Search Results: USSR from Le Bookiniste, ABAA-ILAB-IOBA

Voznesensky, Andrei. Antiworlds and The Fifth Ace. New York: Basic Books, Inc., 1967. First Edition, First Printing. Octavo (9 x 6 1/4 inches; 227 x 158 mm), xxiii, [1], 296 pages, in black cloth, titles to spine in pink and red, pink topstain, in an illustrated, unclipped dust jacket. SIGNED by Andrei Voznesensky (1933-2010) in black marker across the title page. First edition in English of this collection of the Russian poet's work, edited by Patricia Blake and Max Hayward, with an introduction by W.H. Auden, and featuring translations by Auden, Jean Garrigue, Hayward, Stanley Kunitz, Stanley Moss, William Jay Smith, and Richard Wilbur. This is a bilingual edition, with the poems in Russian and English. Two pieces of ephemera are laid in: a card announcing a reading by Voznesensky at the Poetry Center of the 92nd Street YM-YWHA, dated November 14 (no year given) and inscribed by Voznesensky "For Riva." The other is a folded program for an appearance by Voznesensky at another reading, also at the… Read More

No Edition Stated. Single sheet folded to create [4]-page leaflet measuring 4 3/4 x 3 1/4 inches (120 x 82 mm) when folded.
Small leaflet in English inviting subscriptions to various Soviet publications, including Moscow Daily News, USSR in Construction, Quarterly Review, and Soviet Travel. Also offered are maps, postcards, and dictionaries. Prices listed in U.S. dollars.
The leaflet is undated, but we place the date at ca. 1930-1932, when American activist Anna Louise Strong was managing editor of the Moscow Daily News (she's mentioned here).
OCLC shows no institutional holdings. RARE.
CONDITION: Light toning. A Near Fine copy.

Shershenevich, Vadim. Igor Ilyinsky. Moscow: Kinopechat, 1926. First Edition, First Printing. 24mo (5 7/8 x 4 3/8 inches; 150 x 110 mm), 14, [2] pages in photo-illustrated stapled wrappers.
An illustrated booklet on comic actor Igor Ilyinsky (1901-1987) in the Kinopechat series. Ilyinsky was associated with the Meyerhold Theatre, most notably as Bruno in Fernand Crommelynck's "Magnanimous Cuckold." He also was active in early Soviet cinema and won the Stalin Prize several times for his film roles.
This pamphlet is entirely in Russian and contains seven black-and-white photographs (in addition to the photo on the upper wrapper). OCLC shows seven institutional holdings. SCARCE.
CONDITION: Pencil notations under two photographs, soiling to wrappers, toning to pages. Overall, about Very Good.

New York: Harper & Brothers, 1958. First Edition. SIGNED by John Gunther on the half-title page. Gunther's acclaimed account of politics and everyday life in the Soviet Union in the years immediately following Stalin's death. He also deals with the arts as well as foreign policy, Khrushchev's secret speech, and the crushing of the Hungarian revolt. 8vo, xxiv, 550 pages. Top and bottom page edges slightly soiled, otherwise Fine in bright, unclipped dust jacket with some soiling to rear panel, light rubbing, a few creased closed tears and shallow chipping to spine ends and tips. Signed copies of this book are uncommon. SCARCE SIGNED. John Gunther (1901-1970) was a famous foreign correspondent best known for his "Inside..." series of books.

Glinka, M.I. Ivan Susanin [A Life for the Tsar]. Moscow: Bolshoi Theatre, 1943. First Edition, First Printing.Single printed sheet folded to create [4] pages, measuring 6 1/2 x 4 1/8 inches (163 x 106 mm) when folded.Rare playbill for the opera Ivan Susanin, performed at the Bolshoi Theatre, on September 26, 1943. This was a notable production because it was the Bolshoi's first performance in Moscow after returning to the city in World War II. The Bolshoi company -- along with the government and many other institutions -- had been evacuated to the city of Kuybyshev (now Samara) following the German invasion in 1941. The Bolshoi Theatre itself had been damaged by a bomb in 1941, so this performance marked the theatre's reopening.The great bass Maxim Mikhailov sang the role of Susanin, while the soprano Valeria Barsova appeared as Antonida, and the tenor Nikandr S. Hanaev sang the role of Sobinin. Samuil Samosud directed. An Associated Press report appearing in the September 27, 1943, edition of The… Read More

Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Ilyich. Lebedinoye Ozero [Swan Lake]. Moscow: Bolshoi Theatre, 1943. First Edition, First Printing. Single sheet, printed recto only, measuring 8 1/8 x 5 inches (205 x 126 mm).Rare playbill for Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, which took place at the Bolshoi Theatre's Main Stage in Moscow on September 28, 1943. This was a notable production because it came two days after the Bolshoi's first performance in Moscow after returning to the city in World War II. The Bolshoi company -- along with the government and many other institutions -- had been evacuated to the city of Kuybyshev (now Samara) following the German invasion in 1941. The great prima ballerina Marina Semyonova (1908-2010) danced the roles of Odette and Odile.This playbill, printed entirely in Russian, is rare. Only 800 copies were issued and many likely did not survive. RARE. CONDITION: One vertical fold and three horizontal folds, some soiling as well as some writing in ink to the verso. A Very Good copy.

Moscow: Various Publishers, 1930s. Thirty black-and-white postcards, each measuring 5 3/4 x 3 7/8 inches (147 x 98 mm), all unused and unmounted. A collection of postcards depicting scenes in Moscow during the tumultuous 1930s, when Stalin was expanding his power and killing off his opponents. The scenes include workers' houses, hotels, department stores, and cathedrals that the Bolsheviks closed and turned into museums. Other scenes show Arbat Square, Pushkin's monument, the race course, Dynamo stadium, the Izvestia building, Moscow University, and more. Seventeen of the cards have brief captions in English (and sometimes in French and German) in addition to Russian. A wonderful series of vibrant images of Moscow in one of the most significant decades in Soviet history. CONDITION: One card lightly trimmed at the edges, a few minor stains to the versos of some cards. Overall, Very Good or better.

n.p.: Intourist, Inc., 1939. Red folder measuring 4 x 5 3/4 inches (150 x 113 mm) containing 10 post cards. Souvenir folder issued to commemorate the 1939 World's Fair in New York. The folder consists of 10 post cards in black-and-white, with descriptions in English, French, and Russian on the verso of each card. Perhaps not surprisingly, two of the cards depict Lenin and Stalin, while others show a model of the Soviet Union's pavilion, a sailboat, Red Square, a Caucasian dance festival, Theatre Square, the fountains at Peterhof, holiday makers on the Black Sea, and a map showing Intourist offices around the Soviet Union. We find no institutional holdings in OCLC. No others in commerce (July 2021). A complete set of this rare portfolio. CONDITION: Fading to lettering of folder, along with some creases and edge wear. Toning to the verso of the cards. Overall, Very Good or better.

Oberlin, Ohio: Oberlin College, 1950. First Edition, First Printing. 16mo (6 3/4 x 4 1/8 inches; 170 x 115 mm), 27, [1] pages in stapled wrappers. A lecture on the politicization of science and the controversy over genetics in the Soviet Union. The author, Harriet B. Creighton, was a professor of botany at Wellesley College. "Only an informed and alert public can defend the freedom of scientific inquiry and the right to base practice on scientifically established facts. In this defense each of us has his responsibility," she writes. SCARCE. CONDITION: Some edge wear and soiling to wrappers, staples rusted, tear to recto of lower wrapper. Otherwise bright and unmarked. A Very Good or better copy.

Harvard University Press, 1985. 2nd Printing. A distinguished historian explains Soviet behavior, rejecting both right-wing as well as some left-wing revisionist arguments. Probably one of the most balanced accounts available at the time of publication in 1985. Octavo, pp. xiii, [5], 411. Very Good, with some minor soiling along the top edge, a small ink mark on page 37 where a previous owner noted a misprint, and a small tear on the front paste down where it meets the front end paper. In a Very Good dust jacket with some edge wear and small nicks and tears.

New York: The Viking Press, 1948. First Edition, First Printing. Small Quarto (9 3/4 x 6 3/4 inches; 247 x 167 mm), 220 pages, in green and tan cloth, in an unclipped, illustrated dust jacket (hard cover), accompanied by four photographic prints. An account of a trip to the Soviet Union in 1947 by author John Steinbeck and photographer Robert Capa, who visited while the country was attempting to recover from the devastation of World War II. They traveled to Moscow, Stalingrad, and other cities as well as to Ukraine and Georgia, meeting numerous ordinary people (while accompanied by a minder from the government). The New York Herald Tribune financed the trip and, along with some other newspapers, published articles by Steinbeck and photos by Capa. Indeed, included here are three photographs that were used by one of the newspapers, as indicated by layout instructions on the versos of the photos. (There's also a later publicity photo of Steinbeck.) One of the photos from the trip, showing a Georgian… Read More

New York: New York Labor News Company, 1939. 12mo (7 1/4 x 5 inches; 183 x 127 mm), 62, [2] pages, in stapled wrappers (soft cover). Attack on Soviet communism by Arnold Petersen, who was a leader of the Socialist Labor Party. The SLP was a bitter foe of the Communists, claiming they had abandoned Marxism. CONDITION: Vertical crease throughout, soiling to wrappers but internally clean and unmarked. Very Good.

New York: Workers Library Publishers, 1941. Transcript of a speech by Joseph Stalin in which he vowed his country would defeat the Germans in World War II. He spoke in Moscow on November 6, 1941, some 4 1/2 months after Germany invaded the Soviet Union. SCARCE. DETAILS: Small Octavo (7 1/2 x 5 inches; 190 x 127 mm), 14, [2] pages, in stapled wrappers (soft cover). CONDITION: Brittle paper, heavily age-toned, some nicks and small tears, but internally clean and unmarked. About Good.

New York: New York Labor News Company, 1946. 12mo (7 1/4 x 5 inches; 183 x 127 mm), 48 pages, in stapled wrappers. The author, Eric Hass, maintains that the Soviet brand of socialism is not socialism at all. Instead, he says, the USSR is an imperialist power bent on domination of other countries. Hass was a Socialist Labor Party stalwart who went on to be the SLP's candidate for president in four elections. CONDITION: Some creasing, soiling and toning to wrappers but internally clean and bright. Very Good.

West Haven, Connecticut: Foundation for Promoting Enduring Peace, [1952?]. No Edition Stated.Single sheet folded to create [4] pages, each measuring 11 x 8 1/2 inches (279 x 216 mm). Rare leaflet on U.S.-Soviet relations, from a Christian Left perspective. The author pleads for better understanding of Russian history, arguing that the country has made great strides since the October Revolution. He also says the Soviets feel encircled by hostile forces, pointing to Western military bases along the country's perimeters. The format of this leaflet is a bit odd: the first three pages are professionally printed, while the last page appears to be mimeographed. The publisher, the Foundation for Promoting Enduring Peace, was established in 1952 to promote world peace and oppose military conflict. OCLC shows no institutional holdings (although a separate search turns up a copy in the Kringlock Pamphlet Collection of the University of Iowa). Nor were there any copies in commerce as of January 2021. RARE.… Read More