Random House. Hardcover. 0375500154 A wonderful copy with some minor edgewear to the cover. Dust Jacket has some edgewear present. 1997 Random House Hard Cover . Very Good. 1997. (more information)

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Random House. Used - Good. Former Library book. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Shipped to over one million happy customers! Your purchase benefits world literacy! (more information)

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Random House, 1997-01-01. Hardcover. New. GREAT Bargain Book Deal - some may have small remainder mark - Ships out by NEXT Business Day - 100% Satisfaction Guarantee! (more information)

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1997. hard cover. (more information)

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Random House Nearly perfect condition.. HARDCOVER. VG. (more information)

Offered by Jekyll and Hyde Booksellers (United States)

Random House Inc, 1997. Hard Cover. As New/Fine. 365p Approx 7x9x1.5". As new, hard cover, brown decorative jacket is fine, but does have a small crinkled area top bk because of the material jacket is made from. White decorative boards are as new, and so is the interior. Pages are crisp & white, text & margins unmarked, binding is solid & strong, no odor. Book sits flat and square, no prev owner, stated 1st ed. A v clean and stiff book at a vg price. Always immediate, professional service, with satisfaction guaranteed since 2000. Shipped from Indiana on the same day, or the next day, in a box with delivery con. Thank you for looking. (more information)

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Random House, 1997-08-19. Hardcover. Very Good. Gently read copy. Pages crisp with no markings or tears. Dust jacket bright and clean with shelfwear. (more information)

Offered by Brass City Books (United States)

New York, NY: Random House Inc. 1997. F First Edition. H Hard Cover. Very Good. (more information)

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Westminster, Maryland, U.S.A.: Random House Inc, 1997 with dust jacket, . Hard Cover. Good/Good. (more information)

Offered by Midwest Book Company (United States)

Random House, 1997. very good book in like dj. first edition. great copy.. First Edition. Hard Cover. Very Good Plus/Very Good Plus. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. (more information)

Offered by Martin Lanaux, Bookseller (United States)

Westminster, Maryland, U.S.A.: Random House Inc., 1997 Book is in excellent condition!. Hard Cover. Very Good/Very Good Dust Jacket. Hard Back. (more information)

Offered by Picasso Books (United States)

New York: Random House, 1997. First Edition: HardCover! 8vo., 365 pages, Index. The acclaimed author of 'A Sport And A Pastime' "What a wonderful book! - Joseph Heller. This book appears unread and is unmarked and fine in a fine unmarked dust jacket! A very collectable copy of this title! ISBN: 0375500154 (more information)

Offered by Ecce Puer Fine Books (United States)

New York: Random House. 1997. First Edition, Second Printing. H Hard Cover. Very Good. Very Good in boards; Light wear to boards. (more information)

Offered by Arundel Books of Seattle (United States)

NY: Random House. 1st?. 1997. VG/VG-. Hard Cover. remainder dot top ed; stated 1st but series of ascending numbers begins with 2; dj has 2" tear top front edge ISBN:0375500154 . (more information)

Offered by The Old Library Bookshop (United States)

1997, 1997. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good+/Very Good-. Very Good+/Very Good-. First Edition. 0375500154 Hardcover in (more information)

Offered by Foolscap Books (United States)

Random House; Stated 1st Edition; Very Good in Very Good dust jacket. 1997. Hardcover. 0375500154 . A very nice ex-lib copy with expected markings. ; In this brilliant book of recollection, one of America's finest writers re-creates people, places, and events spanning some fifty years, bringing to life an entire era through one man's sensibility. ; Ex-Lib; 8vo; 365/index pages . (more information)

Offered by IndyBook Lady (United States)

New York: Random House, 1997. First edition. Fine in Fine dustjacket. Unread. Brodart. 'In this brilliant book of recollection, one of America's finest writers re-creates people, places, and events spanning some fifty years, bringing to life an entire era through one man's sensibility. Scenes of love and desire, friendship, ambition, life in foreign cities and New York, are unforgettably rendered here in the unique style for which James Salter is widely admired. Burning the Days captures a singular life, beginning with a Manhattan boyhood and then, satisfying his father's wishes, graduation from West Point, followed by service in the Air Force as a pilot. In some of the most evocative pages ever written about flying, Salter describes the exhilaration and terror of combat as a fighter pilot in the Korean War, scenes that are balanced by haunting pages of love and a young man's passion for women. After resigning from the Air Force, Salter begins a second life, becoming a writer in the New York of the 1960s. Soon films beckon. There are vivid portraits of actors, directors, and producers--Polanski, Robert Redford, and others. Here also, more important, are writers who were influential, some by their character, like Irwin Shaw, others because of their taste and knowledge. Ultimately Burning the Days is an illumination of what it is to be a man, and what it means to become a writer. Only once in a long while--Vladimir Nabokov's Speak, Memory or Isak Dinesen's Out of Africa--does a memoir of such extraordinary clarity and power appear. Unconventional in form, Burning the Days is a stunning achievement by the writer The Washington Post Book World said "inhabits the same rarefied heights as Flannery O'Connor, Paul Bowles, Tennessee Williams and John Cheever"--a rare and unforgettable book. '. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Fine. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. (more information)

Offered by The Wandering Scholar, Bookseller (United States)

New York: Vintage, 1997. Copy has lightly bumped endspines and corners, and a heavily scuffed lower front wrap. Copy is SIGNED by Salter on the title page. . Signed. Wraps. VG-. 8vo. (more information)

Offered by Spivey's Rare Books, Maps and Fine Art (United States)

New York, NY, U.S.A.: Random House, Incorporated, 1997. Captures a singular life, beginning with a Manhattan boyhood and then, satisfying his father's wishes, graduation from West Point, followed by service in the Air Force as a pilot. In some of the most evocative pages ever written about flying, Salter describes the exhilaration and tewrror of combat as a fighter pilot in the Korean War, scenes that are balanced by haunting pages of love and a young man's passion for women.. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. (more information)

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New York:: Random House Inc,, 1997. 1st ed. Hard Cover. Fine in Fine dj. 1st printing, (more information)

Offered by Monkey See, Monkey Read (United States)

Random House, 1997. Mild bump at base of spine. dustjacket with light wear, very small tear at base of spine. Signed on second front endpaper by the author. Index, 365 pp. (Lit. bio.) Clean tight copy. . Signed by Author. First Edition. Hard Cover. Very Good/Very Good. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾". (more information)

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NY:: Random House,, 1997. First Edition. HC. A fine tight copy in fine dustjacket. Protected by a mylar cover. (more information)

Offered by Books Again, Inc. (United States)

New York, NY: Random House, 1997 A nice reading copy. Pages are clean and bright. Binding is tight. Book and jacket show some shelfwear. Vellum jacket has a small tear on the top edge at the back and there are warp marks on the front and back. Front flap has a fold.. First Edition, 2nd Printing. Hard Cover. Very Good -/Good. (more information)

Offered by after-words bookstore (United States)

Random House, 1997. First Edition. Hardcover. Used - Like New. As New / As New Jacket. Library Journal: A "writer's writer," despite his Sport and a Pastime's inclusion in the Modern Library, the 72-year-old Salter uses his autobiography not to bathe in the glow of celebrity names (in fact, he makes a point of using noms de plume) but, rather, to discover the overall trajectory of his life thus far - a purpose that perhaps accounts for the book's unwavering tone of humility, candor, and authenticity.--- Toronto Store Pick-up Available. ***FREE US STANDARD SHIPPING*** (more information)

Offered by The Recycled Book Shop (Canada)

Random House. New; May have light shelf wear and ink mark (remainder mark) on outer edge. SATISFACTION GUARANTEED! 1997. Hardcover. 1.25 x 9.75 x 6.75 Inches; 365 pages . (more information)

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New York, NY, U.S.A.: Random House, Incorporated, 1997. Jacket is wrinkled in back. 369 pages including index. An American author's reflections on 50 years of observing people and events.. ISBN: 0375500154. First Edition. Hard Cover. Very Good/Good+. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. KOREAN WAR 1950 1953 PERSONAL NARRATIVES AMERICAN AUTHORS HISTORY MILITARY LITERARY CRITICISM GENERAL. (more information)

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New York, NY, U.S.A.: Random House, Incorporated, 1997. First Edition. Hard Cover. As New/Fine. (more information)

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New York: Random House, 1997. Fine (owner's name on page after colored ffep)/Fine. A crisp and clean tight, unread copy.. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Fine. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. (more information)

Offered by modern-ISM (United States)

New York, NY, U.S.A.: Random House, Incorporated, 1997. Fine, in fine, mylar-protected dust jacket.. ISBN: 0375500154. First Edition, First Printing. Hard Cover. Fine/Fine. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. KOREAN WAR 1950 1953 PERSONAL NARRATIVES AMERICAN AUTHORS HISTORY MILITARY LITERARY CRITICISM GENERAL. (more information)

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New York: Random House, 1997. Book in Mylar cover. First Edition, First Printing. No remainder marks, no ink markings. NOT priced clipped. In well packed Boxes - no padded envelopes.. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Fine. (more information)

Offered by All-Ways Fiction (United States)

Random House, 1997, 1997 Cloth. As New/As New. First Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.. First Edition. Cloth. As New/As New. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. (more information)

Offered by Jeff Bergman Books ABAA/ILAB (United States)

New York, NY, U.S.A.: Random House, Incorporated, 1997. Stated first edition.D/J a little wavy on front .KOREAN WAR 1950 1953 PERSONAL NARRATIVES AMERICAN AUTHORS LITERARY CRITICISM GENERAL HISTORY MILITARY. ISBN: 0-375-50015-4. FIRST EDITION. Hard Cover. Very Good/Good. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" Tall. KOREAN WAR 1950 1953 PERSONAL NARRATIVES AMERICAN AUTHORS LITERARY CRITICISM GENERAL HISTORY MILITARY. (more information)

Offered by Pinacle Books (United States)

Mississauga, ON, Canada: Random House of Canada, Limited. Fine in Near Fine dust jacket. 1997. First Edition. Hardcover. 0375500154 . New book, unmarked and unread but for one nick to translucent dj at base of spine. . (more information)

Offered by B-Line Books (Canada)

Random House. Used - Very Good. Signed by Author/Illustrator. Hardcover with dustjacket. Very good condition; edges, corners, and covers of book show minor wear. No underlining; no highlighting; no internal markings. DJ is Very Good. Blue remainder notation on bottom edge. In sealed plastic protection. Re-issue. 1997. Hardcover with dustjacket. Signed by Author/Illustrator. (more information)

Offered by BookZone U.S.A. (United States)

New York: Random House. #55244 . VG/VG. 1997. 1st. HE . hb. w/dj. 365p . very light shelf wear o/w fine, clean & tight, paste-in residue on . fep. & inside front cover. . (more information)

Offered by Ayerego Books (IOBA) (Canada)

New York: Random House, 1997. A recollection by an award winning author. " In this brilliant book of recollections one of America's finest writers re-creates people, places and events spanning some fifty years.". First Edition. Fine/Near Fine. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Hardcover. (more information)

Offered by Parnassian Books & Mysterious Prose, Inc. (United States)

NY: Random House, 1997. First printing. As new in an as new dustjacket. A critically acclaimed, superbly written memoir by a West Point graduate, Korean War fighter pilot, Hollywood screenplay writer, and brilliant novelist.. First Edition. /As New. (more information)

Offered by Bruce Davidson Books (United States)

New York: Random House, 1997. Text is clean and tight. Beige hardcover with black lettering. Dust jacket is creased with small tears (1/8") on the ends of the spine. . First Printing. Hard Cover. Very Good/Good +. 9.5". (more information)

Offered by Beal Street Books (United States)

New York: Random House. Very Good in Very Good dust jacket. (1997). First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. Ivory paper-covered boards with black lettering to the front and spine. Remainder dot to the top edge of the text-block. Otherwise fine. Jacket is very good with a small crease at the bottom of the rear flap. Signed by Salter on the front fly leaf. From the jacket: "In this brilliant book of recollection, one of America's finest writers re-creates people, places, and events spanning some fifty years, bringing to life an entire era through one man's sensibility. Scenes of love and desire, friendship, ambition, life in foreign cities and New York, are unforgettably rendered here in the unique style for which James Salter is widely admired. Burning the Days captures a singular life, beginning with a Manhattan boyhood and then, satisfying his father's wishes, graduation from West Point, followed by service in the Air Force as a pilot. In some of the most evocative pages ever written about flying, Salter describes the exhilaratio n and terror of combat as a fighter pilot in the Korean War, scenes that are balanced by haunting pages of love and a young man's passion for women. After resigning from the Air Force, Salter begins a second life, becoming a writer in the New York of the 1960s. Soon films beckon. There are vivid portraits of actors, directors, and producers -- Polanski, Robert Redford, and others. Here also, more important, are writers who were influential, some by their character, like Irwin Shaw, others because of their taste and knowledge. Ultimately Burning the Days is an illumination of what it is to be a man, and what it means to become a writer." ; 8vo; 365 pages; Signed by Author . (more information)

Offered by Carolina Moon (United States)

NY:: Random House,, (1997). First Edition,. Hc. SIGNED by the author on the half title page, remainder dot on top edge, otherwise this is a near fine copy in like dustjacket. Protected in a mylar cover. (more information)

Offered by Books Again, Inc. (United States)

New York, NY: Random House,, 1997. 365pp. A fine hardcover copy of the first edition in dust jacket signed by the author on a tipped-in page.. ISBN: 0375500154. Signed by Author. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine, Unread/Fine. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Signed By Author. (more information)

Offered by Maple Ridge Books (Canada)

very good, very good Random House New York c1997 First Second 25 cm, 365 Satisfying his father's wishes, graduation from West Point was followed by service in the U.S. Air Force. Salter records combat as a pilot in the Korean War, scenes that are balanced by haunting pages of a young man's passion and sense of honor. (more information)

Offered by Ground Zero Books, Ltd. (United States)

Random House. Hardcover. Very Good. Satisfaction Guaranteed! (more information)

Offered by more books (United States)

New York: Random House, 1997. SIGNED by author on title page. Bookstore autograph label on front of dustjacket.. Signed by Author. First Edition. Hard Cover. NF/NF. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. (more information)

Offered by Elkhorn Books (United States)

NY:Random House,1997 First edition / First printing. Uncorrected proof. Printed wrappers. Very fine. ISBN: 0375500154. (more information)

Offered by Orpheus Books (United States)

Random House, 1997. signed by the author on the title page, dust jacket is protected by a clear mylar cover, 365 pages, The life of one who graduated from West Point, served in the Air Force as a pilot in the Korean War, and then became a writer in New York in the 1960s.. Signed By the Author. First Edition. Hard Back. New/New. (more information)

Offered by Moody Books Inc (United States)

NY:Random House,1997 First edition / First printing. One of an unspecified number of copies signed on a special tipped-in page. Ivory paper-covered boards. Very fine in fine dust jacket. Signed by the author. ISBN: 0375500154. (more information)

Offered by Orpheus Books (United States)

NY: Random House Inc, 1997 First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Price Clipped. (more information)

Offered by SYLVESTER & ORPHANOS (United States)

Random House Inc, 1997. Hardcover. Brand New. 9.80 x 6.80 x 1.20. Brand new. Never read or owned. May have a remainder mark. 24.8 oz. In this book of recollection, one of America's finest writers re-creates people, places, and events spanning some fifty years, bringing to life an entire era through one man's sensibility. Scenes of love and desire, friendship, ambition, life in foreign cities and New York, are rendered here in the unique style for which James Salter is widely admired. Burning the Days captures a singular life, beginning with a Manhattan boyhood and then, satisfying his father's wishes, graduation from West Point, followed by service in the Air Force as a pilot. Salter describes the exhilaration and terror of combat as a fighter pilot in the Korean War, scenes that are balanced by haunting pages of love and a young man's passion for women. After resigning from the Air Force, Salter begins a second life, becoming a writer in the New York of the 1960s. Soon films beckon. There are vivid portraits of actors, directors, and producers - Polanski, Robert Redford, and others. Here also, more important, are writers who were influential, some by their character, like Irwin Shaw, others because of their taste and knowledge. Ultimately Burning the Days is an illumination of what it is to be a man, and what it means to become a writer. -- In this brilliant book of recollection, one of Americas finest writers re-creates people, places, and events spanning some fifty years, bringing to life an entire era through one mans sensibility. Scenes of love and desire, friendship, ambition, life in foreign cities and New York, are unforgettably rendered here in the unique style for which James Salter is widely admired.Burning the Days captures a singular life, beginning with a Manhattan boyhood and then, satisfying his fathers wishes, graduation from West Point, followed by service in the Air Force as a pilot. In some of the most evocative pages ever written about flying, Salter describes the exhilaration and terror of combat as a fighter pilot in the Korean War, scenes that are balanced by haunting pages of love and a young mans passion for women.After resigning from the Air Force, Salter begins a second life, becoming a writer in the New York of the 1960s. Soon films beckon. There are vivid portraits of actors, directors, and producers--Polanski, Robert Redford, and others. Here also, more important, are writers who were influential, some by their character, like Irwin Shaw, others because of their taste and knowledge.Ultimately Burning the Days is an illumination of what it is to be a man, and what it means to become a writer.Only once in a long while--Vladimir Nabokovs Speak, Memory or Isak Dinesens Out of Africa--does a memoir of such extraordinary clarity and power appear. Unconventional in form, Burning the Days is a stunning achievement by the writer The Washington Post Book World said inhabits the same rarefied heights as Flannery O'Connor, Paul Bowles, Tennessee Williams and John Cheever --a rare and unforgettable book. A memoir by the the New York novelist (author of SOLO FACES and CASSADA). Salter describes his childhood, his education at West Point and his years as an Air Force flier, his early years as a screenwriter and novelist, and his recollections of the many members of the literary scene (like Robert Phelps and Ben Sonnenberg) who became his friends. [A] book of memorable stories....One reason for reading these recollected stories is simply the motive we all have for reading: to find answers for that fundamental human question, What is it like, to be where you have been and I will never be? There are other reasons too. Read them for the portraits Salter paints....And for the evocations of places, and especially of France....To me, there is another reason for reading Salter's book: for its eloquent witness to the writer's faith in the craft he practices. -- New York Times Book Review - Samuel Hynes (09/07/1997) -- 'Burning the Days' is a book that demands to be argued with, but it is also a book of genuine artistry and, in its fashion, humanity. Even though it leaves too many questions unmentioned or unresolved, it has the virtues its author so admires: experience, ambition, accomplishment. -- Washington Post Book World - Jonathan Yardley (09/07/1997) -- Life is a man's affair in Salter's sensibility, whether enduring West Point's bleak training, flying fighter jets in Korea, making love to women....The company of men nourishes Salter and men's heroism inspires him. -- Los Angeles Times Book Review - Richard Eder (08/31/1997) -- Though almost too patrician to be true, the book includes descriptions and characterizations that demonstrate how good Salter can be when he dispenses with his courtly reserve. -- Holt -- By the end of this book, one is both dazzled by Salter's talent and a little annoyed by his secretiveness. On balance, it is the dazzle, the power of the lens that this underrated writer's writer applies to his uncommon journey that stays in the mind, along with the feeling that Salter deserves to be better known and more celebrated than he has been. -- Weeks -- James Salter's savvy, bittersweet new book is a happy reminder that the word memoir hasn't always been synonymous with 'woozy self-revelation'....Some readers may detect a whiff of sexism in Salter's old-fashioned brand of masculinity. The things he prizes--including 'soundness of body' and 'a beautiful wife'--can make him sound like a trophy collector. And you may find yourself wondering where Salter's own wife and children were during all of his gleeful tomcatting; they barely get a mention. But it's impossible to read 'Burning the Days' without feeling the glow of a life vigorously lived. -- Garner. . (more information)

Offered by Books and More by the Rowe (United States)

NY: Random House. Fine in Fine dust jacket. 1997. Hardcover. 0375500154 . First printing. SIGNED by the author. . (more information)

Offered by Grendel Books, ABAA/ILAB (United States)

Random House, 1997 Mint copy in like jacket.Signed by the Author on the Half-Title.. Signed by Author. First Edition. Cloth. As New/As New. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. (more information)

Offered by Jeff Bergman Books ABAA/ILAB (United States)

Random House. Hardcover. Like New. Satisfaction Guaranteed! (more information)

Offered by more books (United States)

NY: Random House, 1997. First edition, first prnt. Signed by Salter on the title page. Shallow crease on spine; dustjacket with price-clip; Near Fine condition in a Near Fine dustjacket with a Durafold mylar cover.

The image is of the actual book described and not a stock photo. (more information)

Offered by Revere Books, ABAA (United States)

NY: Random House Inc., 1997. xvi, 370pp.Typset in Fairfield. Beige paper boards, black spine and front cover embossed black ink lettering. Illustrated transparent dust jacket. Dust jacket price 24.00. SIGNED BY AUTHOR to first blank page. This master of 20th-century American literature's memoir. " In this brilliant book of recollection, one of America's finest writers re-creates people, places, and events spanning some fifty years, bringing to life an entire era through one man's sensibility. Scenes of love and desire, friendship, ambition, life in foreign cities and New York, are unforgettably rendered here in the unique style for which James Salter is widely admired. Burning the Days captures a singular life, beginning with a Manhattan boyhood and then, satisfying his father's wishes, graduation from West Point, followed by service in the Air Force as a pilot. In some of the most evocative pages ever written about flying, Salter describes the exhilaration and terror of combat as a fighter pilot in the Korean War, scenes that are balanced by haunting pages of love and a young man's passion for women. After resigning from the Air Force, Salter begins a second life, becoming a writer in the New York of the 1960s. Soon films beckon. There are vivid portraits of actors, directors, and producers--Polanski, Robert Redford, and others. Here also, more important, are writers who were influential, some by their character, like Irwin Shaw, others because of their taste and knowledge. Ultimately Burning the Days is an illumination of what it is to be a man, and what it means to become a writer. Only once in a long while--Vladimir Nabokov's Speak, Memory or Isak Dinesen's Out of Africa--does a memoir of such extraordinary clarity and power appear. Unconventional in form, Burning the Days is a stunning achievement by the writer The Washington Post Book World said "inhabits the same rarefied heights as Flannery O'Connor, Paul Bowles, Tennessee Williams and John Cheever" --a rare and unforgettable book." - front dust jacket flap. "As more and more reminiscences spill down the literary chute, it's clear that the Age of the Memoir has not yet abated. The harvest has been a mixed one, of course. For every Frank McCourt or Mary Karr or Tobias Wolff, there seem to be a dozen score-settling memoirists, many of them less interested in understanding the past than sinking a hatchet into it. Now, however, another major contribution to the genre has appeared: James Salter's Burning the Days. This splendid autobiography had its inception in 1986, when the author wrote a trial-balloon recollection for Esquire, so he can hardly be accused of faddishness. But his book differs in another way from the current crop of memoirs, which often feature a forbidding gauntlet of familial or societal travails. Salter, contrarily, has led what many would consider a charmed life. Born an upper-middle-class "city child, pale, cared for, unaware," he attended West Point, served in the Korean War as a fighter pilot, and then seemingly ejected into a postwar period of undiluted glamour. To be sure, his early novels, such as The Hunters, failed to make Salter a household word. Still, he ran with literary lions like Irwin Shaw, drifted into the film business during the 1950s, and spent the next couple of decades ping-ponging from New York to Paris to Rome to Aspen and back. Salter puts the reader on notice from the very beginning that this will be a selective sort of recollection: "If you can think of life, for a moment, as a large house with a nursery, living and dining rooms, bedrooms, study, and so forth, all unfamiliar and bright, the chapters which follow are, in a way, like looking through the windows of this house.... At some windows you may wish to stay longer, but alas. As with any house, all within cannot be seen." What, then, are we privileged to see? Salter's airborne years account for perhaps a third of the book, and for this we should be grateful: no contemporary writer has made the experience more vivid or eerily palpable. There are brilliant evocations of New York, Rome, and Paris, some of which rival the virtuosic scene-painting in the author's A Sport and a Pastime. More to the point, there are human beings, who tend to get semi-apotheosized by the sheer elegance of Salter's prose. ("I do not worship gods but I like to know they are there," he notes in his preface--although his portrait of, say, Irwin Shaw does seem to be propped up on a private altar.) Salter's lofty romanticism can sometimes turn to gush. These blemishes are far outweighed, however, by the general splendor of the prose, which alternates Proustian extravagance with Hemingway-inspired economy. And even when the book flirts with frivolity, there is always the undertow of loss, of leave-taking. Many of the things that Salter describes are gone. In addition, he claims to have despoiled whatever remains by the very act of writing about it: "To write of someone thoroughly is to destroy them, use them up.... Things are captured and at the same time drained of life, never to shimmer or give back light again." No doubt his assertion has a grain of truth to it, at least for the author himself. But his loss is the reader's gain: most of what Salter has captured in Burning the Days remains alive and, frequently, luminous." --James Marcus. " A "writer's writer," despite his 'Sport and a Pastime''s inclusion in the Modern Library, the 72-year-old Salter uses his autobiography not to bathe in the glow of celebrity names (in fact, he makes a point of using noms de plume) but, rather, to discover the overall trajectory of his life thus far- a purpose that perhaps accounts for the book's unwavering tone of humility, candor, and authenticity. A graduate of West Point, where he experienced an emotional about-face from rebellious would-be drop-out to a young man eager to be tested in combat, Salter was trained as a fighter pilot in the mid-1940s but saw combat against the scary Russian MIG-15s in Korea in the early 1950s. Throughout, his writing style- tight, lyrical, and insightful - calls attention to itself. This is a writer's textbook, a sheer pleasure, and the descriptions of flying are perhaps the most vivid yet written. After leaving the Air Force (there are no old jet fighter pilots), Salter gravitated to Europe for its older and more resonant culture. There he met the failing Irwin Shaw and wrote film scripts before graduating to fiction. The flavors of four decades are here." - Charles C. Nash, Library Journal. " Glimpses of a writer's past, given as though discreetly decanted. This memoir by the New York novelist (Solo Faces, 1979, etc.) and short-story writer feels more like a first-person elegy, with all the poignancy available to one who writes in advance of life's closing. A sadness, half-suppressed in the telling, flows through the pages. The tone is most persuasive whenever Salter's story itself takes melancholy turns--when, for instance, he writes of his editor-friend Ben Sonnenberg's decline from multiple sclerosis or when he alludes to his difficulties and failures as a writer. But at times the narrator seems to long to absent himself from the narrative, perhaps to escape the pain inherent in anyone's excavation of his past. At these times, lacking an integral structure, the writing loses momentum. And although the book is packed with characters--from Irwin Shaw to Robert Redford to scads of femmes fatales, portrayed with a courtly tact--it seems too often to depend on scenes and observations saturated with a rather dated literary perfume. The scent bears traces of Hemingway's literary stoicism and Fitzgerald's lyric delicacy. Many of the continental settings and scenes belong to Hemingway and Fitzgerald, too, especially those involving wartime (the West Pointeducated Salter was a pilot) and Paris, where his reveries of wine, women, and belles lettres are generically familiar to a fault. Women are in general a weak point for Salter here, rarely seeming more than seductive ghosts. For instance, he writes condescendingly of Sharon Tate that ``if she was not a very good housekeeper, she was pure of heart and her flesh was a poem. One felt that she could be enjoyed in all the ways that one can enjoy a woman.'' Though almost too patrician to be true, the book includes descriptions and characterizations that demonstrate how good Salter can be when he dispenses with his courtly reserve. A connoisseur's view of himself and others." - Kirkus Reviews. Book appears unread. No remainder markings. Beautiful looking copy with no remainder markings and with signature to book, not tipped-in.. Signed by Author. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine in Fine Dust Jacket/Fine. Illus. by Dust Jacket Design By Gabrielle Bordwin. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. (more information)

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