Catalog 141, F-L
60. FAULKNER, William. Idyll in the Desert. NY: Random House, 1931. The only publication of this story and Faulkner's first book for Random House, which remained his publisher until he died in the 1960s. One of 400 numbered copies signed by the author. A fine copy in a near fine original glassine dustwrapper. Very scarce with the original glassine still present.
61. FAULKNER, William. Light in August. (NY): Smith & Haas (1932). A Yoknapatawpha County novel that is considered his "most penetrating and dramatic analysis of contemporary Southern society." A fine copy in a near fine, lightly spine-faded dust jacket with very slight edge wear. Lacking the original glassine outer jacket. A very attractive copy of one of Faulkner's greatest works, and one of the high spots of twentieth century American literature.
62. FAULKNER, William. A Green Bough. NY: Smith & Haas, 1933. The limited edition of Faulkner's last volume of poetry to be published during his lifetime. One of 360 numbered copies signed by the author. With cover labels and tipped in frontispiece by Lynd Ward. Mild darkening to page and cloth edges and spine; a near fine copy, without dust jacket, as issued.
63. FAULKNER, William. Doctor Martino. NY: Smith & Haas, 1934. Faulkner's second collection of stories. Trace sunning to cloth at crown; still a fine copy in a near fine, mildly spine-tanned dust jacket with trace wear at the corners and a couple faint, tiny spots to top edge.
64. FAULKNER, William. Pylon. NY: Smith and Haas, 1935. A novel of aviators that was made into the movie The Tarnished Angels nearly 20 years later -- which Faulkner considered the best film adaptation of any of his books. Price stamping rear flyleaf; flaking to spine lettering; still a near fine copy in a very good, tanned dust jacket with light rubbing to the edges and folds.
65. FAULKNER, William. The Unvanquished. NY: Random House (1938). The limited edition of this Civil War novel of the Sartoris family. One of 250 numbered copies signed by the author. A fine copy in the original glassine dustwrapper, which has shrunk over time. A beautiful copy, and exceedingly uncommon with the original glassine jacket.
66. -. Same title, the trade edition. Sunning to spine cloth; thus near fine in a near fine, spine-sunned dust jacket.
67. FAULKNER, William. The Wild Palms. NY: Random House, 1939. The limited edition. One of 250 numbered copies signed by the author. A fine copy, in the original glassine dustwrapper, chipped at the spine base. Again, exceptionally scarce with the original glassine.
68. -. Same title, the trade edition. Fine in a near fine, price-clipped dust jacket with a bit of rubbing on the spine. A crisp, attractive copy.
69. FAULKNER, William. The Hamlet. NY: Random House, 1940. The limited edition of the first book in the Snopes trilogy. One of 250 numbered copies signed by the author. The later volumes of the Snopes Trilogy had much larger limitations, but because of the size of the print run of The Hamlet, there can be no more than 250 sets of the trilogy that could be assembled in the signed limited issue. Slight nick to the cloth at spine; still a fine copy, with the top gilt still bright and the gilt stamping on the spine clear and unworn. With the rare original glassine dustwrapper, which has shrunk over time. A spectacular copy.
70. FAULKNER, William. Go Down, Moses and Other Stories. NY: Random House (1942). The first edition, first issue, in black cloth stamped in gold and red and with red top stain. Faulkner intended this as a novel, or sequence of related stories, and later editions removed the phrase "and other stories" from the title. One of the most important books in the Faulkner canon, which includes perhaps his most frequently anthologized story, "The Bear." Owner name front flyleaf and small spot to front board; near fine in a very good, price-clipped dust jacket with foxing on the verso and minor edge wear.
71. FAULKNER, William. Collected Stories of William Faulkner. NY: Random House (1950). The first issue of this collection, with "The Collected Stories of William Faulkner" stamped on the spine, a blue background behind the title on the title page and blue top stain. Includes stories from Faulkner's early collections, which at the time had been long unavailable, and also seventeen previously uncollected stories. Winner of the National Book Award, and published the year after Faulkner won the Nobel Prize for Literature. A fine copy in a near fine, price-clipped dust jacket with tanning to the spine and upper edges. An important collection which, because of its bulk and the thin paper jacket, is usually found quite worn. More uncommon than it might seem, as the book club edition is often taken for a first, and states "first printing" just as this does.
72. FAULKNER, William. A Fable. (NY): Random House (1954). A parable of the Passion of Christ, set in World War I; winner of both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. Top stain faded; else fine in a near fine, spine-tanned dust jacket with light edge wear.
73. FAULKNER, William. Big Woods. NY: Random House (1955). Faulkner's hunting stories, collected for the first time and with prologues and epilogues written for this collection. Owner name in pencil on front flyleaf, dusty top edge; else fine in a very good dust jacket with dampstaining to the lower edge and light sunning and wear to the top edge.
74. FAULKNER, William. The Town. NY: Random House (1957). The second book in Faulkner's Snopes Trilogy, this being the issue in orange cloth stamped in black and green, with white endpapers. Small bump to top edge; near fine in a near fine, spine-tanned dust jacket.
75. FAULKNER, William. The Reivers. NY: Random House (1962). His second Pulitzer Prize novel and the last novel he wrote. One lower corner bumped, else fine in a near fine, rubbed dust jacket with a small crease at the crown.
76. FINDLEY, Timothy. The Wars. Toronto: Clarke/Irwin (1977). The first edition, Canadian, of Findley's third book, used here as a review copy for the then-forthcoming American edition. Winner of the Governor General's Award, this was the book that established him as a major Canadian author. Letter laid in to William Styron from the U.S. publisher Seymour Lawrence. Light lower board bump and paperclip mark to flyleaf; else a fine copy in a near fine dust jacket with one edge tear and minor edge wear.
77. FISHER, M.F.K. Typed Letter Signed and Dictated Letter Signed. 1984 and 1985. A typed letter signed, June 22, 1984, which is a reply to the editor of Art & Antiques, agreeing in principle to contribute something to the magazine after taking "a few months off work to pull together a project..." She intends to propose something on "the idea of the gastronomical paintings in a provincial French museum." Folded in thirds for mailing; else fine. With several holograph corrections, and mailing envelope. Together with a rambling dictated letter signed, January 12, 1985, in which Fisher's subjects are mostly short responses to her recipient's previous letter. She says she will be away for a few weeks, finishing a book and that "When I get back I'll be much more open to any and all light on the currently rather [Fisher, unable to make out the next word, has inserted in holograph: ??? (dictated!)] subject of gastronomy in Flemish painting, or whatever it is I'm supposed to be more intelligent about than I am now." At the bottom, she appends a holograph postscript, which begins: "This letter is silly!" Folded in thirds for mailing; else fine. With envelope. Fisher -- the author of How to Cook a Wolf, Serve it Forth and The Gastronomical Me, among others -- was perhaps the finest writer to make food her primary subject of choice, and to use it as a gateway to other, more transcendent issues of style, taste and, ultimately, the quality of life itself. Autograph material by her is uncommon.
78. FISHER, M.F.K. Correspondence. 1990-1991. A typed note signed (October 22, 1990) on a 4 1/2" x 5" card, in which Fisher expresses delight at a pending meeting with her occasional editor of over six years. With a note written by Fisher's assistant on Fisher's behalf (February 27, 1991), and another card written by Fisher's assistant (May 10, 1991), which reports secondhand on the meeting: "Mary Frances loved hearing all about you and the magazine, and she hopes you'll find a rich 'gentleman farmer' to help you carry on the fine ART & ANTIQUES tradition." Together with a dictated note (June 24, 1991), on a 4" x 5 1/2" card, in which Fisher acknowledges her correspondent's interesting letters and apologizes for her lack of response: "I find it very hard to dictate even with the artificial help of an amplifier for my present whisper." She expresses relief at having missed an Academy Ceremony, and concludes with the promise of corresponding and perhaps submitting something soon. All items fine, with mailing envelopes.
79. FORD, Richard. The Sportswriter. London: Collins Harvill, 1986. An advance copy of the first British and first hardcover edition of his third novel overall, but his first to be published in the U.K. This copy was sent to Malcolm Bradbury by the publisher, with a letter laid in to that effect on Collins Harvill stationery. Inscribed by Richard Ford to Malcolm Bradbury eleven years later: "For Malcolm -/ God knows, a friend to an American from your reader with gratitude/ Richard/ September 29, 1997/ Norwich." Bound page signatures, fine, laid into near fine proof dust jacket creased at the top edge where it overlays the text block.
80. (FORD, Richard). LESTER, Terrell S. Maine: The Seasons. NY: Knopf, 2001. Photographs by Lester of the four seasons in Maine, with an introductory essay to each season by Ford, Ann Beattie, Richard Russo and Elizabeth Strout. Ford tackles winter. Oblong quarto; fine in a fine dust jacket. An attractive book.
81. FRANKFURTER, Felix. The Public and Its Government. New Haven: Yale University Press (1931). Second printing. Signed by the author. Announcement of this book as First Prize in the Harvard Law School Ames Competition for 1940 previously affixed to front pastedown and now laid in. Frankfurter graduated from Harvard Law School and in 1939 was appointed to the Supreme Court by Franklin Roosevelt. Apparently that was sufficient for a signed copy of a 10 year-old book to be chosen as a suitable prize for the competition. Glue discoloration on pastedown from the bookplate; small circular sticker partially removed from flyleaf; near fine in a very good, edgeworn dust jacket with rubbing to the folds and a tiny ink scribble to the front panel. Books signed by Frankfurter are uncommon.
82. GARDNER, John. The King's Indian. NY: Knopf, 1974. A collection of stories. Signed by the author. Fine in a very near fine, spine-tanned dust jacket.
83. GARDNER, John. The Life and Times of Chaucer. NY: Knopf, 1977. An important popular study of Chaucer and his era, written with a novelist's attention to detail and to bringing the feel of the time, and the character, to life. Signed by the author. Like several of Gardner's books, this was printed on paper which is slightly too heavy for the binding, and though it is an attractive production, the signatures tend to sag a bit in the binding. This, however, is a fine copy in a fine dust jacket with one short tear at the upper front flap fold.
84. GINSBERG, Allen. Wales - A Visitation July 29th 1967. London: Cape Goliard (1968). A poem inspired by an LSD trip in the Wales countryside. An attractive edition, produced by the Cape Goliard Press; bound in paper-covered boards with illustrated dust jacket, outer glassine jacket, and endpapers of handmade Japanese wood pulp paper. Prints the text of the poem opposite a facsimile reproduction of the heavily edited and corrected manuscript. Of a total edition of 300 copies, this is one of 100 numbered copies signed by the author and including a 45 rpm recording of the poem housed in a protective sleeve attached to the rear pastedown. The letters "L.S.D." added in ink after the words "Capel y Finn" -- the location where the poem was written -- on the last page of the facsimile manuscript, probably in Ginsberg's hand. Fine in fine jackets.
85. GORDIMER, Nadine. Three in a Bed: Fiction, Morals, and Politics. (Bennington): (Bennington College) (1991). A chapbook, printing lecture thirteen in the Ben Belitt Lecture Series, which was delivered on October 4, 1990. One of 1000 copies. Gordimer was awarded the Nobel Prize in October of 1991. Fine in stapled wrappers. Uncommon.
86. (Grateful Dead). HUNTER, Robert. Sentinel. (NY): (Viking)/Penguin Poets (1993). The uncorrected proof copy of this collection of poems by the longtime lyricist for the Grateful Dead. Near fine in wrappers with publicity information, including an interview with Hunter, laid in.
87. HARDWICK, Elizabeth. The Simple Truth. NY: Harcourt Brace (1955). The second novel by this writer who was a longtime contributor to The Partisan Review and The New York Review of Books and was married to the poet Robert Lowell for more than two decades. Inscribed by the author to a well known book collector "who finds everything." Watermark at spine base, visible only on verso of dust jacket; still near fine in a very good, price-clipped dust jacket.
88. HEANEY, Seamus. The Cure at Troy. NY: Noonday/FSG (1991). The first American edition of this play in verse, an adaptation of Sophocles' Philoctetes. Inscribed by the author to the former President of Dartmouth College in 1993. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
89. HEMINGWAY, Ernest. Green Hills of Africa. NY: Scribner (1935). His second book of nonfiction, an account of a month-long hunting trip to Africa which he wrote "to see whether the shape of a country and the pattern of a month's action can, if truly presented, compete with a work of the imagination." Owner name in pencil on front flyleaf and sunning to cloth as is typical with this title, else near fine in a jacket with light rubbing to the edges and folds and fading to the green block on the spine, also as usual; about near fine.
90. HEMINGWAY, Ernest. The Fifth Column and the First Forty-Nine Stories. NY: Scribner, 1938. A volume collecting a play, "The Fifth Column," and all of Hemingway's short stories, including four that had not appeared in book form previously. Issued with a first printing of 5350 copies, barely half the number that Hemingway's preceding volumes had commanded. Faint offsetting to endpages; else fine in a near fine dust jacket, unnecessarily reinforced on verso near the joints.
91. HEMINGWAY, Ernest. For Whom the Bell Tolls. NY: Scribner, 1940. Hemingway's last great novel, a partisan tale of the Spanish Civil War, which he had covered as a journalist, and which was charged with great portentousness in the days leading up to the Second World War. For Whom the Bell Tolls has been called Hemingway's most ambitious novel, and it is the one in which his political convictions reveal themselves most fully: he effectively conveys the idea that a people's freedom is worth fighting, and even dying, for. This passionate defense of the ill-fated Spanish Republic was so compelling that 30 years later, under the Franco government, the book was still entirely banned in Spain; copies were smuggled into the country and passed around surreptitiously. A fine copy in a very near fine, slightly rubbed dust jacket with light edge wear including a small chip upper edge of the rear panel. Much nicer than usual.
92. HEMINGWAY, Ernest. Across the River and Into the Trees. NY: Scribner, 1950. Two copies: one with first issue and one with second issue dust jacket, of Hemingway's last full-length novel to be published in his lifetime. It had been a decade since his previous novel, For Whom the Bell Tolls, had partly redeemed the author's fading reputation, and publication of this book was eagerly awaited by the literary world. However, despite its being a bestseller for 21 weeks (with 7 weeks at #1), the novel was thoroughly savaged by the critics, who used such phrases as "a thoroughly bad book," "Hemingway at his worst," and "a synthesis of everything that is bad in his previous work [which] throws a doubtful light on the future." Both copies of the book are fine; the first state dust jacket (yellow spine block and lettering) is near fine; the second state dust jacket (orange spine block and lettering) has a long tear to the front spine fold; else very good. For both:
93. HEMINGWAY, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. NY: Scribner, 1952. The last of Hemingway's books published in his lifetime, a novella that won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction and earned him, two years later, the Nobel Prize for literature. A short novel that has been characterized as a fable, it deals with a Cuban fisherman's struggles to land a giant marlin that he has hooked, and reflects Hemingway's concern for life as a struggle of man against nature, including his own nature. Spine cloth a trifle dulled; very near fine in a near fine dust jacket with very faint tanning to the spine and trace wear to the extremities.
94. HEMINGWAY, Ernest. Big Two-Hearted River. Portland: Coyote Love Press, 2002. A Nick Adams story, published in an elaborate, artistic edition of 85 copies. Illustrated by M.D. Ryus. Printed letterpress on rives de lin paper and uniquely bound in a non-adhesive binding. One of the more unusual and striking editions we have seen from a small/fine press, and reportedly the last title to be issued by this publisher. Fine.
95. HILLERMAN, Tony. Typed Letter Signed. September 23, 1997. Written to Larry [Ashmead], Hillerman's editor. One page, thanking Ashmead for a box of books and recounting a story about the two of them working together on Ghostway. He adds: "I am making glacial progress on NEXT BOOK [The First Eagle] with my usual troubles fine tuning a complicated plot and trying not to repeat myself. I hope you advise younger writers not to get into series characters." Half of last sentence and postscript are handwritten. Signed in full by Hillerman. Folded in thirds for mailing; else fine. Together with two photographs of the Carson New Mexico post office, with Hillerman's holograph annotations on the verso, and a photocopy of a 1997 Daily Sentinel article about an effort to get Hillerman's A Thief of Time banned from a school library. A note (photocopied) from Hillerman to Ashmead credits Ashmead (who edited A Thief of Time) for getting Hillerman on the roster with Schindler's List. Dampstaining to the (still legible) photo captions; else all items fine.
96. HOAGLAND, Edward. Notes from the Century Before. NY: Random House (1969). His first book of nonfiction, subtitled "A Journal from British Columbia." A personal recollection of the author's travels, which also touches on the history, both natural and cultural, of the region. Signed by the author. Hoagland, whose fiction has won literary awards, is most highly acclaimed as an essayist, and his first book of nonfiction is thus a landmark in his writing career. Light corner bumps; else fine in a near fine dust jacket. A very nice copy, from the author's own library.
97. (KAEL, Pauline). SELDES, Gilbert. E. & O.E. (n.p.): Privately Printed, 1968. A collection of short pieces by the influential cultural critic and author of The Seven Lively Arts. The title is an abbreviation for "Errors and Omissions Excepted," a disclaimer used by retailers in their monthly billings. Inscribed by the author to film critic Pauline Kael, with an additional note in the author's hand on the colophon page: "some errors have been corrected -- omissions the reader will be grateful for." Near fine in wrappers. A nice association copy between two towering figures of popular culture in the 20th century.
98. (KAEL, Pauline). MAZURSKY, Paul and GREENFELD, Josh. Harry and Tonto. NY: Saturday Review Press/E.P. Dutton, 1974. The book version of Mazursky's film. Inscribed by Mazursky to film critic Pauline Kael in the year of publication: "Dear Pauline,/ Is there any possibility/ of your running a studio the/ other six months?/ With respect & love -- / Paul Mazursky." Mazursky directed the film, for which Art Carney won an Oscar and Mazursky and Greenfeld were nominated. Fine in a fine dust jacket. A nice association copy.
99. KESEY, Ken. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. NY: Viking (1962). Kesey's landmark first book, a pivotal novel of the literature of the Sixties, which helped to shape a generation's attitudes on issues of authority, power, madness and, finally, individuality. The early printings of the U.S. edition contain text that was later excised and changed after a lawsuit was brought against Kesey and his publisher by a woman who was a nurse at the institution which Kesey used as a model for the novel; she charged him with portraying a character that was based on her (and had the same first name) in a disparaging manner. The character was rewritten after the third hardcover printing, and later editions, including the mass market paperback and the "definitive" text in the Viking Critical Library Series, have an alternate character in her place. A fine copy in a very lightly and evenly spine-sunned price-clipped dust jacket with slight edge wear and a small abrasion on the front panel; else near fine. The jacket is the first printing, with the Kerouac blurb on the front flap. One of the nicest copies of this title that we've had.
100. KESEY, Ken. Sometimes a Great Notion. NY: Viking (1964). His second and most ambitious novel, about a logging family in Oregon, and embodying the individualistic values that helped Kesey to become a counterculture leader and icon. This is the state with the Viking ship on the first half-title, and in the first issue dust jacket, with the author photo credited to "Hank Krangler" and only two lines of biographical information about the author on the rear flap. Spotting to top stain; else fine in a near fine, very lightly rubbed dust jacket. Again, one of the nicest copies of this title that we've had.
101. (KESEY, Ken). BABBS, Ken. Six Kesey Sketches. (n.p.): BookVenture, 2003. Six sketches in the form of a script about Kesey, by Babbs, with music. First performed in Eugene in 2003, on the anniversary of Kesey's death. Inscribed by Babbs. Stapled wrappers. Fine.
102. LAGERKVIST, Pär. Ordkonst och Bildkonst. Stockholm: Bröderna Lagerströms, 1913. The second book by the Swedish Nobel Prize winner, author of such classics as The Dwarf, The Sybil and Barabbas. This small book is an essay in which Lagerkvist argues against literary realism in favor of the starker, more elevated style of storytelling embodied in the Greek myths, the Bible, and the Icelandic sagas -- the style he adopted when he began writing fiction. Foreword by the noted critic August Brunius. Faint edge-sunning; still fine in wrappers. A very nice copy of this early, fragile book by one of the important writers of the 20th century. Uncommon, especially in this condition.
103. LAWRENCE, D.H. Look! We Have Come Through! London: Chatto & Windus, 1917. A collection of poetry, published in an edition of 500 copies. This copy is inscribed by the author: "Sonia Isaayevitch from D.H. Lawrence." Spine slightly faded but with the spine label still easily readable; some previous dampening to boards; very good, lacking the dust jacket (as usual), and with the extra spine label still tipped in at the rear. Overall a very attractive copy of this uncommon book, and rare signed. In custom clamshell case.
104. -. Same title, the first American edition. NY: B.W. Huebsch (1918). One of only 500 copies. Attractive bookplate front pastedown, cloth unevenly sunned, pages foxed; a very good copy in a fair dust jacket chipped at the crown (title missing) and along the edges; front flap detached and laid in. While not a beautiful jacket, the dust jacket on this edition is virtually unknown.
105. LAWRENCE, D.H. Twenty Poems. Hampstead: M.A. Cote, 1959. Twenty poems illustrated by M.A. Cote and published in an edition of 65 copies. Each poem and its corresponding signed print comprise an individual folio in wrappers. The 20 individual folios are laid into boards and slipcase, with a colophon signed by the artist. The prints and poems are near fine; the protective boards and slipcase have some rubbing and surface peeling but are still very good. An attractive and uncommon edition: only two copies have appeared at auction in the past twenty years.
106. (LE CARRÉ, John). COBBS, John L. Understanding John Le Carré. (Columbia): University of South Carolina Press (1988). A biographical sketch of the author and a critical introduction to his work. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
107. 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 (i.e., first printing, 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 has a bit of top edge foxing and a slight spine lean; near fine in a near fine, unrestored dust jacket with a little edge rubbing. An exceptional copy: unrestored copies in this condition have almost completely disappeared.
108. LONDON, Jack. Autographed Photograph. c. 1912. A black & white image of a young Jack London, printed onto cardstock with a decorative border and London's name printed beneath the image. Signed by London in the bottom margin with the inscription "Yours for the Revolution, Jack London," the customary phrase he used for closing his letters. Additionally, dated "Jun. 16, 1912." The image is 4 1/2" x 6 1/2"; printed on cardstock approximately 8" x 10" (with unevenly cut lower margin, not affecting image or inscription), matted on heavier cardstock; near fine. On the verso of the image is written the story of the inscription (albeit dated Dec. 16, 1912): "Signed during my call upon him in his room at the Hotel Touraine. Had a delightful visit of over an hour, part of which was in company with Dr. Galvin, formerly of the Emergency Hospital and a great friend of Mr. London's and Mr. Umbstaetter, publisher of the Black Cat, who discovered Mr. London, as the author freely confesses in a preface to Mr. Umbstaetter's book The Red Hot Dollar." This annotation is signed "C. Beall." A nice provenance, and an attractive image.