Uncorrected Proofs/Advance Copies, C
93. CALISHER, Hortense. Herself. NY: Arbor House (1972). An autobiographical work. The uncorrected proof copy. Fine in tall, padbound wrappers and signed by the author. Once again, an extremely scarce and fragile state, few of which would have been produced to begin with and fewer still of which will have survived.
94. CALISHER, Hortense. On Keeping Women. NY: Arbor House (1977). Uncorrected proof copy, with review material laid in. Fine in wrappers and proof dust jacket and inscribed by the author "but in protest against such terrible proof-copy." The author presumably refers to the poor quality of the print in this proof, and the cheap, pulpy paper on which it is printed. Other than the quality of the production itself, a very nice copy.
95. CALVINO, Italo. Numbers in the Dark. NY: Pantheon (1995). Uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition of this posthumous collection of stories, many of them previously unpublished. Fine in wrappers.
96. CARROLL, Jim. The Book of Nods. NY: Viking/Penguin (1986). Uncorrected proof copy of this book by the author of The Basketball Diaries. Small sticker removal mark on front cover, otherwise about fine. Signed by the author.
97. CARROLL, Jim. Forced Entries. NY: Penguin (1987). Uncorrected proof copy of this paperback original. Signed by the author on the title page and additionally annotated by him, correcting two places in the text, and initialing the corrections. Near fine copy.
98. CARROLL, Jonathan. From the Teeth of Angels. NY: Doubleday (1994). Uncorrected proof copy of his latest novel, a psychological thriller hovering on the edge of horror/fantasy, published to high praise. Fine in wrappers.
99. CARTER, Angela. Fireworks. NY: Harper & Row (1981). Uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition of this collection of nine stories. Covers mildly sunned; near fine in wrappers.
100. CARVER, Raymond. Will You Please Be Quiet, Please? New York: McGraw-Hill, 1976. Uncorrected proof copy of Carver's first collection of stories to be published by a mainstream publisher, after several small press volumes. Inscribed by the author the month before publication: "For _____ - these unrevised/ and error-filled proofs -/ with thanks and best wishes/ Ray Carver/ February 1976." Carver has also signed the book on the title page of the first story, and has corrected the title of one of the books listed as a previous publication. A sentence on page 224 has been crossed out by hand, changing the last line of the penultimate story. A wonderful copy of the very scarce proof of this important collection. Fine in wrappers, in a custom quarter leather clamshell case.
101. -. Another copy of the proof, unsigned. Fine in wrappers.
Important Story Collection, Signed
102. CARVER, Raymond. What We Talk About When We Talk About Love. NY: Knopf, 1981. The uncorrected proof of Carver's second major story collection, and his first significant commercial success. This was his first book to be published by Knopf, the preeminent literary publisher in the U.S., and was also his first to go back to press: it received excellent reviews, including a front- page review in The New York Times Book Review, and went through four printings soon after publication. Carver relentlessly revised and refined his vision and his expression, and these stories reflect that: two of them were included in the earlier, small-press collection, Furious Seasons and Other Stories, but here appear in substantially different form, including one having been re-titled. In a later interview Carver recalled that, at this point in his writing career he was continually paring away the excess in his already-spare stories, whittling them down closer to the essence. The later, retrospective collection Fires contains earlier versions of three of the stories in this collection, showing the process of revision and Carver's literary development. An important proof, which reproduces numerous holograph changes in Carver's hand, including deletions, additions (sometimes whole phrases and sentences) and character name changes, among others. A remarkable glimpse of the work-in-progress, even after the proofs had been typeset. Signed by the author on the title page.
103. CARVER, Raymond. Cathedral. NY: Knopf, 1983. Uncorrected proof copy of Carver's third collection of stories to be published by a major trade publisher, and a major literary event which confirmed Carver's preeminent place among American short story writers of the day. Fine in wrappers and housed in a custom cardboard folding box.
104. CARVER, Raymond. Ultramarine. NY: Random House (1986). Uncorrected proof copy of his second collection of poetry from Random House. Fine in wrappers and signed by the author.
105. CARVER, Raymond. Where I'm Calling From. New York: Atlantic Monthly Press (1988). The uncorrected proof copy of the first trade edition of Carver's last collection of stories, which will probably stand as his defining work. This title was published just before Carver died and it includes stories selected from all of his previous collections as well as seven new, previously uncollected stories. Near fine in wrappers.
106. CARVER, Raymond. No Heroics, Please. NY: Vintage (1992). Uncorrected proof copy of this posthumously published volume of previously uncollected pieces, both poetry and prose, spanning Carver's entire writing career--from early pieces that precede his first book to book reviews and introductions written after he was a well-established, even famous, author. Edited by William Stull and with a foreword by Tess Gallagher. This was published in the U.S. only in paperback, in the Vintage Contemporaries series that Carver's Cathedral helped launch. Fine in wrappers.
107. CASEY, John. Testimony and Demeanor. NY: Knopf, 1979. Uncorrected proof copy of his second book, a highly praised collection of stories. Laid in are two pages of publisher's promotional material, with review excerpts from Casey's first novel, including a John Irving blurb. Fine in tall wrappers, with a label pasted over bottom edge of pages.
Publisher's Dummy of Willa Cather's Last Novel
108. CATHER, Willa. Sapphira and the Slave Girl. NY: Knopf, 1940. Salesman's dummy of Cather's last novel, printed on only the first 14 pages, in a proof dust jacket. Very faint foxing to foredge and slight fading to spine, but still a very nice copy. Such salesmen's dummies were produced in an era before the use of softbound prepublication copies was common, and they were done in very small quantities--the production being only slightly less elaborate than that of the finished book. Rare.
109. CHARYN, Jerome. American Scrapbook. NY: Viking (1969). Uncorrected proof copy. A novel about the internment of Japanese-Americans by the U.S. Government during World War II. Several page corners turned down, and light pencil markings by a reviewer on those pages; otherwise near fine in wrappers, and signed by the author.
110. CHARYN, Jerome. Secret Isaac. NY: Arbor House (1978). Uncorrected proof copy. Inscribed by the author with an explanatory note that "these galleys are a little screwed up - no chapter breaks, etc - But I think you should be able to make your way through..." Fine in wrappers, with dust jacket (folded) laid in.
111. CHATWIN, Bruce. In Patagonia. London: Cape (1977). Uncorrected proof copy of the author's first book, a travel account which was an instant literary sensation and put the author in the forefront of the younger generation of British travel writers and, later, novelists. After the success of this book, none of Chatwin's other, later successes could truly be termed surprises; this, however, seems to have taken the literary world by complete surprise. The first printing of the trade edition was quite small and first editions have been scarce for a number of years now; the proof is considerably more so. This is a very good copy in printed wrappers, in a custom clamshell box.
112. CHATWIN, Bruce. The Songlines. London: Cape (1987). Uncorrected proof copy of Chatwin's fourth book, and by general consensus his best--a "novel of ideas," as the publisher puts it, of Australian aborigines, and the questions about man that arise from the vast gulf that separates the culture of contemporary, Western civilized man from that of the wandering tribes of Australia, whose "dream tracks" or "songlines" delineate both a physical and a psychic geography. Mild rubbing to spine; else a very fine copy of a scarce proof, the most important book by one of the most highly regarded writers of his generation.
113. CHATWIN, Bruce. Utz. (n.p.): Viking (1989). Uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition. A novel about a connoisseur/collector of fine porcelain, which was made into a relatively little-known but well-received film. Chatwin worked for Sotheby's for a number of years before embarking on his writing career, and his view of the dealer's and collector's mentality is informed by much experience. Fine in wrappers.
114. CHATWIN, Bruce. What Am I Doing Here? (n.p.): Viking (1989). Uncorrected proof copy of the American edition of this posthumously published collection of stories, essays, profiles, etc. Fine in wrappers.
115. CHEEVER, Benjamin. The Partisan. NY: Atheneum, 1994. Uncorrected proof copy. The second novel by the son of author John Cheever, this being a comic literary novel about a writer. Fine in wrappers.
Pulitzer Prize Winner
116. CHEEVER, John. The Stories of John Cheever. NY: Knopf, 1978. Uncorrected proof copy of this massive collection, which won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award, and was a finalist for the National Book Award. One diagonal crease to upper corner of front cover and first few pages, otherwise near fine in wrappers.
117. CHRISTIE, Agatha. At Bertram's Hotel. NY: Dodd, Mead (1965). Folded and gathered sheets of the first American edition, laid into the dust jacket. Very good set. Scarce.
118. COE, Jonathan. The Winshaw Legacy. NY: Knopf, 1995. Uncorrected proof copy of the first novel to be published in the U.S. by this acclaimed British satirist. Fine in wrappers.
Booker Prize Winner
119. COETZEE, J.M. Life & Times of Michael K. NY: Viking (1984). Uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition of his Booker Prize-winning novel. Small stain to upper spine; near fine in wrappers.
120. COHEN, Leonard. Selected Poems. NY: Viking (1968). The uncorrected proofs of this collection, this copy belonging to poet Louis Simpson and bearing his penciled ownership signature on the front cover. Includes poems from his first four collections, three of which had not been published in the U.S. to that date, plus a number of new poems, including the first publication of "Suzanne"--his most famous and probably most frequently recorded song. Near fine in ringbound cardstock wrappers.
121. COLLIER, John. His Monkey Wife. Lon: Davies, 1930. The most famous novel by the longtime editor of Time and Tide, an influential literary magazine in the '20s and '30s that published such writers as D.H. Lawrence, Virginia Woolf and Robert Graves before they had ascended to the literary pantheon. Collier is best known as "a writer of fantastic stories combining satire with the macabre and the supernatural." His Monkey Wife describes the marriage between an explorer and his pet chimpanzee. This is an uncorrected proof copy in plain brown unprinted wrappers. Inscribed by the author on New Year's Eve, 1930: "To Kenneth Marchall [?]/ Many happy returns/ John Collier/ December 31, 1930." Very good in wrappers. Rare.
122. COLWIN, Laurie. Family Happiness. NY: Knopf, 1982. Uncorrected proof copy of her third novel. Near fine in wrappers.
123. COLWIN, Laurie. Another Marvelous Thing. NY: Knopf, 1986. Uncorrected proof copy, a highly praised collection of stories. Fine in wrappers.
124. CONNELLY, Michael. The Concrete Blonde. Boston: Little Brown (1994). Advance reading copy. The author's first book won an Edgar for Best First Mystery. Fine in wrappers, with publicist's card stapled to front cover.
125. CONROY, Pat. The Prince of Tides. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1986. His third novel, and the basis for the hugely successful movie. This is the advance reading copy. Very good in wrappers.
126. COOPER, Bernard. A Year of Rhymes. (n.p.): Viking, 1993. Advance reading copy of this first novel by an author whose first book--Maps to Anywhere, a collection of essays--won the PEN/Hemingway award. Fine in wrappers.
127. COOPER, Douglas. Amnesia. NY: Hyperion (1994). Advance reading copy of this award-winning first novel, by a Canadian novelist selected as one of the "Ten Best Novelists Under 45" by a Canadian literary magazine. Fine in wrappers, with publisher's promotional sheets laid in.
128. COOPER, Susan Rogers. The Man in the Green Chevy. NY: St, Martin's (1989). Uncorrected proof copy of this well-received first mystery, a scarce book in the trade edition and extremely scarce as an advance copy of any sort. Slight abrasion on the spine, otherwise fine.
129. COOVER, Robert. The Origin of the Brunists. NY: Putnam (1966). Advance copy of his first novel in glossy white wrappers. Wrappers slightly soiled; near fine. Signed by the author.
130. CORNWELL, Patricia D. All That Remains. NY: Scribner (1992). Advance reading copy of her third novel, featuring Dr. Kay Scarpetta. Near fine in wrappers.
131. CORNWELL, Patricia D. Cruel & Unusual. NY: Scribner (1993). Uncorrected proof copy of her fourth book. Very good in wrappers.
132. CORNWELL, Patricia. From Potter's Field. NY: Scribner (1995). Uncorrected proof copy. The sixth in her acclaimed series of novels featuring Dr. Kay Scarpetta. Paper clip imprint front cover; else fine in wrappers.
133. COUPLAND, Douglas. Life After God. NY: Pocket Books (1994). Uncorrected proof copy in the form of tape-bound 8 1/2" x 11" sheets, an unusual format often used by paperback publishers. By the author of Generation X, among others. Fine.
134. CRACE, Jim. Signals of Distress. NY: FSG (1995). Advance reading copy of the first American edition. Corner crease to rear cover; else fine in wrappers. Jane Smiley, Robert Olen Butler, John Fowles blurbs, among others.
135. CRAIS, Robert. Voodoo River. NY: Hyperion (1995). Advance reading copy of the new Elvis Cole novel, the fifth in the highly praised and award-winning series. Fine in wrappers.
136. CREWS, Harry. Car. NY: Morrow, 1972. The uncorrected proof copy of his fifth novel, a hilarious and grotesque novel about a man who sets out to eat a car, bumper to bumper. Signed by the author. Scarce in the trade edition, even more so in any advance state. White wrappers spine- and edge-darkened but still at least a very good copy.
137. CREWS, Harry. The Hawk is Dying. NY: Knopf, 1973. Uncorrected proof copy of his sixth novel. Tall blue wrappers, with publisher's printed label taped to front cover. This copy is inscribed by the author: "____:/ I hope you liked/ this it is one of the/ favorite things of/ mine I've done/ Harry Crews." Slight bump at upper corner; near fine in wrappers. A fragile format and a very scarce proof; we haven't seen another copy of this in years.
138. CREWS, Harry. A Feast of Snakes. NY: Atheneum, 1976. Uncorrected proof copy. With a letter laid in to author Wilfred Sheed soliciting a review. Signed by the author. Fine in wrappers. Very scarce.
139. CREWS, Harry. A Childhood: The Biography of a Place. NY: Harper & Row (1978). Uncorrected proof copy of this highly praised memoir. Fine in wrappers.
140. CREWS, Harry. The Knockout Artist. NY: Harper & Row (1988). Uncorrected proof copy of this novel about a boxer, which combines the toughness and sweetness, as well as the humor, that Crews is known for. This is the first issue, shot from typescript and paginated to 382. Fine in yellow wrappers.
141. -. Same title, the second issue of the proof, typeset and paginated to 247. Fine in tan wrappers.
142. CRICHTON, Michael. The Terminal Man. NY: Knopf, 1972. Uncorrected proof copy of this early novel of the intersection of science and ethics, by the author of The Andromeda Strain and, more recently, Jurassic Park and Rising Sun. Fine in tall wrappers.
Hardbound Franklin Library Proof
143. CRICHTON, Michael. Congo. Franklin Center: Franklin Library, 1980. The limited edition of this African adventure novel that is also a techno-thriller, a combination that the author has turned into his own private niche in contemporary fiction. This is a proof of the Franklin Library limited edition, in full green leather, without spine lettering or other stamping. Proofs such as these seldom migrate outside of the publisher. A fine copy of a very scarce state.