Catalog 145, C
39. CAPOTE, Truman. Observations. NY: Simon & Schuster (1959). Photographs by Richard Avedon; text by Capote. Inscribed by Capote to Robert Wilson, longtime proprietor of the Phoenix Bookshop in New York and as such a significant figure in the New York literary scene for several decades; a nice association copy. Folio. Tanned at the spine ends, else a fine copy, with original acetate still present (though tanned and torn), in a near fine, darkened slipcase. An oversize book and, in the days before author tours, not one that turns up signed: we've never seen another one for sale and while the auction records show 73 copies of this title at auction between 1976 and 2005, none were signed -- a remarkable indication of the scarcity of signed copies of a book that is so widely known as a collectible modern book.
40. CASTANEDA, Carlos. The Teachings of Don Juan. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1968. His first book, originally presented as a scholarly work, later seen as a popular culture landmark, and still later debunked by a number of serious critics as fiction. Still, the premise of the book, as described on the dust jacket copy -- "It has been assumed that the West has produced no way of spiritual knowledge comparable to the great system of the East. The present book is accordingly nothing less than a revelation..." -- gives a fair indication of its true impact, regardless of whether it is fact or fiction: it popularized the idea that there were significant, coherent spiritual disciplines among Native American cultures, which has since been borne out by any number of more traditional anthropological investigations. In so doing, it played an important role in revising the popular Western view of Native American cultures, and helped fuel the cultural renaissance that has taken place among Native Americans in the past four decades, a renaissance that has had a significant impact on mainstream Western culture. The Teachings of Don Juan is one of the most important books published in the U.S. in the 1960s, for its far-reaching impact on our view of the nature of spirituality and the metaphysical -- with implications on everything from politics to ecology. Modest foxing to top edge and foredge; one lower corner tapped; near fine in a very good, rubbed and foxed dust jacket. This book was later reprinted by Simon & Schuster, in an edition that has the earmarks of a first printing but is actually a later edition; the first edition is uncommon.
41. CHATWIN, Bruce. In Patagonia. London: Jonathan Cape (1977). Chatwin's first book, an idiosyncratic nonfiction account of a journey to Patagonia -- with historical vignettes interspersed with personal accounts -- the publication of which put the author at the forefront of contemporary travel writers. Winner of the Hawthornden Prize and the E.M. Forster Award. Typical bowing to boards with slight top edge foxing; thus near fine in a very near fine dust jacket with just the slightest spine fade.
42. -. Same title, the first American edition. NY: Summit Books (1978). Owner gift inscription to front flyleaf; slight foxing to page edges; near fine in a fine dust jacket.
43. CHATWIN, Bruce. The Viceroy of Ouidah. London: Jonathan Cape (1980). His second book, a bizarre account of a nineteenth century Brazilian slave trader and his family, reimagined by the author and written as though fiction. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
44. -. Same title, a review copy of the first American edition. NY: Summit Books (1980). Mild page edge foxing and sunning to upper board edges; near fine in a fine dust jacket with review slip and author photo laid in.
45. -. Same title. The uncorrected proof copy of the American edition. Spine-tanned; near fine in wrappers.
46. CHATWIN, Bruce. On the Black Hill. London: Jonathan Cape (1982). His third book, and his first novel. Winner of the Whitbread Prize. Small owner name on pastedown under front flap; mild spine lean and page edge foxing; near fine in a fine dust jacket.
47. -. Same title, the first American edition. NY: Viking (1983). Slightly dusty top page edges; else fine in a fine dust jacket.
48. -. Same title, the uncorrected proof of the American edition. Fine in wrappers.
49. CHATWIN, Bruce and THEROUX, Paul. Patagonia Revisited. (Salisbury): Michael Russell (1985). The limited edition of this small volume, a collaborative effort by two writers who had each written highly praised books on their travels in Patagonia -- Chatwin's In Patagonia and Theroux's The Old Patagonian Express. One of 250 numbered copies signed by Chatwin and Theroux. Fine in a near fine, original glassine dustwrapper.
50. -. Same title, Nowhere is a Place. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books (1992). A new edition, with photographs by Jeff Gnass and a new introduction by Theroux about Chatwin. Oblong quarto, fine in a fine dust jacket. A beautiful production, with stunning photographs.
51. CHATWIN, Bruce. The Songlines. London: Jonathan Cape (1987). By general consensus, Chatwin's best book -- a "novel of ideas," as the publisher puts it, of Australian aborigines, and the questions about man that arise from the vast gulf that separates the culture of contemporary, Western civilized man from that of the wandering tribes of Australia, whose "dream tracks" or "songlines" delineate both a physical and a psychic geography. Mild edge-darkening to pages; else fine in a fine dust jacket.
52. -. Same title, the uncorrected proof copy. Production crease near front joint; else fine in wrappers.
53. -. Same title, a limited edition. (London): London Limited Editions (1987). One of 150 numbered copies signed by the author. A scarce edition. Mild top edge foxing; else fine in a near fine, original glassine dustwrapper.
54. -. Same title, the first American edition. Franklin Center: Franklin Library, 1986. The correct first American edition, published by the Franklin Library for subscribers as part of their Signed First Editions series. An attractively designed book, in black leather stamped in brown and gold, in a pattern suggestive of the Australian aborigines' "songlines" that give the book its title. With a special introduction for this edition, which does not appear anywhere else. Signed by the author. Chatwin's signature is uncommon; reclusive while alive, he died three years after the publication of this book, at the age of 49. Fine.
55. -. Same title, the first American trade edition. Viking: Sifton (1987). Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Trade editions signed by Chatwin, who died at an early age and was not especially accessible while he was alive, are uncommon.
56. -. Another copy of the first American trade edition. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
57. CHATWIN, Bruce. Utz. London: Cape (1988). His second novel. Slight foxing to top edge; else fine in a fine dust jacket.
58. -. Same title, the first American edition. Price sticker rear panel; fine in a fine dust jacket.
59. -. Same title, the uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition. Small faint spot to front cover, else fine in wrappers.
60. CHATWIN, Bruce. What Am I Doing Here? (n.p.): Viking (1989). The uncorrected proof copy of the American edition of this posthumously published collection of stories, essays, profiles, etc. Fine in wrappers.
61. CHATWIN, Bruce. The Morality of Things. (Francestown): Typographeum, 1993. A posthumously published limited edition of a talk Chatwin gave at a charity auction in 1973. One of 175 copies printed, an edition that sold out very soon after publication. Fine, without dust jacket, as issued.
62. CHATWIN, Bruce. Far Journeys. (NY): Viking (1993). The first American edition of Photographs and Notebooks, with a different title and a different photograph illustrating the dust jacket. Oblong quarto; an attractive production, with photographs from Chatwin's far-flung travels. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
63. (CHATWIN, Bruce). "The Bust of Sekhmet" in Ivory Hammer 4. (London): Longmans (1966). Annual volume summarizing the auctions of the past year at Sotheby's & Parke-Bernet for the 1965-66 year. Chatwin, who was a cataloguer for Sotheby's, contributes a two-page essay on an Egyptian statue that guards the front entrance at the London gallery of Sotheby's. Quarto. Near fine in a near fine, price-clipped dust jacket with a short tear at the upper front spine fold. An early publication for him, preceding his first book by more than a decade.
64. (CHATWIN, Bruce). LEVI, Peter. The Light Garden of the Angel King. London: Collins, 1972. A book of travels in Afghanistan. Chatwin accompanied the author, is referred to extensively in the text, and took the photographs that illustrate the book. Precedes Chatwin's first book by five years, indicating that his career as an accomplished photographer predated that as an author. Slight foxing to top edge; else fine in a near fine dust jacket with light wear to the spine ends.
65. (CHATWIN, Bruce). "Milk" in London Magazine Stories 11. (London): London Magazine Editions (1976). Production crease to the first page of Chatwin's story; else fine in a fine dust jacket. Again, precedes publication of Chatwin's first book, In Patagonia. Also includes work by Nadine Gordimer, Milan Kundera, Graham Swift and William Boyd, among others.
66. (CHATWIN, Bruce). MANDELSTAM, Osip. Journey to Armenia. (London): Next Editions (1980). Introduction by Chatwin to this memoir and travel account by the great Soviet poet, originally published in 1933 and his last major work before being arrested and exiled for mocking Joseph Stalin. Pages uncut; spiralbound cardstock covers. Fine.
67. (CHATWIN, Bruce). HODGKIN, Howard. Indian Leaves. (London/NY): Petersburg Press (1982). Paintings by Hodgkin, with a 9-page introduction by Chatwin. Heavily illustrated with color prints of the paintings. Trace edge rubbing; very near fine in self-wrappers. No hardcover edition was done.
68. (CHATWIN, Bruce). MAPPLETHORPE, Robert. Lady Lisa Lyon. NY: Viking Press (1983). Photos by Mapplethorpe; 6-page introduction by Chatwin. This is the scarce hardcover issue of the first edition; there was a simultaneous issue in wrappers and another, later edition published by St. Martin's Press. Mottling to board edges; near fine in a fine dust jacket with a modeling agency blindstamp on the lower front panel and the lower front flap. A nice copy of an uncommon book of sensual and sometimes erotic photographs of the first female bodybuilding champion.
69. CHILD, Lee. Bad Luck and Trouble. London: Bantam (2007). The latest thriller in the acclaimed Jack Reacher series. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Lee Child is a British born author now living in the U.S. and although his protagonist is an American, a former military policeman and now a wandering loner, the books have been published first in the U.K. including this title, for which the U.K. edition precedes the U.S. by about two months.
70. CHOPIN, Kate. The Awakening. Chicago & NY: Herbert S. Stone, 1899. A novel that explores a married woman's emotional and sexual awakening, which unhinges her from her placid and staid bourgeois life. The resolution -- the protagonist's suicide by swimming out from shore and not turning back -- was mirrored a generation later in the actual suicide of Virginia Woolf who, like Chopin's heroine, was known for her strong-willed attempts to forge her own identity as well as for her challenging of contemporary sexual taboos. The Awakening is thus considered the first modern "feminist" novel, and it received a resurgence in popularity in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when it was brought into the canon on college campuses. For Chopin, the recognition she garnered for this book was neither positive nor welcome. The controversy and the critical ill will that the book engendered upon publication ended her writing career altogether: although she had been a moderately successful author previously, she never published another volume after The Awakening. Light foxing to the covers and endpapers; a near fine copy, without dustwrapper, of a modern classic, and an exceedingly scarce book in any condition, let alone as attractive at this one. Only one copy has appeared at auction in more than 30 years, and that was an ex-library copy. A beautiful copy of a rare and important book. In custom folding chemise and slipcase.
71. CONNELLY, Michael. City of Bones Promotional Puzzle. (n.p.): Orion Books, 2002. Promotional item for the British edition of this Harry Bosch crime novel. A two-sided eight piece puzzle, measuring 11 3/4" x 16 1/2" assembled. One side is devoted to Connelly and the book; the other side boasts about the marketing campaign. Housed in a black glossy box that reads: "Put all the pieces together for a No. 1 bestseller." Unusual promotional ephemera. Fine, and scarce.
72. CRACE, Jim. Quarantine. NY: FSG (1998). The uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition of this novel, a rendering of Jesus' 40 days in the desert, along with a group of eccentric Bedouins. Shortlisted for the Booker Prize and winner of the Whitbread Award. Fine in wrappers.
73. CRACE, Jim. Genesis. NY: FSG (2003). A review copy of the first American edition of this novel originally published in England under the title Six. Crace writes in a vaguely magical realist mode, with a strong sense of place. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket with publicity sheet laid in. Uncommon signed.
74. CUMMINGS, E.E. Tulips & Chimneys. Mount Vernon: Golden Eagle Press, 1937. The "archetype edition of the original ms 1922," which contains all of the poems in Cummings' first book, also entitled Tulips and Chimneys, plus 84 more poems that were in the original manuscript but not included in the published volume. Of 629 numbered copies, this is one of 481 in a "special binding" of vellum spine stamped in green and green paper boards. Although not called for, this copy is inscribed by the author: "E E Cummings wishes Paul Nordoff good luck." The recipient is likely the pianist and composer Paul Nordoff, who was also credited with developing Creative Music Therapy in the 1950s and 60s. Title partially rubbed from spine, which is a bit darkened; near fine, without dust jacket.
75. CURZON, Daniel. Something You Do in the Dark. NY: Putnam (1971). The author's first book, a landmark novel of gay literature. Signed by the author. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. With a prominent blurb by Joyce Carol Oates, who was a close friend at the time.