Catalog 92, P-R
319. PEREZ-REVERTE, Arturo. The Dumas Club. London: Harvill (1996). First English edition of this bibliomystery that revolves around a manuscript section of Alexandre Dumas's The Three Musketeers. Originally published in Spain in 1993 and compared to the novels of Umberto Eco. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
320. PHILLIPS, Jayne Anne. Sweethearts. Carrboro: Truck Press, 1976. Her first book, a collection of poems. This is one of 400 copies in wrappers, of a total edition of 410. Inscribed by the author to Seymour Lawrence in 1978: "For Sam --/ the bowler with heart --/ thanks (from/ all of us)/ for loving words./ Jayne Anne." Sunned; otherwise a near fine copy of a book that is an unusual size and usually turns up well-worn as a result.
321. PHILLIPS, Jayne Anne. Counting. NY: Vehicle Editions (1978). The issue in wrappers of her second book, a collection of poems and prose poems; inscribed by the author to Seymour Lawrence in the year of publication. Additionally, laid in is an autograph postcard signed "the counter." The postcard is fine; the book near fine.
322. PHILLIPS, Jayne Anne. Black Tickets. (NY): Delacorte Press/Seymour Lawrence (1979). The uncommon hardcover issue of her well-received first collection of stories. Inscribed by the author to Seymour Lawrence: "For Sam Lawrence/ love to the wizard/ who discovered the witch --/ and a toast/ to a long future/ with gratitude/ & deepest respect,/ Jayne Anne/ New York/ Oct 23, 1979." Pages browning slightly with age, but much less so than is usual for this title: near fine in a dust jacket worn at the crown.
323 -. Same title, the uncorrected proof copy. Inscribed by the author to Seymour Lawrence and signed "the witch." Spine sunned; else fine in wrappers.
324. PHILLIPS, Jayne Anne. How Mickey Made It. St. Paul: Bookslinger Editions, 1981. An attractive limited edition of this story, 1/150 numbered copies signed by the author and additionally inscribed to Seymour Lawrence: "For the heroic Uncle Sam,/ intrepid publisher --/ love, JA." Clothbound without dust jacket; spine-sunned; near fine.
325. -. Same title, the trade edition in saddle-stitched wrappers. Inscribed by the author to Seymour Lawrence. Near fine.
326. PHILLIPS, Jayne Anne. The Secret Country. (n.p.): Palaemon Press (1982). One of 150 numbered copies signed by the author. This copy is additionally inscribed by the author to Seymour Lawrence. Cloth and boards, with spine cloth fading at edges: near fine without dust jacket, as issued.
327. PHILLIPS, Jayne Anne. Fast Lanes. (NY): Vehicle (1984). A small press volume, the first book appearance of this story, with illustrations by Yvonne Jacquette. Issued in an edition of 2026, this is one of 26 lettered copies, signed by the author and the illustrator. Additionally, this copy is inscribed by Phillips to Seymour Lawrence: "For Uncle Sam --/ my companion/ in the fast lane --/ love,/ the speedy witch/ Jan. 24, '85." This story was later reprinted as the title story of a collection of Phillips' fiction published in 1987 by Dutton/Lawrence. Fine in a near fine slipcase. Extremely scarce.
328. PLATH, Sylvia. The Colossus and Other Poems. London: Heinemann (1960). First edition of the author's first book, preceding its U.S. publication. The only collection of poetry published in her lifetime--by a writer who is nonetheless universally considered among the most influential poets of the postwar era. Only one other of her books was published before she committed suicide--the autobiographical novel The Bell Jar. This is a fine copy in a very near fine white dust jacket with just a hint of tanning to the spine and the upper back edge. One of the nicest examples we have seen of this scarce and important first book, by a young writer whose poetry and prose have been an inspiration for a later generation of writers even as her life, and early suicide, have provided a cautionary note as well.
329. -. Same title, the first American edition (NY: Knopf, 1962). A thinner volume than the original, with nine fewer poems. Slight foxing, mainly at the foredge, but a very bright, fine copy in a lightly spine-tanned dust jacket.
330. PLATH, Sylvia. "LUCAS, Victoria." The Bell Jar. London: Heinemann (1962). Her pseudonymously published first novel. Plath committed suicide barely a month after the publication of this novel in England and it was not published in the U.S. for nearly a decade. The Bell Jar is largely autobiographical: Plath published pseudonymously in hopes of avoiding the consequences of being recognized by her friends and neighbors, and their recognizing themselves in her book. The book's clearcut exposition of its heroine's pain and her attempted suicide was reinforced by its author's actual suicide, lending a mythic dimension to the book. This copy has a hint of a bump to the spine base and one very light small spot on the flyleaf; still a fine copy in a very near fine dust jacket with slight rubbing to the spine extremities and the upper front panel. A nice copy of an important book, which is very elusive in the first edition.
331. -. Same title, the first American edition (NY: Harper & Row, 1971). Faint label removal shadow front pastedown; else fine in a fine dust jacket with a couple of very tiny edge nicks.
332. PLATH, Sylvia. Ariel. NY: Harper & Row (1966). The first American edition of this posthumous collection, her greatest poetic achievement. These poems were written during the last months of Plath's life. Introduction by Robert Lowell. Fine in a near fine, mildly dusty jacket.
333. PLATH, Sylvia. Crossing the Water. London: Faber & Faber (1971). A posthumously published collection of poems from the period between The Colossus and Ariel. Near fine in a near fine, price-clipped dust jacket with a small closed gouge mid-spine.
334. PLATH, Sylvia. Million Dollar Month. Frensham: Sceptre Press (1971). One of 150 numbered copies of this poem. Fine in stapled wrappers.
335. PLATH, Sylvia. Winter Trees. NY: Harper & Row (1972). First American edition of this posthumous collection of poems, all of which were written in the last nine months of her life. Near fine in a well-rubbed, thus very good dust jacket.
336. PLATH, Sylvia. Letters Home. NY: Harper & Row (1975). The first publication of her letters, which constitute a revealing autobiography. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
337. -. Same title, the uncorrected proof copy. Mislabeled on tape on the spine: "Susan Fromberg Schaeffer." Fine in tall wrappers.
338. PLATH, Sylvia. Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams. NY: Harper & Row (1979). The first American edition, which collects a number of pieces not included in the earlier British edition. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
339. PLATH, Sylvia. Two Poems. Knotting: Sceptre Press (1980). A small, attractive volume printing two short, previously uncollected poems by Plath. Of a total edition of 300, this is one of 75 numbered "especial" copies. Fine in self-wrappers.
340. PLATH, Sylvia. The Collected Poems. NY: Harper & Row (1981). Brings together "all of the mature poetry she completed, unpublished as well as published," along with some earlier work. Annotated by her husband, Ted Hughes, and winner of the Pulitzer Prize. This is the hardcover issue. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
341. -. Same title, the uncorrected proof copy. Corner crease; label removal abrasion front cover and shadow rear cover; very good in wrappers.
342. PLATH, Sylvia. A Day in June. Ely: Embers Handpress, 1981. A limited edition of a previously uncollected short story. One of 160 numbered copies. Fine in self-wrappers.
343. PLATH, Sylvia. The Journals of Sylvia Plath. NY: Dial (1982). The uncorrected proof copy of this selection from her journals, covering the period from 1950, when she was at Smith College, to 1962, in England, just before she committed suicide. This volume stirred controversy when first published as it was charged that her husband, Ted Hughes, who co-edited the book and wrote the foreword, had been self-serving in his selection of what to omit from the unedited diaries--an inevitable charge, it would seem, given his placement relative to the material, although not necessarily a valid one. Fine in wrappers.
344. (PLATH, Sylvia). STEINER, Nancy Hunter. A Closer Look at Ariel: A Memory of Sylvia Plath. NY: Harper's Magazine Press (1973). A memoir by a friend and college roommate of Plath. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket.
345. (PLATH, Sylvia). Ariel Ascending. NY: Harper & Row (1985). Writings about Plath, by such writers as Joyce Carol Oates, Katha Pollitt, Rosellen Brown, Howard Moss, Anne Sexton, Robert Scholes, Elizabeth Hardwick, Ted Hughes, A. Alvarez, and others. Edited by Paul Alexander. This is the uncorrected proof copy. Fine in wrappers.
346. (PLATH, Sylvia). WAGNER-MARTIN, Linda. Sylvia Plath. London: Chatto & Windus (1988). A biography of Plath that draws on journals of hers that were unavailable to previous biographers. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
347. (PLATH, Sylvia). STEVENSON, Anne. Bitter Fame. A Life of Sylvia Plath. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1989. Another biography of Plath, which includes previously unpublished writings by her. Remainder mark; else fine in a fine dust jacket.
348. (PLATH, Sylvia). ALEXANDER, Paul. Rough Magic. (NY): Viking (1991). A biography of Plath by the editor of Ariel Ascending. Remainder mark, slight spine base bump; fine in a fine dust jacket.
349. PORTER, Katherine Anne. The Leaning Tower and Other Stories. NY: Harcourt Brace (1944). A collection of stories by one of the leading writers of her generation. Two of Porter's books were National Book Award nominees and her Collected Stories, which included stories from this volume, won both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. Lengthily inscribed by the author to Seymour Lawrence in 1961, in part: "This is the/ one that surprised everybody/ and sold, who knows why?/ ...it was the war, and/... everything/ happened strangely that year!.../ Keep this for a souvenir/ until we can get the two/ others... to join with/ it in One Volume." Very good, lacking the dust jacket.
350. PORTER, Katherine Anne. A Defense of Circe. NY: Harcourt Brace (1955). One of 1700 copies printed as a New Year's greeting for the friends of the author and her publishers. Inscribed by the author to Seymour Lawrence. Marbled papers split exposing the spine weave. Good, without dust jacket, as issued.
351. PORTER, Katherine Anne. A Christmas Story. (n.p.): Mademoiselle, 1958. A Christmas story by Porter about her niece, who died at the age of five. The story first appeared in 1946, and was reissued again in 1967 by Delacorte, when Seymour Lawrence was publisher there. This copy is signed by the author and additionally inscribed to Lawrence. Boards sunned; joints split and portions of the spine chipped away. Well-worn; only good; without dust jacket, as issued.
352. PORTER, Katherine Anne. The Collected Essays. NY: Delacorte Press/Seymour Lawrence (1970). Inscribed by the author to her publisher, Seymour Lawrence in the month of publication. Some minor dampstaining; very good in a worn, spine-faded dust jacket, about very good.
353. (PORTER, Katherine Anne). FERNANDEZ DE LIZARDI, José Joaquín. The Itching Parrot. Garden City: Doubleday Doran, 1942. A Mexican novel translated and introduced by Katherine Anne Porter. Very lengthily inscribed by Porter to Seymour Lawrence in 1961, recounting the circumstances of publication and the lack of response. Additionally, Porter has written holograph notes on a half dozen other pages, including pointing out that the introduction is "one of my favorite things" and providing a list of the people who had touched this "luckless little book" as of the day of inscription (Nelson Doubleday, Ford Maddox Ford, John Peale Bishop, Nelson Rockefeller, etc.). After her own name, she has written "No more translating!" A very good copy, lacking the dust jacket.
354. PYNCHON, Thomas. The Crying of Lot 49. Philadelphia: Lippincott (1966). Pynchon's second novel, winner of the Richard and Hilda Rosenthal Award from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters. Chosen by David Pringle as one of the hundred best novels of Modern Fantasy. Penciled owner name on half-title; near fine in a dust jacket with light chipping to the crown and a small split at the middle of the rear spine fold; else near fine. With publisher's complimentary card laid in.
355. PYNCHON, Thomas. Entropy. [Troy Town: "Tristero, 1957"; actually, England c. 1983.] The second printing of this piracy, with photomontage cover. Fine in stapled wrappers. The limitation is not given, either in the publication itself or in Mead's bibliography, but both printings of this title appear to be considerably scarcer than the four Aloes Press piracies.
356. PYNCHON, Thomas. Mason and Dixon. NY: Henry Holt (1997). His latest novel, published to extraordinary critical reviews, with more than one reviewer calling it his best book. A fine copy of this massive volume, in a fine paper dust jacket and printed acetate dust jacket.
357. RICE, Anne. The Feast of All Saints. NY: Simon & Schuster (1979). The second novel by the author of Interview with the Vampire, a historical novel set among the free colored population of New Orleans in the years prior to the Civil War. Remainder mark; else fine in a fine dust jacket with trace rubbing at the upper rear spine fold.
358. RICE, Anne. Servant of the Bones. [New Orleans]: B.E. Trice, 1996. The limited edition of this novel, which had an announced first printing of the trade edition of one million copies. Of a total edition of 526 copies, this is one of 26 lettered copies bound in red leather and signed by the author. Fine in slipcase.
359. -. Same title, one of 50 deluxe numbered copies bound in black leather and signed by the author. Fine in slipcase.
360. -. Same title, one of 450 numbered clothbound copies signed by the author. Fine in slipcase.
361. RICE, Anne. Violin. NY: Knopf, 1997. The advance reading copy of her new novel, slated for publication in October, 1997. Fine in wrappers.
362. RICH, Adrienne. Snapshots of a Daughter-in-Law. NY: Harper & Row (1963). Her third book, and while her first was published in the prestigious Yale Younger Poets series and her second was nominated for the National Book Award, this is the title that is generally considered her first fully mature work. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket.
363. -. Same title, the revised reissue (NY: Norton, 1967). Small bookstore stamp front flyleaf; fine in a near fine dust jacket with a small chip at the crown.
364. RICH, Adrienne. Necessities of Life. NY: Norton (1966). Her fourth book, a finalist for the National Book Award. Fine in a very near fine dust jacket. A beautiful copy.
Tom Robbins' First "A" Item
365. ROBBINS, Tom. Guy Anderson. (Seattle): (Gear Works) (1965). Robbins applies his very visual writing style and highly developed sense of joy to an evaluation of the work of Seattle painter Guy Anderson. Precedes his first novel by six years. Quarto, in stapled wrappers. Signed by Robbins and including a Guy Anderson print tipped inside the rear cover. A virtually unknown piece by one of the most popular writers to emerge from the counterculture of the 1960s. Gallery stamp inside front cover, slightly offsetting onto the title page. Light corner creasing; still very near fine in custom clamshell box.
366. RUSHDIE, Salman. The Jaguar Smile. A Nicaraguan Journey. London: Picador/Pan (1987). First edition of his fourth book and first book of nonfiction, a politically charged account of a trip the author took to Nicaragua during the Sandinista years. Only issued in wrappers in the U.K., although the later U.S. edition was done in hardcover. Near fine.
367. RUSHDIE, Salman. Haroun and the Sea of Stories. London: Granta (1990). A small novel, written while the author was in hiding, about a father and son, and reportedly dedicated to his own young son, whom he was unable to see, for reasons of security. Corners bumped; near fine in a fine dust jacket.
368. (RUSHDIE, Salman). WEATHERBY, W.J. Salman Rushdie. Sentenced to Death. NY: Carroll & Graf (1990). The first full-length biography of Rushdie, issued in the wake of the death sentence imposed on him by Moslem fundamentalists after the publication of The Satanic Verses. Small spots to lower edge; else fine in a generally worn, very good dust jacket.
369. RUSSO, Richard. Straight Man. NY: Random House (1997). The latest novel by the author of Nobody's Fool. Fine in a fine dust jacket and signed by the author. Dust jacket blurb by John Irving, among others.