FAHRENHEIT 451. by Bradbury, Ray - [1953]

London: The Hogarth Press, 1929. 1st Edition. Hardcover. Dust Jacket Included. 1st Edition. Hardcover. An excellent superior example of this 20th century highlight. First Edition, First Issue. First Trade Edition. Small crown 8vo., 172pp. A fine copy in the original cinnamon cloth, minor offsetting to endpapers, gilt on the spine very bright & unrubbed, in the rare original Vanessa Bell designed dustwrapper. A splendid example that has had just a hint of archival restoration at the base of the spine. A really beautiful copy in our custom TBCL slipcase with the Hogarth Press wolf head embossed on the side. Woolf's major polemic against patriarchy, based loosely on two lectures she delivered, one at Newnham and the other at Girton. Woolf observed in her diary, "I shall be attacked for a feminist.". Kirkpatrick and Clarke A12b.

Zurich: Rascher & Cie.. 1919. The first German edition of Joyce's play Exiles and the first of his works to be published in translation in any language. One of 600 copies printed: Joyce was living in Zurich at the time and he paid for the publication of this book out of his own pocket. This copy is inscribed by the author: "To J.R. [sic] Watson, Jun / with grateful regards / James Joyce / 8. ix. 1919." J.S. Watson, Jr. was at the time the co-owner of the modernist literary journal The Dial, which he bought from Martyn Johnson with his friend and fellow Harvard graduate, Scofield Thayer. Watson became president of the magazine and Thayer became its editor. The "grateful regards" refers to a gift of $300 that Watson had sent Joyce earlier in the year at the urging of Thayer, who had himself sent Joyce $700. These sums bailed Joyce out of dire financial straits, allowed him to settle a court case against him, and helped him support the theater group that he had associated with in Zurich, the English… Read More

New York: Harper & Brothers, Publishers / A Story Press Book, 1938 Presentation copy from Richard Wright to Ernest Hemingway: "To Ernest Hemingway / From / Richard Wright." Stated second edition in married original dust jacket, first published with four novellas; two more were added when the book was reprinted in 1940.
In Down by the Riverside, included in this collection, Wright transposes the Italian retreat at the Battle of Caporetto in Ernest Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms to the American South. Richard Wright was known to be a great admirer of Ernest Hemingway, whom he once named as a modernist writer whose work should be read by aspiring black authors (Scruggs, Hemingway and the Black Renaissance, 58–59).
Mild toning to margins of endpapers, light toning to page margins, spine ends gently crimped, and a light pale stain to bottom front cover, foot of spine, and just an inch to bottom back spine fold, else book in fine condition; dust jacket with professional… Read More

London: Chatto and Windus, 1926. First U.K. Edition, First Printing. Hardcover. Fine. Octavo, 218pp. A stunning copy, bound in full crushed deep blue Levant goatskin, with gilt edges, borders, dentelles, and elaborate spine compartments. French marbled endpapers. Original navy cloth from boards and spine bound in at rear. An exquisitely beautiful copy of the truly rare first UK edition of Fitzgerald's undisputed masterpiece. Matthew Bruccoli, Fitzgerald's premier bibliographer, notes that just 3,000 copies of the UK edition were printed, compared to the ~20,000 examples of the first American printing. Those 3,000 copies were bound in two different cloths--navy and maroon--navy having established priority. "The Great Gatsby" was received with ambivalence upon publication, and with Fitzgerald off in Europe and dead within fifteen years of its first appearance, the author never enjoyed public or critical recognition for it in his lifetime. Fitzgerald often expressed a desire to earn a literary… Read More

New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. 1925. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. Very Good+ to Near Fine in a Near Fine Facsimile dust jacket. 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”. Owner personalizations on majority of front pastedown. This is the nicest copy of this classic we have pass through. .

London: The Hogarth Press, 1929. 1st Edition. Hardcover. Dust Jacket Included. 1st Edition. Hardcover. An excellent superior example of this 20th century highlight. First Edition, First Issue. First Trade Edition. Small crown 8vo., 172pp. A fine copy in the original cinnamon cloth, minor offsetting to endpapers, gilt on the spine very bright & unrubbed, in the rare original Vanessa Bell designed dustwrapper. A splendid example that has had just a hint of archival restoration at the base of the spine. A really beautiful copy in our custom TBCL slipcase with the Hogarth Press wolf head embossed on the side. Woolf's major polemic against patriarchy, based loosely on two lectures she delivered, one at Newnham and the other at Girton. Woolf observed in her diary, "I shall be attacked for a feminist.". Kirkpatrick and Clarke A12b.

Zurich: Rascher & Cie.. 1919. The first German edition of Joyce's play Exiles and the first of his works to be published in translation in any language. One of 600 copies printed: Joyce was living in Zurich at the time and he paid for the publication of this book out of his own pocket. This copy is inscribed by the author: "To J.R. [sic] Watson, Jun / with grateful regards / James Joyce / 8. ix. 1919." J.S. Watson, Jr. was at the time the co-owner of the modernist literary journal The Dial, which he bought from Martyn Johnson with his friend and fellow Harvard graduate, Scofield Thayer. Watson became president of the magazine and Thayer became its editor. The "grateful regards" refers to a gift of $300 that Watson had sent Joyce earlier in the year at the urging of Thayer, who had himself sent Joyce $700. These sums bailed Joyce out of dire financial straits, allowed him to settle a court case against him, and helped him support the theater group that he had associated with in Zurich, the English… Read More

NY: Various. (1958-1967). The first four books by Southern -- creator of Dr. Strangelove and screenwriter of Easy Rider -- each inscribed by him to his friend, the bandleader, composer, and musician Artie Shaw. Flash and Filigree (NY: Coward McCann, 1958; the scarce first issue) is inscribed "To Artie and Casey with love and all best wishes/ Terry S." Laid in is an autograph note signed to Artie from Terry. The Magic Christian (NY: Random House, 1960) is inscribed "To Artie and Casey with love and best wishes for much happiness. Terry." Candy (NY: Putnam, 1964 -- first thus, and first hardcover edition) is inscribed "To Artie and Case, with love and kisses (your so-called 'soul' or 'french' kiss, natch!) / Terry." Red Dirt Marijuana (NY: New American Library, 1967) is inscribed: "To Art/ with all best, Terry." The books are near fine or better in near fine or better dust jackets; each with its own, matching, custom clamshell case. Unless otherwise noted, our first editions are first printings. First… Read More

London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1908. First Edition. Octavo. Inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper "Inscribed by/Winston S. Churchill/1946. Portrait frontispiece of Churchill. half-title, 226pp., [16]p. publisher's catalog at the rear, illustrated with three maps and photographic illustrations by the author and Lt. Col. Gordon Wilson. While on his journey through Africa, Churchill wrote each day. Many of his writings during this period had already been published in Strand Magazine, which did help him a bit with expenses. The present work is his continuous narrative of the lighter side of his journey which he considered an inspiration and delightful time he spent in the wild while hunting and getting to know the people of Africa. A handsome copy finely bound in full red morocco, raised bands, double black morocco spine labels gilt, all other compartments decorated in gilt, marbled endpapers, with the original covers bound in at the rear, scattered foxing to fore-edges with occasional… Read More

London: Chatto and Windus, 1926. First U.K. Edition, First Printing. Hardcover. Fine. Octavo, 218pp. A stunning copy, bound in full crushed deep blue Levant goatskin, with gilt edges, borders, dentelles, and elaborate spine compartments. French marbled endpapers. Original navy cloth from boards and spine bound in at rear. An exquisitely beautiful copy of the truly rare first UK edition of Fitzgerald's undisputed masterpiece. Matthew Bruccoli, Fitzgerald's premier bibliographer, notes that just 3,000 copies of the UK edition were printed, compared to the ~20,000 examples of the first American printing. Those 3,000 copies were bound in two different cloths--navy and maroon--navy having established priority. "The Great Gatsby" was received with ambivalence upon publication, and with Fitzgerald off in Europe and dead within fifteen years of its first appearance, the author never enjoyed public or critical recognition for it in his lifetime. Fitzgerald often expressed a desire to earn a literary… Read More