville's literary fortunes -- took him in a direction that is little recognized in retrospect. Prior to publishing it, Melville had been a moderately successful popular author, using his experiences and adventures on sailing ships in the South Seas as grist for a number of popular adventure novels. In 1850, having moved to Pittsfield, Massachusetts and become close with Nathaniel Hawthorne, and having begun to read more widely than he ever had before -- the works of a number of novelists and philosophers -- he embarked on a much more ambitious literary project, in which the adventure story of a sea captain's hunt for a whale became a conscious allegory for the quest for self-knowledge and truth. The novel included complex elements of social criticism -- Queequeg the whaler is a noble savage, a "George Washington cannibalistically developed" -- and it was not well-received, described by one scholar as having been "too difficult for critics and public in a sentimental time." Rather than being the harbinger for ever-increasing success and acclaim, Moby-Dick, which was published when the author was 32, signaled the beginning of its author's slide into obscurity and reclusiveness. By the time he turned 40 years old, Melville had turned almost exclusively to poetry, which was printed in small "vanity" volumes and distributed only to a small circle of acquaintances. His reputation only began to recover after his death, and it was secured in 1929 by Lewis Mumford's biography, Melville: A Study of His Life and Vision. Rebacked; owner name first blank; cloth spine faded; a very good copy in custom slipcase. The total first printing was 3000 copies, and the unsold ones were destroyed in a warehouse fire in 1853, making first editions even scarcer than the small printing would suggest. Possibly the high spot of American literature.
165. MERTON, Thomas. The Inner Experience. (n.p.): Cistercian Studies, 1983-1984. Five offprints (sections 1, 2, 4, 6 and 7) of articles excerpted from Merton's unpublished manuscript The Inner Experience and published in Cistercian Studies. Highlighting in all but the first offprint; otherwise each is fine in stapled wrappers. For the five:
166. (MILLER, Henry). Tuvoti. (California): Arthur & Glee Knight, 1972. An 80th birthday celebration for Miller, published as Vol. 2, No. 3 of The Unspeakable Vision of the Individual. With work by Charles Plymell, Douglas Blazek, Tuli Kupferberg, Norman Mailer and others. Quarto; fine in stapled wrappers.
167. MISTRY, Rohinton. Such a Long Journey. NY: Knopf, 1991. The uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition of the author's second book, first novel, which won the Canadian Governor General's Award and the Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best Book, and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. Mistry is a Canadian author of Indian descent, having spent the first 23 years of his life in Bombay before emigrating to Canada. Very near fine in wrappers.
168. MOODY, Rick. Garden State. Wainscott: Pushcart (1993). The author's first book, a novel which won the 1991 Pushcart Press Editors' award. This is the scarce hardcover edition, which reportedly had a first printing of only 2500 copies. Moody is the author of The Ice Storm, among others, and was chosen as one of The New Yorker 20 -- the 20 best young American novelists. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
169. MOODY, Rick. The Ring of Brightest Angels Around Heaven. Boston: Little, Brown (1995). His third book and his first collection of short fiction. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
170. MOODY, Skye Kathleen. Rain Dance. NY: St. Martin's (1996). Her first work of fiction, and the first in an ongoing and well-received series featuring Venus Diamond, a Fish and Wildlife agent. Moody's mysteries, because of her character's profession, often deal with crimes involving ecological themes. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
171. MOODY, Skye Kathleen. Blue Poppy. NY: St. Martin's (1997). The second Venus Diamond mystery. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
172. MOORE, Lorrie. Self-Help. NY: Knopf, 1985. The first book, a collection of stories, by this Granta 20 author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
173. MOORE, Lorrie. Who Will Run the Frog Hospital? NY: Knopf, 1994. A novel that contrasts the dissolving bonds of marriage with the enduring bonds of an adolescent friendship. Each of Moore's previous books had received critical praise; this was her first bestseller. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
174. -. Same title. Madison: Silver Buckle Press, 1995. A limited edition excerpt from the novel. One of only 100 numbered copies signed by the author and by the artist, Gretchen Hils. Fine in tall, thin saddle-stitched wrappers. An attractive and little-known edition by this highly regarded author.
175. MORRISON, Toni. Sula. (London): Allen Lane (1974). The first British edition of her second novel, which uses the theme of the friendship between two black women to explore issues of race, conformity and expectations within the black community, and within the larger white society. Morrison has won both the Pulitzer Prize and the Nobel Prize; Sula was her first book published in the UK. This copy is signed by the author. Modest sunning to orange boards; else fine in a near fine dust jacket with the front panel sunned from green to blue.
176. MORRISON, Toni. Song of Solomon. NY: Knopf, 1977. Her third book. Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award. Signed by the author. Fine in a very near fine dust jacket.
177. MORRISON, Toni. Tar Baby. NY: Knopf, 1981. A review copy of her fourth novel. Signed by the author. Fine in a very near fine dust jacket, with publisher's promotional sheet laid in.
178. MORRISON, Toni. Beloved. NY: Knopf, 1987. Her fifth novel, which won the Pulitzer Prize and was the basis for the award-winning 1998 film by Jonathan Demme. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
179. MORRISON, Toni. Jazz. NY: Knopf, 1992. The first trade edition of this novel, which immediately preceded her being awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
180. MORRISON, Toni. Playing in the Dark. NY: Vintage Books (1993). The first paperback edition of this book of literary criticism on the subject of race, subtitled "Whiteness and the Literary Imagination" and first published in 1992 by Harvard University Press. Signed by the author. Fine in wrappers.
181. (MORRISON, Toni). Conversations with Toni Morrison. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi (1994). The hardcover issue of this collection of interviews. Fine in a fine dust jacket.