Catalog 155, P
141. PERCY, Walker. Lancelot. NY: FSG (1977). The uncorrected proof copy of his fourth novel, fifth book. Percy's first novel won the National Book Award, and his second and third were both finalists for the award. Inscribed by the author. Corner crease front cover, and printer's markings there ("SC"); near fine in wrappers.
142. PHILLIPS, Jayne Anne. Black Tickets. (NY): Delacorte Press/Seymour Lawrence (1979). The uncorrected proof copy of her well-received first collection of stories, her first book to be published by a major, mainstream publisher. Inscribed by the author to publisher Seymour Lawrence and signed only as "the witch." Spine sunned; else fine in wrappers. A nice association copy.
143. PIERRE, DBC. Vernon God Little. (London): Faber and Faber (2003). The advance reading copy of his Guardian Prize- and Booker Prize-winning first novel. Extremely slight corner bump; still fine in wrappers.
144. POWERS, Richard. Three Farmers on Their Way to a Dance. NY: Beech Tree Books (1985). The uncorrected proof copy of one of the most highly praised first novels of its time -- 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." Publication date written on front cover; near fine in wrappers. An uncommon proof, and an important debut.
145. POWERS, Richard. The Gold Bug Variations. NY: Morrow (1991). The uncorrected proof copy of his third novel, a dazzling display of verbal pyrotechnics which once again earned him high praise, award recognition, and comparisons with the best of the postmodern writers such as Pynchon. Like his first book, a nominee for the National Book Critics Circle Award. Winner of Time magazine's Book of the Year award. Publication date written across front cover; fine in wrappers. Laid in is an announcement of a printing error that resulted in strings of letters and numbers appearing at the bottom of more than 100 pages.
146. PRICE, Richard. The Wanderers. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1974. The uncorrected proof copy of his first book, the basis for the well-received Philip Kaufman film. 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.
147. PRICE, Richard. Bloodbrothers. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1976. The uncorrected proof copy of 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, and worked on the highly praised HBO series The Wire -- which are all characterized by a facility with dialogue that is also evident in his novels; the books also exhibit a sense of humor and compassion that is remarkable, particularly given their gritty, urban settings. Inscribed by the author. Fine in wrappers.
148. PROULX, E. Annie. Postcards. NY: Scribner's (1992). The uncorrected proof copy of her second book of fiction and first novel. Winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award. Fine in wrappers.
149. -. Another copy. Signed by the author. Corner crease to rear cover; coffee staining to front cover and spine. Very good in wrappers.
150. PROULX, Annie. The Shipping News. NY: Scribner (1993). The uncorrected proof copy of her third work of fiction and second novel, which won both the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize -- a rare literary double. Inscribed by the author. Fine in wrappers.
151. PULLMAN, Philip. Shadow in the North. NY: Knopf (1988). The uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition of the second book in his Sally Lockhart trilogy. "Press Copy" markings to cover and summary page; title and date handwritten on spine; else fine in wrappers. Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy, published just after the Sally Lockhart books, became worldwide bestsellers and modern fantasy classics.
152. PULLMAN, Philip. The White Mercedes. NY: Knopf (1993). The uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition of this dark young adult novel that was later reprinted as The Butterfly Tattoo. Slightly dusty; else fine in wrappers.
153. PYNCHON, Thomas. V. Philadelphia: Lippincott (1963). The advance reading copy of his first book, winner of the Faulkner Foundation Award for best first novel of the year. With elaborate inventiveness, labyrinthine plots and a sometimes paranoid comic sense, Pynchon became the postmodern standard against whom all writers since have been measured. Each of his first three novels won one or more of the major literary awards given out in this country. This copy is sunned and spine-creased, with some shelf-soiling to the bottom page edges; a very good copy in wrappers.
154. PYNCHON, Thomas. Gravity's Rainbow. NY: Viking (1973). The uncorrected proof copy of Pynchon's landmark third novel, winner of the National Book Award as well as the William Dean Howells Medal for the best work of fiction by an American over a five-year span. Gravity's Rainbow became the benchmark for postmodern American fiction upon publication and secured its mysterious and reclusive author's place in the postwar American literary pantheon. It is also widely considered the culminating novel of the Sixties, the one which encapsulates and sums up the postwar events that resulted in the countercultural rejection of mainstream society and the quest for a plausible alternative view not only of contemporary society but of humanity itself. Pynchon's identity and whereabouts have consistently remained mysterious, and his publications have increasingly tended to be well-guarded secrets up to the moment of publication. For a number of years it was reported that no proofs of Gravity's Rainbow had been done, with Viking itself reportedly having confirmed that; however, in the past decades a dozen or so examples of this massive (760 pages) proof have shown up on the market. Tiny tear near the spine base; spine a bit sunned, creased and handled; still a very good copy in wrappers.
155. -. Same title, the uncorrected proof copy of the first British edition. London: Jonathan Cape (1973). Not noted in Mead and in our experience considerably scarcer than even the scarce U.S. proof. This copy belonged to and is signed, in 1974, by Julian Barnes, author of Flaubert's Parrot; England, England; and Arthur & George; among many others. The signature precedes Barnes's first published book by six years. Barnes's bookplate inside front cover; rear cover creased; else fine in a spine-faded near fine proof dust jacket.
156. -. Another copy of the British proof. Small bookplate of Ray Roberts, Pynchon's editor, inside the front cover. Fine in wrappers.
157. PYNCHON, Thomas. Slow Learner. Boston: Little Brown (1984). An advance issue of this collection of his early stories, with a new introduction by the author. Each of these stories was being offered for sale in unauthorized, bootleg editions at the time this book was published; this volume was Pynchon's attempt to take the bottom out of the market for piracies of his own writings. In keeping with his secretive approach, he reportedly requested that no proofs be printed of this book prior to publication; instead, a very small number of folded and gathered signatures were prepared and laid into proof dust jackets and issued as advance copies; the usual number cited for such copies is "about 10." This is one of those sets of sheets, "f&g's," laid into a trial binding and dust jacket. The mock-up of the boards is black, rather than the beige used, and has the stamp of the press inside the front board. Bookplate of Ray Roberts on the first signature. A fine copy in a very good jacket, worn where it overlays the sheets. Probably a unique item: while we have handled the advance f&g's a few times, we've never seen a set laid into a trial binding.
158. -. Same title, the uncorrected proof copy of the British edition. London: Cape (1985). Bookplate of Ray Roberts. Rear pages edge-sunned; last blank has a corner turn; near fine in wrappers.
159. PYNCHON, Thomas. Mason and Dixon. NY: Henry Holt (1997). The uncorrected proof copy in plain blue wrappers (not to be confused with the two variants of advance reading copy in beige wrappers, of which there were reportedly 500 each). This is the second issue uncorrected proof, with a tipped-in title page that adds the ampersand missing in the first issue. Small bookplate of Ray Roberts, Pynchon's editor, inside front cover. Fine in wrappers.
160. -. Another copy of the second issue uncorrected proof. Small bookplate of Ray Roberts inside front cover. Fine in wrappers, with two dust jackets (a bit crimped at the crown where they extend past the proof). One jacket corresponds to the trade edition design of graphics only (with the type to be supplied on an acetate overlay). The second jacket is unique, having the information (author, title, publisher, ISBN code) printed directly on the jacket.
161. -. Same title. The advance reading copy, in beige wrappers. The trade edition had an announced 200,000 copy first printing; the number of copies of each of the two variant issues of the advance reading copy was rumored to be 500. The issues vary only on the rear wrapper: this is the one with the rear panel featuring publication and promotional data, which was reportedly sent to booksellers; the other was said to have been sent to reviewers, and has a brief synopsis of the book's content on the rear panel. Both issues, we were told, had minor textual variations from the published book. Bookplate of Ray Roberts. Fine in wrappers.