Modern First Editions

Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1941. First Edition. Hardcover. Covers soiled and worn, lacking the dustwrapper. Good in a Fine custom morocco-backed clamshell box. INSCRIBED and SIGNED by the author for George [Davis] "Who is my Best and Campiest Friend-- /And who, also, is the first/person to really take to this book-/You have helped me and/encouraged me in all ways/that were in your power-/And you know that I love you./Carson." Davis, a magazine editor who later married Lotte Lenya, made his house in Brooklyn into something of an artists colony serving as a home at various times for McCullers, W. H. Auden, Benjamin Britten, Paul Bowles, Gypsy Rose Lee, and others. Davis discovered the manuscript for REFLECTIONS, which according to Virginia Spencer Carr in THE LONELY HUNTER: A BIOGRAPHY OF CARSON MCCULLERS, lay dormant in a dresser drawer for almost a year (page 99), and urged McCullers to let his magazine, Harper's Bazaar, publish it. The author's inscription clearly shows her gratitude to Davis for… Read More

London: John Long, Limited, [1935] & ;1937] Two Volumes, 1935. 1st Edition. Soft cover. 1st Edition. Soft cover. [NABOKOV, Vladimir] NABOKOFF-SIRIN, Vladimir. CAMERA OBSCURA. DESPAIR. Both of the John Long Nabokov Rarities. Translated from the Russian by Winifred Roy & the first translation of any of Nabokov's books into English. [Juliar D14.4] 8vo., 288pp + 16 pp ads. Original black cloth, titles to upper board & spine gilt. Small, neat mostly faded name on the front pastedown. A very good or better copy of the First English Language Edition. The very uncommon first of Long's Nabokov publications. With: DESPAIR. Translated from the Russian by the author. [Juliar A15.2]. 8vo., 288pp. + 24 pp ads. Original black cloth, titles to upper board & spine gilt. A very good or better copy of the First English Edition. The second of Long's publications of Nabokov & almost as uncommon as the first. The first substantial publication by the author in English. Both volumes together. Custom cut stiff Mylar clear… Read More

Boston: Little, Brown & Company, 1952. First Edition. Hardcover. Dust Jacket Included. First Edition. Hardcover. Signed by Author. Salinger, J.D. THE CATCHER IN THE RYE. Signed. Boston: Little Brown, 1952. A fine SIGNED copy of the March, 1952 reprint of the first edition. [The first issue was July, 1951]. 8vo., 277pp., black cloth, gilt. Salinger's remarkable first book, neatly signed in black fountain pen at the top of the title page. An excellent example of Salinger's elusive signature - The binding is fine; the dustwrapper very good or better with the $3.00 price present & nine reviews on the back panel replacing Salinger's photo after the first few early printings at his insistence. Custom clamshell case in very fine condition. The probable High Spot in Modern American Lit collecting, "The Catcher In The Rye is undoubtedly a 20th-century classic. It struck a popular note, particularly with young readers, who strongly identified with Holden Caulfield and his yearning for lost innocence.… Read More

New York: The Viking Press, 1973. First edition of Pynchon's National Book Award-winning novel. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "To Herb Yellin- Regards, Thomas Pynchon." The recipient Herb Yellin, was the publisher and founder of Lord John Press, considered by many to be one of the most important small presses of the 20th century. He formed a friendship with the author, Thomas Pynchon. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with some light wear to the extremities and a closed tear to the rear panel. Jacket design by Marc Getter. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Books signed and inscribed by Pynchon are one of the great rarities of twentieth century literature. “Gravity's Rainbow is one of the few truly great novels of the century, and at the same time one of the most disappointing, disturbing, maddening…. One of the most original fictive styles to have been developed since Joyce” (Contemporary Novelists, 1136). It is… Read More

New York: Jonathan Cape & Harrison Smith, 1929. First Edition. Near Fine/Very Good. First edition, first printing. Bound in publisher's black and white Art Deco style boards over white cloth spine lettered in black. Near Fine with toning to pages and top and bottom edges of covers. In a Very Good first issue dust jacket with Humanity Uprooted priced at $3.00 on the rear panel; toning to spine with fading to red print there, light edge wear, light soiling, and erased pencil notation to rear flap corner. A fantastic copy in the scarce first issue dust jacket.

London: Bloomsbury. 1998. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. 0747538492 . Near Fine in a Very Good+ dust jacket. Pages are toned and some light edge wear to the jacket. Authenticated by Beckett with the sticker on the page J K Rowling has signed with a matched COA from Beckett. ; Signed by J. K. Rowling on title page. ; 7.9 X 5.1 X 1.1 inches; 251 pages; Original unclipped dust jacket protected by archival Brodart cover. All domestic orders shipped protected in a Box. ; Signed by Author .

New York: Viking. 1957. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. Good+ in a Very Good dust jacket. Owner personalization on title page. Rubbing along panel edges. Light chipping at spine crown/heel. Shelf wear on front/rear boards and spine. ; Check signed by Jack Kerouac laid in. .

New York: Charles L. Webster and Company. 1885. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. Very Good. Contains the three first printing points: "Huck Decided to Leave" on p. 9; "Him and another Man" listed on p. 87; and "with the was" on p. 57. Photogravure frontispiece of Karl Gerhardt's portrait bust of Clemens, illustrations after E. W. Kemble in the text throughout. Both hinges starting. Rubbing along panel edges. Bumping at panel corners and spine crown. Chipping at spine heel. Light staining on rear end page and both sides of FEP. .

First edition, first impression (Collins Clear-Type Press: London and Glasgow, 1958). Signed and inscribed by the author to the front endpaper: "To Nina, with best wishes, Michael Bond". The dedicatee is Nina Froud who was a personal friend of the author and worked at his literary agency. The first book in the Paddington series where one of the most iconic and beloved British fictional characters first appeared, later going on to form the basis of several ongoing TV and successful film adaptations. Publisher's original red cloth with silver lettering to spine containing illustrations by Peggy Fortnum. A beautiful, fine and pristine book throughout, save for a touch of off-setting to endpapers. Appears unread. The original complete dust jacket is not price-clipped and is in unusually superior condition with a chip to spine head - not affecting any lettering - and a closed tear to top of upper panel fore-edge with a couple of tiny and inconspicuous nicks to the top edge of lower panel. A very rare… Read More

New York: MacMillan Company. 1936. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. Very Good+ in a Very Good+ dust jacket. First issue with "Published May 1936" on copyright page in first issue jacket with rear panel headed "Macmillan Spring Novels" listing Gone with The Wind as the second title in the second column. Binding tight and square. Original full-bound cloth boards present, in exceptional condition for their age, with slight wear to corners as shown. Minimal wear present to boards and text block, with some wear evident to the original dust jacket, with a repaired tears on both the front and back covers, as well as some chipping losses at spine corners, and wear to the edges at bottom and top. Clipped (as is typical) at the top corner, with original price of $3 not clipped at the bottom left. Overall a very nice example. ; Signed by Margaret Mitchell on the first free end page. ; 8vo 8" - 9" tall; 1037 pages; Signed by Author .

London: George Allen & Unwin, Ltd.. 1966-1967. Second Revised Edition. Hardcover. All three volumes Very Good+ in a Very Good+ dust jacket. The Fellowship of the Ring 2nd impresssion, faint stain on FEP. Marring on both The Two Towers and The Return of the King front flaps. ; The Return of the King signed by J. R. R. Tolkien on title page. ; Signed by Author .

New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. 1925. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. Very Good+ in the original third state dust jacket professionally restored Very Good+. Scribners Seal Errors not corrected that verify true first printing: p.60, line 16–“chatter”; p. 119, line 22–“northern”; p. 165, line 29–“away”; p. 205–lines 9-10–“sick in tired”; p. 211, lines 7-8–“Union Street station”. The first issue dust jacket had a lowercase “j” in “jay Gatsby” on the back panel, the First issue jacket was corrected by hand and the capital letter “J” was hand written over the lower case these are considered the second state. For the third state the jacket has book reviews on the back of the dust jacket, as well as on both inner flaps. There were 20,870 copies of the first second and third states only 3000 copies of the third state. With 3,000 third state jackets printed this is… Read More

Philadelphia: Chilton Book Company. 1970. First Edition; Third Printing. Hardcover. Very Good+ in a Near Fine dust jacket. Miniscule stain on top text block edge. ; Signed by Frank Herbert on table of contents. ; Signed by Author .

New York: J. B. Lippincott. 1960. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. Very Good+ in a Very Good dust jacket. Owner imprint on rear end page. Rubbing along panel edges.1/2 inch open tear at top of rear flap fold. Light staining at top of rear gutter. .

THE HOBBIT, 1st American edition, 1st state with bowing Hobbit on the title page, J R R Tolkien, Houghton & Mifflin, Boston & New York, 1938. All points correct for 1st edition, 1st state. No signatures, inscriptions, book plates. No foxing, stains or handling marks. A very clean copy with excellent boards, spine and maps. The original dust jacket has tears and losses, missing the front flap, colours very good, now in archival protective cover.