Work of Art
by Sinclair Lewis (1885-1951)
- Used
- very good
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Very Good/Near fine
- Seller
-
Fort Worth, Texas, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
[i-viii+452+[453-56] pages. Octavo (8 1/8" x 5 3/4") bound in original publisher's medium blue cloth with gilt on spine with concentric impressed rectangle enclosing a gilt laurel branch on cover in original pictorial jacket. 50,000 copies of the first edition in dust jacket issued. (Pastore: 13) First edition.
This is the "hotel novel" as it has become to be called, and it shows that odd dichotomy of Lewis that is the decisional measuring stick separating those who love Lewis and those who don't. Here is the story of an artist set against the story of a hotel clerk and here is Lewis equating art and hotel management. Most critics feel that this is not Lewis at his best because of this equation, that in setting out to talk about art, he ends up knee-deep in the hotel business. Of course, this misses the point. Lewis was the master of finding "art" in the commonplace and there is hardly a novel of his that does not touch on this issued. This second Doubleday book firmly established the format that they would follow that was initiated by Ann Vickers. The binding is nicely produced with the Nobel emblem impressed into the cover. The jacket, designed by Edward Fiene, a well known and respected commercial artist, is the first pictorial jacket since Main Street and Doubleday commented on several occasions that this cover was responsible for a "good proportion of sales." The jacket spine readily darkens with sunlight exposure. (Pastore: 309)
Condition:
Offset darkening to front end paper and paste down, spine head and back head hinges rubbed through. Dust jacket extremities restored by Octavaye Studios. A very good copy in a near fine dust jacket.
This is the "hotel novel" as it has become to be called, and it shows that odd dichotomy of Lewis that is the decisional measuring stick separating those who love Lewis and those who don't. Here is the story of an artist set against the story of a hotel clerk and here is Lewis equating art and hotel management. Most critics feel that this is not Lewis at his best because of this equation, that in setting out to talk about art, he ends up knee-deep in the hotel business. Of course, this misses the point. Lewis was the master of finding "art" in the commonplace and there is hardly a novel of his that does not touch on this issued. This second Doubleday book firmly established the format that they would follow that was initiated by Ann Vickers. The binding is nicely produced with the Nobel emblem impressed into the cover. The jacket, designed by Edward Fiene, a well known and respected commercial artist, is the first pictorial jacket since Main Street and Doubleday commented on several occasions that this cover was responsible for a "good proportion of sales." The jacket spine readily darkens with sunlight exposure. (Pastore: 309)
Condition:
Offset darkening to front end paper and paste down, spine head and back head hinges rubbed through. Dust jacket extremities restored by Octavaye Studios. A very good copy in a near fine dust jacket.
Reviews
(Log in or Create an Account first!)
Details
- Bookseller
- The Book Collector ABAA, ILAB, TBA (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- BOOKS006755
- Title
- Work of Art
- Author
- Sinclair Lewis (1885-1951)
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Jacket Condition
- Near fine
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First
- Publisher
- Doubleday & Company
- Place of Publication
- Garden City
- Date Published
- 1934
- Weight
- 0.00 lbs
- Bookseller catalogs
- Literature;
- Size
- Octavo
Terms of Sale
The Book Collector ABAA, ILAB, TBA
All items are guaranteed as described. If an item is
not as described, it is returnable within seven days
of receipt, unless other arrangements are made.
Full refunds given only when items are received in
the same condition in which they were sent.
We require new customers to send payment with
their order. Customers known to us will be invoiced
with payment due in thirty days, unless prior
arrangements are made. Institutions will be billed
to meet their requirements. All items subject to prior
sale.
We accept Visa, Mastercard, and American Express
Please be advised that we can only ship to your billing address.
We accept checks, but may require that the check clears before we ship an order.
Prices of books do not include shipping.
We use UPS domestically and internationally. Other shipping arrangements can be made. Shipping is always charged at cost.
Texas residents must add 8.25% sales tax.
About the Seller
The Book Collector ABAA, ILAB, TBA
Biblio member since 2005
Fort Worth, Texas
About The Book Collector ABAA, ILAB, TBA
The Book Collector specializes in the finest collections of Chess, Anthropology, Americana and American Literature. Visit our website at www.bookcollectorshop.com
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Offset
- A technique of printing where the inked image or text is ...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...