Uncorrected Proofs/Advance Copies, F-G
204. FINNEY, Jack. From Time to Time. NY: Simon & Schuster (1995). Uncorrected proof copy, the sequel to the classic Time and Again. Fine in wrappers.
205. FISHER, M.F.K. Among Friends. (Berkeley): North Point Press (1983). Uncorrected proof copy in the form of bound 11" x 8 1/2" sheets, printed on rectos only. Dust jacket art laid in. Fine. A format that suggests only a handful would have been produced.
206. FISHER, M.F.K. Sister Age. NY: Knopf, 1983. Uncorrected proof copy. Promotional information stapled inside front cover; near fine in wrappers that are spine-darkened, with a few spots on them.
207. FISHER, M.F.K. Long Ago in France. NY: Prentice Hall (1991). Advance reading copy of this memoir of the author's time in France in the Twenties. Fine in wrappers.
208. FISHER, M.F.K. "Coveting." [November, 1989]. Proof copy; two photocopied typeset pages, with holograph corrections, presumably in her editor's hand. Folded for mailing; else fine. With mailing envelope.
209. FITZGERALD, F. Scott. F. Scott Fitzgerald. A Life in Letters. NY: Scribner (1994). Uncorrected proof copy of this chronological collection of Fitzgerald's letters, the first collection to be published in over 30 years. A fine copy in wrappers.
210. FORCH, Carolyn. The Country Between Us. NY: Harper & Row (1982). Uncorrected proof copy of her first collection of poems to be published by a major trade publisher. An influential collection, for its merging of an activist political sensibility with highly accomplished and literate poetry. While we have no figures for the number of copies of this proof prepared, other poetry collections from the period--by writers who were similarly young and relatively "lesser-known"--have been reported to have been prepared in quantities below 20 copies. In any case, a very scarce proof, in our experience.
211. FOWLES, John. The French Lieutenant's Woman. London: Cape (1969). Uncorrected proof copy of the first edition of what many consider to be Fowles's best and most important book, a landmark novel that uses an unconventional love story to explore the decline of Victorian England and the advent of the modern age and modern notions of freedom and self. Spine-creased and cocked; outer edges sunned; the cheap proofing paper has acidified at different rates, causing browning to some of the signatures. A very good copy in wrappers, and very scarce.
212. FOWLES, John. The Ebony Tower. London: Jonathan Cape (1974). Uncorrected proof copy of the first British edition of this collection of novellas. Fine in near fine, mildly edgeworn dust jacket. A nice copy of this proof, which seems to turn up fairly often but seldom in nice shape.
213. FRAZIER, Ian. Family. NY: FSG (1994). Advance reading copy of this highly praised memoir by a New Yorker staff writer, the author of Great Plains, among others. Fine in wrappers.
214. FREEMAN, Judith. A Desert of Pure Feeling. NY: Pantheon (1996). Advance reading copy of the new novel by the author of Set for Life, which won the Western Heritage Award for best novel. Fine in wrappers.
215. FRENCH, Albert. Holly. (n.p.): Viking (1995). Advance reading copy of the second novel by the author of the highly praised novel, Billy. A fine copy in illustrated wrappers.
216. GADDIS, William. J.R. NY: Knopf, 1975. The uncorrected proof copy of the author's massive second novel, winner of the National Book Award. Light creasing to spine; a few tiny spots on rear cover; still just about fine in wrappers.
217. GAITSKILL, Mary. Bad Behavior. NY: Poseidon (1988). Advance reading copy of this highly praised first book. Slight rippling to bottom page edges but near fine in glossy printed wrappers.
218. GALLANT, Mavis. In Transit. (Markham): Viking (1988). Uncorrected proof copy; a collection of stories. Fine in wrappers.
219. GARDNER, John. Grendel. NY: Knopf (1971). Uncorrected proof copy of Gardner's third novel, which many think his best. A retelling of the Beowulf legend from the perspective of the monster, this novel allowed Gardner to incorporate his knowledge as a scholar of old English literature into his contemporary fiction in a way no other of his books did. This proof is in tall wrappers, reproducing page numbers in holograph, amd with the title page and cover reproduced from typescript. This is the only copy of this proof we have ever seen offered on the market. Fine in custom slipcase.
220. GARDNER, John. Jason & Medeia. NY: Knopf, 1973. An epic poem based on the Greek myths. Uncorrected proof copy. Fine in wrappers and signed by the author. Proofs from this era are quite uncommon; the tall format of this, and many others from this period, derives from galleys and is quite unwieldy, suggesting that fewer were created and sent out for promotional purposes than is commonly the case these days.
221. -. Another copy, unsigned. Very good in wrappers.
222. GARDNER, John. The King's Indian. NY: Knopf, 1974. A collection of stories. This is an uncorrected proof copy, with review slip and author's photo laid in. Fine in tall wrappers, and signed by the author. Very scarce in proof form, and especially so signed.
223. GARDNER, John. On Writers and Writing. NY: Addison-Wesley (1994). Uncorrected proof copy of this volume collecting Gardner's reviews and essays on writers, books and writing, including the classic and controversial "An Invective Against Mere Fiction." With an introduction by National Book Award-winning author Charles Johnson. Fine in wrappers.
224. GARRETT, George. The Succession. Garden City: Doubleday, 1983. Uncorrected proof copy of this book in his highly praised Elizabethan series. Small tear to bottom edge of front cover, otherwise near fine in tall wrappers. Warmly inscribed by the author.
Advance Sheets of a Scarce First Novel
225. GODWIN, Gail. The Perfectionists. NY: Harper & Row (1970). Advance copy of the author's elusive first book, consisting of galley sheets printed on the rectos only. With publisher's cover sheet providing a brief description of the book. A near fine set of these sheets, and a very scarce format. It's hard to imagine more than a handful of these being produced.
226. GOLDING, William. Pincher Martin. London: Faber & Faber (1956). Uncorrected proof copy of the third book by the Nobel Prize-winning author of Lord of the Flies. Interestingly, that title is listed in this proof under Golding's previous publications as God of the Flies. Minor wear and spotting; still about near fine in wrappers. An early proof, and very scarce.
227. GOLDING, William. Free Fall. London: Faber & Faber (1959). Uncorrected proof copy of his fourth novel. This copy is in green wrappers, like the above proof, and has an ink name on the front cover and mild edge staining. Still a very good copy of a scarce, early proof.
228. -. Another copy, this one in grey wrappers, and perhaps thus a second state although we don't have any conclusive indication of priority. This is a crisp, near fine copy.
Proof Copy of a Contemporary Classic
229. GOLDMAN, William. The Princess Bride. NY: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1973. Uncorrected proof copy of this acclaimed and beloved novel, basis for the movie. Large format, in tall, wide (in-house?) wrappers: a fragile and somewhat unwieldy format, suggesting that few copies would have been produced thus. The book itself is quite scarce, the proof much more so. The only copy of this proof that we have seen or handled.
230. GORDIMER, Nadine. None to Accompany Me. NY: FSG (1994). Advance reading copy of the first American edition of this novel by the South African Nobel Prize winner. Fine in wrappers.
231. GRAU, Shirley Ann. Roadwalkers. NY: Knopf, 1994. Uncorrected proof copy. The latest novel by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Keepers of the House, a tale of two black women in the Depression-era South. Fine in wrappers.
Rare Graham Greene Proof with "Libelous" and Suppressed Text
232. GREENE, Graham. Stamboul Train. London: Heinemann, 1932. Rare proof copy of this early Greene novel, his fourth, with textual differences from the published book. Novelist and critic J. B. Priestly read one of the advance copies of this book and had concluded that the portrait of the popular novelist "Mr. Savory" was a caricature of himself. Under threat of a libel suit from Mr. Priestly, Heinemann insisted that Greene make a small number of rather trivial alterations as demanded by Priestley. The published book there differs in historically significant details from the present text. This is a very good copy or better in wrappers of a modern rarity.
233. GREENE, Graham. The Honorary Consul. NY: Simon & Schuster (1973). Uncorrected proof copy of the American edition, with photocopied holograph corrections throughout. Even surface- soiling; else fine in wrappers. A scarce proof.
234. GREENE, Graham. The Captain and the Enemy. (n.p.): Viking (1988). Uncorrected proof copy of this novel, his 38th book. Reproduces holograph changes to the text. Very good in wrappers.
235. GREENE, Graham. The Graham Greene Film Reader. NY: Applause Books (1994). Uncorrected proof copy of the first American edition of this massive collection of his reviews, essays on film, treatments and scripts, and letters pertaining to the movies, many of which have not appeared in book form previously. Includes a list of Greene films as well as a detailed list of film projects undertaken but not completed or produced. Fine in wrappers.
236. GREENE, Graham. A World of My Own. A Dream Diary. (n.p.): Viking (1994). Uncorrected proof copy of this posthumously published selection from Greene's own record of his dreams over the last 25 years of his life. Fine in wrappers.
237. GRIMM, Mary. Left to Themselves. NY: Random House (1993). Uncorrected proof copy of her first book, a novel. One of the author's stories was selected by The Best American Short Stories 1988 as one of the distinguished stories of the year. Fine in wrappers.
238. GRIMM, Mary. Stealing Time. NY: Random House (1994). Uncorrected proof copy of the author's first collection of stories, a number of which appeared in The New Yorker. Fine in wrappers.
239. GROOM, Winston. Forrest Gump. Garden City: Doubleday, 1986. Advance reading copy. Near fine in illustrated wrappers, which reproduce in a single color the artwork that was later incorporated onto the dust jacket of the finished book. Since the success of the movie--for which Tom Hanks won an award, and which has become one of the top-grossing films of all time--"Forrest Gump" has become part of our cultural vocabulary.
240. -. Same title, the unbound proof pages. Stamped "Preliminary (Proofread) Pages" with an indication that remaining errors and alterations will be corrected in succeeding readings. Fine.
241. GROOM, Winston. Gump & Co. NY: Pocket Books (1995). Proof copy of this novel written in the wake of the success of the movie version of Groom's novel Forrest Gump. A book apparently issued to cash in on the "Gump" craze--a shamelessly mercenary move for which its author can perhaps be forgiven, considering the amazing fact that his royalties from the film, when it had grossed $329 million, had thus far amounted to $0, as the movie had still not made a profit, according to the legendary Hollywood accountants and their own fictions. Fine in wrappers.
242. GRUMBACH, Doris. Fifty Days of Solitude. Boston: Beacon Press (1994). Advance reading copy of this highly praised memoir of a self-imposed fifty-day retreat in the Maine winter that became an extended meditation and reflection on life, solitude and creativity. Grumbach has been literary editor of The New Republic, a contributing editor of The New York Times Book Review and a regular commentator on literary matters for NPR. Fine in wrappers.
243. GRUNWALD, Lisa. The Theory of Everything. NY: Knopf, 1991. Uncorrected proof copy. A novel about a physicist who reconciles grand scientific theories but cannot fathom his own life. Fine in wrappers.
244. GUY, Rosa. The Sun, the Sea, A Touch of the Wind. (NY): Dutton (1995). Uncorrected proof copy of this new novel by one of the founders of the Harlem Writers Guild, a native of Trinidad who emigrated to the U.S. at the age of seven. Fine in wrappers.