Catalog 163, S
164. SALINGER, J.D. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston: Little, Brown, 1951. Later printing. Inscribed by the author. Salinger's classic first book, a coming-of-age novel that has influenced successive generations of young people with its adolescent hero's rejection of the "phoniness" of the adult world around him combined with the authenticity of his angry and alienated voice. Salinger's book retains much of the freshness it had when first published, and it stands as one of the great fictional accomplishments of 20th century American literature. Salinger left New York City in 1953 and became increasingly reclusive in subsequent years. He visited the New Yorker offices in 1959 and signed a few books for people there on that day, but very seldom after that appeared in public and almost never signed books. Signed copies of Catcher are one of the true rarities of modern American literature. This copy is inscribed by Salinger: "To Pearl Bsharah, with best wishes from J.D. Salinger/ The New Yorker/ April 13, 1959." Bsharah worked at The New Yorker. Fourteenth printing, with slight chipping to spine ends; near fine in a fine (restored) later printing, price-clipped dust jacket. In custom clamshell case.
165. SALTER, James. The Hunters. NY: Harper (1956). His first book, a novel of fighter pilots in the Korean war: Salter himself was a fighter pilot in Korea, and saw combat from February to August, 1952. Inscribed by the author in March, 1961: "With memories of the fierce political battles in Rockland County and with thanks Jim." Salter is apparently making reference to the Presidential election of the preceding November, in which New York state's electoral votes went to Kennedy, but Rockland County fell for Nixon. Salter is one of the most highly regarded literary stylists in American literature; his friend, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Ford said that "James Salter writes American sentences better than anybody writing today." Minor foxing to the edges of the text block and light corner bumps; still about near fine in a very good dust jacket with mild spine fading and some rubbing to the folds. Basis for a 1958 movie starring Robert Mitchum and directed by longtime actor Dick Powell. An uncommon first book to find signed, let alone engagingly inscribed.
166. SALTER, James. The Arm of Flesh. NY: Harper (1961). His second book, set at an American-occupied German air force base in the aftermath of World War II, and featuring a young fighter pilot as its protagonist. Salter was unhappy with this book he called it "derivative Faulkner" and "largely a failure" and indeed it is not one of his better known books. In a rare instance of an author having a second chance, Salter rewrote the book forty years later and it was published in 2001 as Cassada, the protagonist's surname. The story events were largely the same but the narrative point of view was dramatically different. The Arm of Flesh has always been one of Salter's hardest books to find in the first edition. This copy is signed by the author in the month after publication: "James Salter - a friend - March 1961." Modest foxing to the edges of the text block and the hinges; near fine in a very good, mildly foxed dust jacket with shallow edge wear. An uncommon title, and scarce signed, especially with a contemporary date.
167. SALTER, James. A Sport and a Pastime. Garden City: Doubleday/Paris Review Editions, 1967. Salter's third novel, which one writer called "the best erotic novel ever written by an American male." Signed by the author. Published by the small, "literary" arm of Doubleday Paris Review Editions. Light sunning to the board edges, else fine in a very near fine dust jacket with mild wear to the spine extremities and a small, blended spot at mid spine that is mostly evident on the verso. Quite scarce these days, especially signed.
168. SALTER, James. Collected Stories. (London): Picador (2013). The first British edition of this title that has no comparable American edition. Includes the stories from Dusk and Last Night, plus the first book publication of the story "Charisma." With a 9-page introduction by Booker Prize-winning author John Banville. Signed by Salter. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Laid in is a program for the Dublin Writers Festival, at which the book was signed.
169. SALTER, Mary Jo. Correspondence. 1989-1990. Three typed letters signed to the editor of Art & Antiques magazine. The first, one page, written from Iceland in April 1989, proposes an article on how poets write about paintings, referencing, among others, her former teacher Elizabeth Bishop. Salter also speaks briefly of the latest book by her then-husband, Brad Leithauser. The second letter, two pages, June 1989, also written from Iceland, proposes a piece about growing up in a house with a collector of political memorabilia, and, as an aside, suggests there may be something to be written about the aesthetic sense (or lack thereof) in Iceland. The third letter, one page, November 1990, this time from Massachusetts, transmits a two-page (photocopied) poem she's written called "Art Lessons," written in lieu of an article on the lack of art in Iceland, which begins "Why has Iceland no Tiepolo?" Interesting, densely written letters, and a possibly unpublished two-page poem. All items fine. Envelopes included.
170. SAUNDERS, George. Tenth of December. NY: Random House (2013). The advance reading copy of this collection of stories, one of the most highly praised books of the year: a finalist for the National Book Award; one of the 10 best books of the year according to the New York Times; winner of the Story Prize and the inaugural Folio Prize. In addition, one of the stories, "Home," was a finalist for a Bram Stoker Award. Signed in full by the author with a self-doodle and an added note: "This is borderline rare - it's missing the late addition, 'The 56 [Dreams? Diaries?].' GS." Apparently the published book also missed that late addition. Fine in wrappers. A very scarce advance copy, and more so signed, especially with the humorous addition which pokes fun at the idea of this as a "rare book" (which it actually is, with or without the fictional missing story).
171. (SEDARIS, David and PRINCE, Richard). Farm. NY/(Chicago): Feature/ICI (1988). An early issue of this small magazine (either the second or third), printing a painting from Richard Prince's "Joke" series ("Shirley to her Girlfriend") and a story by Sedaris ("My Manuscript") that was collected in his first book, Barrel Fever, in 1994. Publisher's address label on front cover; near fine in lightly rubbed stapled wrappers. Very uncommon early appearances by two artists who have since become major figures in their respective fields.
172. SHEPARD, Sam. Operation Sidewinder. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill (1970). A play in two acts, the third published book by the award-winning playwright and actor. The Holy Modal Rounders, a psychedelic folk group that Shepard played drums for on occasion, provided the music for this production, and the group is one of the dozen listed dedicatees of the book. (Others include Crazy Horse, The Stones, The Hopi, 1968, and his wife O-Lan.) Signed by the author. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with a couple faint spots to the front panel and trace edge wear.
173. SHIRLEY, John. Black Glass. Lake Orion: Elder Signs Press, 2008. Billed as "the lost cyberpunk novel" by this Bram Stoker Award winning author, who was one of the seminal figures of the cyberpunk movement, collaborating on works with both William Gibson and Bruce Sterling. Signed by Shirley. Tiny crimp to rear corner; still fine in wrappers.
174. (Sixties). The Digger Papers. NY: Realist Association, 1968. No. 81 (August, 1968) of The Realist, edited by Paul Krassner. This issue is devoted to reprinting Digger handouts originally produced by the Communication Company, as a way of conveying the nature of the society the Diggers were envisioning. Contributions are uncredited, but a partial list of the "brothers and sisters whose work is represented in this document" includes Wally [sic] Berman, Richard Brautigan, William Burroughs, Peter Cohon, Allen Ginsberg, Emmett Grogan, Gary Snyder, Rip Torn, Lew Welch and Anonymous, among many others. Grogan and Cohon, who later changed his name to Peter Coyote, were two of the founding members of the group, which existed for only a short time 1967-1968 but had an outsize influence on the legacy of the counterculture of the 1960s. Mild age toning to stapled newsprint; near fine.
175. (Sixties). COOPER, Michael. Blinds & Shutters. (Surrey): Genesis Hedley (1990). Tall thick folio printing a large number of Cooper's photographs from the Sixties, many of them centered around London and the Rolling Stones. Cooper was the photographer who shot the album covers for the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and the Stones' Their Satanic Majesties Request. An elaborate production, with contributions by most of the people pictured, including Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Bill Wyman, Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Jim Dine, William Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Larry Rivers, Terry Southern, and many others. Southern contributes not only the usual comments and clips that accompany the photographs but also the Introduction for the book, and Jagger and Richards provide Forewords. A fine copy, bound in three-quarter black leather and yellow cloth, resembling a Kodak film container, laid into a near fine black-and-yellow box, with a shutter window with an original photograph bound in. Copy 2720 of 5000 copies. All the copies were signed by a random collection of the contributors (only Bill Wyman, who conceived the project, signed every copy). This copy is signed by 13 contributors, including Eric Clapton, Bill Wyman, and Harry Nilsson. An elaborate memento of the era.
176. SKLOOT, Rebecca. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. (London): Macmillan (2010). The advance reading copy of the British edition of Skloot's biography of Henrietta Lacks and her descendants, which in broad definition includes the HeLa cell line, the first human cells to survive in perpetuity outside of a human body, and which were taken from the dying Lacks in the 1950s without her or her family's knowledge or consent, and used to create both miracles (cures) and money (though not for the Lackses, an impoverished black family in Maryland). Originally to be published by W.H. Freeman, who was bought out by Henry Holt in 2003; Holt reportedly wanted less of the Lacks family in the narrative, so Skloot pulled out and the title was auctioned to Crown. The book was published in 2010; the first U.S. printing sold out in a day, and Crown reprinted the book three times in two days. A surprising bestseller; the U.S. paperback issue remains on the New York Times bestseller list four years later. Oprah is reportedly producing a film version for HBO; in 2013 the HeLa genome was sequenced and published (an agreement for which was reportedly reached with the family after-the-fact). Smudges to foredge, else fine in wrappers (which are designed so as to appear worn and aged, like the photograph of Henrietta on the front cover). Scarce in any advance format.
177. SMITH, Patti. Just Kids. (NY): Ecco/HarperCollins (2010). The uncorrected proof copy of Smith's well-received memoir of her pre-fame life with Robert Mapplethorpe, which won the National Book Award and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award one of the most highly regarded memoirs to come out of the counterculture of the 1960s and 70s. This copy is signed by the author. Trace rubbing to the spine lettering; still fine in wrappers. An uncommon proof, especially signed.
178. SNYDER, Gary. A Range of Poems. London: Fulcrum Press (1967). Second printing of this volume of collected poems, identified on the copyright page as a "second edition." Includes the contents of Snyder's early volumes, Myths & Texts and Riprap & Cold Mountain Poems, as well as about half the poems that appeared later in the year in the collection The Back Country, plus one more group of unpublished poems. Inscribed (apparently twice) by Snyder to Clayton Eshleman: "For Clayton Eshleman from these days in Kyoto. Gary Snyder." And then: "until III 92/ with gratitude for his Bodhi Sattva generosity to poetry -- a life work --." With Eshleman's 1967 ownership signature. Near fine in a very good dust jacket with small chips at the spine extremities and the start of splitting to the folds there. A wonderful association copy between two poets and longtime friends.
179. SNYDER, Gary. Regarding Wave. (NY): New Directions (1970). The trade edition of this collection, which includes the contents of the limited edition with the same title published a year earlier, plus two additional sections of new poems. Inscribed by Snyder to Clayton Eshleman in 1996. Annotations to the text in Eshleman's hand on a dozen pages throughout the book. The hardcover edition: rubbing to the edges and corners of the boards, about near fine in a very near fine, supplied dust jacket.
180. SNYDER, Gary. Turtle Island. (NY): New Directions (1974). Second printing. The 1975 winner of the Pulitzer Prize for poetry. Inscribed by Snyder to Clayton Eshleman in 1996. A few of Eshleman's notes in the text. Near fine in wrappers.
181. SNYDER, Gary. The Old Ways. (San Francisco): City Lights (1977). A collection of six essays by Snyder. Signed by Snyder in 1996 and with the 1978 ownership signature of poet Clayton Eshleman. A nice association: the two poets are longtime friends, and earlier that year had given a reading/talk together in Paris, France. Several notes to text in Eshleman's hand, mostly in the first two essays, "The Yogin and the Philosopher" and "The Politics of Ethnopoetics." Mild spine-sunning, else fine in wrappers.
182. SNYDER, Gary. The Real Work: Interviews & Talks, 1964-1979. (NY): New Directions (1980). The softcover issue of this collection. Inscribed by Snyder to Clayton Eshleman in 1996. With Eshleman's 1989 ownership signature and his extensive notes in the text, giving a clear view of the poet as reader. Fine in wrappers.
183. SNYDER, Gary. Passage Through India. San Francisco: Grey Fox Press (1983) The softcover issue of this travel diary with photographs. Inscribed by Snyder to Clayton Eshleman: "For Clayton/ Gary in Ypsilanti - III.92." This text was originally published in somewhat different form in Eshleman's little magazine Caterpillar in 1972. Eshleman invited Snyder to Ypsilanti to give a reading at Eastern Michigan University, where Eshleman taught. Mild spine sunning, else fine in wrappers.
184. SNYDER, Gary. The Practice of the Wild. Berkeley: North Point (1990). A collection of essays, this being the simultaneous issue in wrappers. Inscribed by Snyder to Clayton Eshleman in 1996. With Eshleman's 1990 ownership signature and a few marginal notes in his hand. Fine in wrappers.
185. SNYDER, Gary. "G.S. Brief Biography." 1991. A two-page photocopy of Snyder's bio, recounting travels, influences, jobs and interests. With brief bibliographical checklist. Folded in half; near fine. From the collection of Clayton Eshleman, and probably given by Snyder to Eshleman who would have introduced him at his 1996 reading in Ypsilanti.
186. SNYDER, Gary. Premier Chant du Chaman et Autres Po�mes [First Shaman Song and Other Poems]. (n.p.): Orph�e La Diff�rence (1992). A bilingual edition (French/English) of poems taken from the volumes Myths & Texts, Regarding Wave and Axe Handles. No comparable U.S. edition. Inscribed by Snyder to Clayton [Eshleman] in 1996. Uncommon: OCLC lists only 4 copies in library holdings. Fine in wrappers.
187. SNYDER, Gary. "Coming In To The Watershed." (n.p.): (n.p.)(1992). Photocopied typescript of an article by Snyder first published in the San Francisco Examiner. 8 pages. An uncommon standalone version of this essay, which has since been collected in a number of places. Stapled in upper left corner; near fine. With Snyder's photocopied signature on last page. From Clayton Eshleman's Snyder collection, and probably given to him by Snyder.
188. (SQUIRES, Roy A.). BRADBURY, Ray, and SMITH, Clark Ashton. Glendale: Roy A. Squires, various dates. An incomplete run of the chapbooks Squires published throughout the 1960s and '70s. Unless otherwise indicated, all are fine in string-tied wrappers. Each one has its original envelope, and each of those bears the owner's small stamp. Nine items, as follows:
- SMITH, Clark Ashton. Impression. "1944." Sheet music, words by Smith; music by Joseph W. Grant. One sheet folded to make four pages.
- SMTIH, Clark Ashton. The Tarturus of the Suns. 1970. Copy 154 of 165.
- SMITH, Clark Ashton. The Palace of Jewels. 1970. Copy 154 of 167.
- SMITH, Clark Ashton. In the Ultimate Valleys. 1970. Copy 154 of 160.
- SMITH, Clark Ashton. To George Sterling. 1970. Copy 154 of 199.
- SMITH, Clark Ashton. The Mortuary. 1971. Copy 145 of 180.
- BRADBURY, Ray. Old Ahab's Friend, and Friend to Noah, Speaks His Peace. 1971. Copy 337 of 485 copies. Owner stamp.
- BRADBURY, Ray. That Son of Richard III. 1974. Copy 82 of 85. Inscribed by Bradbury in 1974. Recipient's stamp on colophon.
- BRADBURY, Ray. That Ghost, That Bride of Time. 1976. Copy 126 of 150 signed copies, of a total edition of 400. Signed twice by Bradbury. Owner stamp; fine in dustwrapper.
189. STEINBECK, John. Autograph. No date. A brochure from The Suffolk County Whaling Museum of Sag Harbor, Long Island, NY, printing the article "The Sag Harbor Whalers" by Clother Hathaway Vaughn. Signed by Steinbeck, who lived in Sag Harbor from 1955 until his death in 1968. A larger than usual Steinbeck signature, perhaps of the variety occasioned by someone asking for "an autograph" on a randomly available surface, as opposed to a more formal signing of one's work. 4" x 9" trifold brochure, now tipped to black cardstock. Fine. A nice memento connecting Steinbeck to his longtime, and last, home.
190. STONE, Robert. A Hall of Mirrors. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1967. A review copy of his first book, a novel of drifters in New Orleans in the early Sixties caught up in the web of a quasi-religious political machine. Winner of the William Faulkner Award for best first novel of the year as well as a Houghton Mifflin Literary Fellowship Award. Inscribed by the author. Near fine in a very good, lightly foxed dust jacket with a creased tear to the lower rear panel. Basis for the film WUSA (the call letters of the right-wing radio station that figures prominently in the book), starring Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward and Anthony Perkins.
191. -. Another copy. Inscribed by the author: "For ___ & ___/ All of these things have I seen and some of them I was/ Love/ Bob Stone." One of the recipients was a Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford at the same time Stone was there, where he was writing this novel, which at that time was titled "Children of Light," the name of the Robert Lowell poem that serves as epigraph for the book and contains the phrase that eventually became the published book's title. By all appearances a contemporary inscription, and one to a close friend/colleague; we have seen few copies of this title with such a revealing and personal inscription. Very good in a good dust jacket with a long tear to the lower front flap fold, previously internally tape-mended.
192. STONE, Robert. Death of the Black-Haired Girl. Boston/NY: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012. The advance reading copy of his most recent novel, his first in a decade, which was published to generally excellent reviews. It uses the form of a police procedural the inquiry into a college student's accidental death to inquire about larger issues of faith, love and accountability, as well as madness and the ability to deceive oneself. Fine in wrappers. The advance reading copy has turned up on the market very seldom; we've only seen a couple offered for sale, where in the past there would have been dozens of such copies showing up in the aftermarket once again an indication that publishers are cutting back on such productions, often replacing some part of their function with digital offerings.
193. -. Another copy. Upper corner crease to rear cover, else fine in wrappers.