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Catalog 163, C

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36. CAMPBELL, J. Ramsey. The Inhabitant of the Lake. Sauk City: Arkham House, 1964. The author's first book, published when he was just 18 years old: horror in the tradition of H.P. Lovecraft, and issued by the specialty house named after Lovecraft's fictional New England town. Inscribed by Campbell to fellow horror writer Stanley Wiater: "one I wrote before you ever interviewed me!" Wiater's Gahan Wilson-designed bookplate front flyleaf; fine in a fine, very slightly spine-sunned dust jacket. A nice association copy of a notable first book, published in an edition stated to be only 2000 copies.

37. CAMPBELL, Ramsey. Typed Letter Signed and The Parasite. NY: Macmillan (1980). A signed airmail letter from Campbell to Stanley Wiater, in part thanking him for his review of The Parasite, "whose criticisms of the book I thought very fair. I hope you find The Nameless...is better organized as a novel." Folded in thirds, gently opened at the sides; near fine. The book is inscribed by Campbell to Wiater on Halloween, 1982, with "thanks for a perceptive review." Wiater's Gahan Wilson-designed bookplate front flyleaf; foxing to top edge; near fine in a near fine dust jacket, with publisher's promotional postcard laid in.

38. (CAMUS, Albert). WILDE, Oscar. La Ballade de la ge�le de reading. (Paris): Falaize (1952). An out-of-series copy of this bilingual edition of 3000 numbered copies of Wilde's poem, printed here with Camus' "L'Artiste en Prison," which delineates Wilde's journey from themes of ideal beauty to existential suffering. Inscribed by Camus (in French): "to Sylvestre,/ a remembrance of Iguape/ and with the friendly thoughts/ of Albert Camus." While context does not give explanation to the reference to Iguape, one of Camus' last stories, "The Growing Stone" the final story in Camus' last collection, Exile and the Kingdom is set in Iguape, Brazil. It has been said that this story is the clearest manifestation of Camus' ideals: in it, the protagonist sacrifices himself to help a friend, and behaves morally despite his own understanding of the absurdity of the world. Camus won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1957, the year Exile and the Kingdom was published, and the Prize committee cited his "clear-sighted earnestness [which] illuminates the problems of the human conscience in our times." As best we can tell, this is the first appearance in print of "L'Artiste en Prison," which was translated into English and published in Encounter magazine two years later. A very near fine copy in French wraps. Books inscribed by Camus are uncommon; the author died in 1960 in a car accident, at the age of 46.

39. CAREY, Peter. True History of the Kelly Gang. (Queensland): University of Queensland Press (2000). The advance reading copy of the true first edition of Carey's second Booker Prize winner, a fictional re-imagining of the life of Australia's most famous outlaw. Inscribed by the author. Light bumps to the front corners and mild rubbing; near fine in wrappers. An extremely uncommon advance issue: we have never seen another copy, nor have we found any auction listings for it. In addition to winning the Booker, it also won the Commonwealth Writers Prize for best overall book of the year, the Colin Roderick Award for best Australian book of the year, the Age Book of the Year Award, the Courier Mail Book of the Year, the Queensland Premier's Literary Award, the Victorian Premier's Literary Award, and numerous others. A modern classic, and an exceptionally scarce state of it, especially so signed.

40. CARROLL, Lewis. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Boston: Lee and Shepard, 1869. The first edition printed in America. [The "first American edition" of 1866 consisted of rejected British sheets that were given an Appleton (the New York publisher) title page.] Some foxing to the text, starting at the hinges, a label removal shadow on the front flyleaf, and a bookplate on the front pastedown. A very good copy in original green cloth of this landmark of children's literature, which has survived a century and a half and continues to delight and mystify readers today as one can assume it did the original Alice, Carroll's young friend Alice Liddell, the recipient of the first manuscript version of the story. Housed in a custom dustwrapper and clamshell case.

41. CHARYN, Jerome. Collection. 1964-1999. An extensive collection of this Bronx-born author's writing from the first 35 years of his career: 48 items, including eleven titles signed or inscribed (mostly early titles); thirteen proof copies (five with proof dust jackets); two advance reading copies; and three graphic novels. As follows:

  • Once Upon a Droshky. NY: McGraw-Hill (1964). Signed. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with only mild tanning to the spine.
  • On the Darkening Green. NY: McGraw-Hill (1965). Near fine in a very good dust jacket with some dampstaining to the spine, mostly visible on verso.
  • The Man Who Grew Younger and Other Stories. NY: Harper Row (1967). Signed. Fine in a near fine dust jacket.
  • Going to Jerusalem. NY: Viking (1967). A review copy. Signed. Fine in a very near fine dust jacket, with review slip laid in.
  • American Scrapbook. NY: Viking (1969). Signed. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Signed. Several penciled notes by a reviewer, and corresponding page corners turned. Near fine in wrappers.
  • Eisenhower, My Eisenhower. NY: Holt Rinehart Winston (1971). Inscribed by the author: "For ___/ with affection/ (this is my favorite book)." Near fine in a near fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Signed. Tall, comb-bound galley sheets. Edge-tanned, else fine.
  • The Tar Baby. NY: Holt Rinehart Winston (1973). Fine in a near fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Signed. Near fine in tall wrappers. With a "Special Note" from the publisher laid in explaining that the proof lacks many of the design features of the published text, which took the form of a literary quarterly.
  • Blue Eyes. NY: Simon & Schuster (1974). Inscribed by the author. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Inscribed by the author. Fine in tall wrappers.
  • Marilyn the Wild. NY: Arbor House (1976). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • The Education of Patrick Silver. NY: Arbor House (1976). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Near fine in wrappers and very good proof dust jacket.
  • The Franklin Scare. NY: Arbor House (1977). Slight spine tap; else fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Near fine in wrappers.
  • Secret Isaac. NY: Arbor House (1978). Near fine in a fine, price-clipped dust jacket.
  • The Seventh Babe. NY: Arbor House (1979). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Near fine in wrappers and near fine proof dust jacket, with the jacket flap copy laid in on a separate sheet.
  • The Catfish Man. NY: Arbor House (1980). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • Darlin' Bill. NY: Arbor House (1980). Fine in a near fine dust jacket.
  • Panna Maria. NY: Arbor House (1982). Near fine in a near fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Small stain and price sticker rear cover; very good in wrappers.
  • Pinocchio's Nose. NY: Arbor House (1983). Fine in a near fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Fine in wrappers, with one page of text on folded 8 1/2" x 11" paper tipped in. In near fine proof dust jacket.
  • War Cries Over Avenue C. NY: Donald I. Fine (1985). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Fine in wrappers, in a near fine proof dust jacket.
  • Metropolis. NY: Putnam's (1986). Fine in a near fine dust jacket with price inked out on front flap.
  • Paradise Man. NY: Donald I. Fine (1987). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • The Magician's Wife. NY: Catalan (1987). The first American edition. Graphic novel with art by Francois Boucq. New preface by Charyn for this edition. Fine in self-wrappers.
  • Movieland. NY: Putnam (1988). Slight spine tap, else fine in a fine dust jacket. -. Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Fine in wrappers and near fine proof dust jacket, with promotional sheet laid in.
  • The Good Policeman. NY: Mysterious Press (1990). Sticker shadow front flyleaf; else fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • Elsinore. NY: Mysterious Press (1991). Fine in a near fine dust jacket.
  • Billy Budd, KGB. NY: Catalan (1991). The first American edition. Graphic novel. Art by Francois Boucq. Mild corner creasing, else fine in wrappers.
  • Margot in Badtown. (Northampton): Tundra Press (1991). Graphic novel, with art by Massimiliano Frezzato. Pictorial boards: lamination creases front cover and one small corner tap. Very near fine. Without dust jacket, as issued.
  • Maria's Girls. NY: Mysterious Press (1992). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • Back to Bataan. NY: FSG (1993). The first American edition. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • Montezuma's Man . (NY): Mysterious Press (1993). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The advance reading copy. Near fine in wrappers.
  • Little Angel Street. (NY): Mysterious Press (1994). Inscribed by the author in the month prior to publication. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The advance reading copy. Near fine in wrappers with promotional sheet laid in.
  • El Bronx. (NY): Mysterious Press (1997). A review copy. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • Death of a Tango King. NY: New York University Press (1998). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • . Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Fine in wrappers, with promotional sheet laid in.
  • Citizen Sidel. (NY): Mysterious Press (1999). Fine in a fine dust jacket.
  • Captain Kidd. NY: St. Martin's (1999). The uncorrected proof copy. Fine in wrappers, with promotional sheet laid in and publicist's card stapled inside the front cover.
Charyn has been widely known for his fiction set in New York, especially the Bronx, and also as a Jewish-American writer who has written, among his other works, a series of crime novels featuring Isaac Sidel, a Jewish New York police detective who later becomes mayor. In 2010 (outside the scope of this collection) Charyn courted controversy when he wrote a book, The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson, partly in the voice of the noted female poet. A versatile writer, more well-known within the literary community, and highly regarded there, than among the public in general. For the collection:

42. COELHO, Paulo. Manuscript Found in Accra. NY: Knopf, 2013. The American limited edition of this novel by the Brazilian author of the bestseller The Alchemist, a publishing phenomenon that has been translated into over 80 languages and has sold 65 million copies. One of an unspecified number of copies signed by the author on a tipped-in leaf. Clothbound, in sliding tray and pictorial slipcase. Fine.

43. (Comics). Taboo. (Wilmington): (Totleben & Bissette)/[Spiderbaby Grafix](1988). An advance copy of the first issue of Taboo, a landmark comix/graphic novel anthology, inscribed by the editor (Totleben), with the written note "#3.5 in 25 preview copies." Tapebound 8 1/2" x 11"galley sheets, with a handwritten "Taboo!" label on the front cover. Contributions by Clive Barker, S. Clay Wilson, Alan Moore, Chester Brown, Charles Burns, Eddie Campbell, Charles Vess, Dave Sim, and others. Taboo published edgier graphic fiction than could be done by mainstream presses, including Alan Moore and Chester Brown's From Hell, and work by Charles Burns, famous for his later graphic novel Black Hole. Front label lifting; ownership stamps; else fine. Together with an 8-page solicitation of contributions dated the previous year, delineating the guidelines and the vision. Again, an ownership stamp; near fine with one corner stapled. Together with the published version of the first issue, inscribed by Totleben and the publisher, Stephen Bissette, as well as Taboo 2 and Taboo 3. A notable collection, particularly with the advance copy a handmade production apparently limited to 25 copies but doubtless far fewer still exist. For all:

44. CREWS, Harry. " he kept looking at me, so I said 'I'm a writer.'" (n.p.): Aralia Press (n.d.). A broadside excerpt from Crews's essay "The Trucker Militant," which was published in Esquire in 1977 and collected in Blood and Grits. 6 1/2" x 3 3/4". Shrinkwrapped onto mat board; fine. Scarce ephemeral production.

45. CRUMLEY, James. The Wrong Case. NY: Random House (1975). His second book and his first mystery, introducing Milo Milodragovitch, a down-at-the-heels alcoholic private investigator. When Crumley died in 2008, the Washington Post obituary said that his "poetic and violent tales of crime in the American West made him a patron saint of the post-Vietnam private eye novel." Inscribed by the author in 1977: "Don't hit me, Turkey/ Jim Crumley." Also signed in full (as James Crumley) on the title page. Although not stated, the inscription is to novelist Kent Anderson, and a receipt for a cashier's check from Anderson to Crumley from 2007 is laid in. Several passages highlighted (presumably by Anderson). Cocked from reading and with mild edge sunning to boards; very good in a good dust jacket with a few small chips and one about thumb-sized, at the upper front spine fold. An excellent association copy between two of the most highly praised hardboiled novelists of the post-Vietnam era.

46. CRUMLEY, James. The Last Good Kiss. NY: Random House (1978). His third book, second mystery, a hardboiled classic with a comic edge, one of the key books in raising the bar for literary detective fiction. Inscribed by Crumley to his friend and fellow author Kent Anderson and his then-wife, Judith Root: "Anderson & Root/ If it ain't Montana, it ain't shit/ Best/ Jim." Also signed in full on the title page. Remainder mark, else fine in a very good dust jacket with a few open edge tears. A nice association copy.

47. CRUMLEY, James. The Pigeon Shoot. Santa Barbara: Neville, 1987. A mystery screenplay by Crumley, his first original screenplay, done for a movie that was to have been produced in Mexico, starring one of the leading actors of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema, Don Emilio Fernandez. Fernandez died before the film was produced, and this volume is dedicated to him. Issued as a limited edition of 376 copies, this is an unnumbered Presentation Copy (as calligraphed on the colophon) and is signed by the author. Additionally inscribed by Crumley for Kent [Anderson] and Judith "who know all the Best Mexican Movies. Best of Everything/ Jim Crumley." A good association copy. In the cloth binding of the numbered edition. Spot to foredge, else fine in a very good, chipped, acetate dustwrapper.

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