Catalog 152, P
173. PELECANOS, George. A Firing Offense. NY: St. Martin's (1992). His first book, a mystery novel featuring Nick Stefanos. One of the important debuts in the mystery genre in the 1990s. Esquire magazine called Pelecanos "the poet laureate of the D.C. crime world," and he has won the International Crime Novel of the Year Award three times. In addition to his novels, he has written for the highly praised HBO television series The Wire. Pelecanos' novels have received high critical praise for their grittiness and realistic sense of place -- the neighborhoods of Washington, DC, far from the corridors of political power -- and have in recent years been bestsellers upon publication. His early books were printed in relatively small numbers, however. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
174. PELECANOS, George. Nick's Trip. NY: St. Martin's (1993). His second and scarcest book, again featuring Nick Stefanos and his friends and relatives, and again a novel in which the city of Washington is as much a character as the protagonists themselves, and the characters' family histories and connections are as much a part of their current situations as the events that drive the plot. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket. A beautiful copy of one of the key mysteries of the decade.
175. PELECANOS, George. Shoedog. NY: St. Martin's (1994). His third novel, a standalone noir novel that is a departure from the Nick Stefanos series, although a few characters cross over. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
176. PELECANOS, George. Down By the River Where the Dead Men Go. NY: St. Martin's (1995). His fourth novel and his third to feature Nick Stefanos. The first printing was reported as 4000 copies. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
177. PELECANOS, George. King Suckerman. Boston: Little, Brown (1997). His sixth book, set in Washington, D.C. in the mid-1970s and involving two characters, Marcus Clay and Dmitri Karras, who are related to those in his novel The Big Blowdown, and who cross paths with characters from his Nick Stefanos novels. This is the second book in the series that has come to be known as his D.C. Quartet. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
178. -. Same title, the limited edition. Blakeney: Scorpion Press (1998). One of 85 numbered copies signed by the author. With an appreciation by James Sallis. Fine.
179. (Photography). ADAMS, Shelby Lee and SMITH, Lee. Appalachian Portraits. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi (1993). A limited edition, issued as part of the Author and Artist Series. A highly regarded book of photographs by Adams, with narrative by Smith. This is No. 2 of 50 numbered copies signed by Adams. An uncommon book in any hardcover issue, and especially scarce in this limited, numbered issue. Fine in a fine slipcase.
180. (PICASSO, Pablo). JANIS, Harriet and Sidney. Picasso. Garden City: Doubleday, 1947. The limited edition. One of 350 numbered copies signed by Picasso. Mild foxing to page edges, musty; near fine in the original glassine dustwrapper (now somewhat shrunken), lacking the plain cardboard slipcase. A nice copy of this edition, which has 135 black and white and 5 color reproductions of Picasso's artwork. Seldom found with the glassine dust jacket still intact.
181. POWERS, Richard. Three Farmers on Their Way to a Dance. NY: Morrow (1985). One of the most highly praised first novels of the past quarter century and an auspicious literary debut: Powers has gone on to more than fulfill the promise of this novel, which was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and winner of the Rosenthal Award from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters for a book of "considerable literary achievement." Fine in a fine dust jacket.
182. -. Same title, the first British edition. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson (1988). Published in the U.K. three years after its original U.S. publication. Text block browning somewhat, as is usual for this title, otherwise fine in a fine dust jacket.
183. POWERS, Richard. Prisoner's Dilemma. NY: Morrow (1988). His second novel. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
184. POWERS, Richard. The Gold Bug Variations. NY: Morrow (1991). His third novel and breakthrough book, which once again earned him high praise, award recognition, and comparisons with the best of the postmodern writers such as Pynchon and Gaddis. The story weaves together strands involving the discovery of DNA and the composition of Bach's The Goldberg Variations, and the title also alludes punningly to Edgar Allan Poe's story, "The Gold Bug," which is incorporated into the plot. Like his first book, a nominee for the National Book Critics Circle Award. Winner of Time magazine's Book of the Year award. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
185. POWERS, Richard. Operation Wandering Soul. NY: Morrow (1993). His fourth novel, a brilliantly conceived, structured, and written story that is also highly moving, about wounded children in an age that can barely recognize them, let alone heal them. A finalist for the National Book Award. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
186. -. Same title, the advance reading copy. Fine in wrappers.
187. POWERS, Richard. Galatea 2.2 NY: FSG (1995). His fifth book which, like his first and third, was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. A moving novel about artificial intelligence and the nature of consciousness, Galatea 2.2 drew high praise from John Updike -- not normally a great fan of postmodern wordsmiths -- in a glowing review in The New Yorker. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
188. -. Same title, the advance reading copy. Fine in wrappers.
189. POWERS, Richard. Gain. NY: FSG (1998). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
190. -. Same title, the advance reading copy, in white glossy wrappers with black type. Fine.
191. POWERS, Richard. Plowing the Dark. NY: FSG (2000). Fine in a fine dust jacket. Blurbs by Thomas Disch and John Updike, among others.
192. POWERS, Richard. The Time of Our Singing. NY: FSG (2003). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
193. POWERS, Richard. The Echo Maker. NY: FSG (2006). Winner of the National Book Award. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Together with a promotional postcard for the Picador edition, signed by Richard Powers on verso, and dated March 5, 2008. Powers spoke that evening as part of the Seattle Arts & Lectures series, and included here are a ticket to that event, the program for that event, and the program for that series' season. Powers is famous for not signing his books; he has claimed that he began with a disinclination to sign books and later felt that he was committed to the practice/policy; as far as we know he has never signed a book, not even for friends or family members, so this is the closest one can get to a book signed by him, and has impeccable provenance.
194. PRICE, Richard. The Wanderers. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1974. A review copy of his first book, the basis for the well-received Philip Kaufman film. This copy is also one (perhaps the only one) of a self-made signed limited edition, as it is inscribed by Price: "To ___, number 1 in a series of 248. Richie." Price has also added a self-caricature. Fine in a fine dust jacket with review slip and author photo laid in. In custom folding chemise and quarter leather slipcase. An important first novel, by a writer who has since gone on to considerable literary acclaim for his fiction, his screenplays, and his writing for the television series The Wire, along with George Pelecanos and others.
195. -. Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Inscribed by the author: "To ___. may all your Xmases be white. Richard Price." Dated March 24, 1976. Fine in wrappers with a promotional sheet stapled to the first blank.
196. PRICE, Richard. Bloodbrothers. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1976. The second book by the author of The Wanderers and Clockers. Like those books, this was the basis for a major Hollywood movie. Price has written a number of well-received screenplays himself, including The Color of Money and Sea of Love, which are characterized by a facility with dialogue that is also evident in his novels, but the books also exhibit a sense of humor and compassion that is remarkable, particularly given their gritty, urban settings. Inscribed by the author: "To ___, with appreciation for your appreciation/ Best wishes/ Richard." Dated 3/20/76, eleven days prior to the publication date. Slight wear to spine ends, else fine in a near fine dust jacket with two closed edge tears. In custom folding chemise and slipcase.
197. -. Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Inscribed by the author. Fine in wrappers.
198. (PROULX, E. Annie). Journeys. (Rockville): Quill & Brush, 1996. Fourteen writers spoke on the subject of "Journeys" as a benefit for the PEN/Faulkner Foundation. Of a total edition of 394 copies (200 in wrappers; 150 numbered, in cloth; 26 lettered, in leather; and 14 presentation copies, in leather), this is one of 26 lettered copies, leatherbound, and signed by all authors. In addition to Proulx, other authors represented include Jane Smiley, Walter Mosley, Susan Minot, Barbara Kingsolver, William Kennedy, and Michael Chabon, among others. Fine.
199. PYNCHON, Thomas and SMITH, Corlies M. Of a Fond Ghoul. NY: Blown Litter Press, 1990. Correspondence between Pynchon and Smith, who was Pynchon's editor when he was working on the manuscript of V., 1960-1962. One of only 50 numbered copies, the entire edition, and thus by far the scarcest of Pynchon's piracies. The letters have good content, involving the editing of the manuscript, possible titles, etc. A significant body of Pynchon writing that has never been published before or since. Fine in stapled wrappers.