Products
Abraham Lincoln: An Autobiographical Narrative
Evanston, IL: The Press of Ward Schori, 1992. 153 pp. Approximately 2 1/8 x 2 9/16". Second Edition. 3 Volumes. Marbled slipcase in fine condition; Red, white and blue leather over boards with gilt design on cover and spine by Hugo Grummich, marbled endpapers, photographically reproduced, illustrated, in fine condition. (Bradbury, Press of Ward Schori 72)
The three volumes (red, white, and blue) have a different focus: Vol. I, Youth; Vol. II, Lawyer-Politician; Vol. III, President. The primary material for this work came from Lincoln's writings in 1859 and 1860, as well as other sources. Ralph Geoffrey Newman (1911 - 1998) was a well-known Lincoln scholar who owned a bookstore in Chicago, fittingly called the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop.
Across the River and Into the Trees
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1950. 308 pp. 5 3/4 x 8 1/2"; First Edition, later state dust jacket with orange lettering on spine panel. Illustrated dust jacket with some minor creases and rubbing, first American edition with letter A on copyright page, original price of $3.00 intact, some chipping and creasing, small tears, in very good condition; Black cloth over boards with crisp lettering on spine, old tape residue on paste-down endpapers and dust jacket flaps, otherwise in very good condition.
Ernest Hemingway (1899 - 1961) was an American writer who won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1953 and the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954. This book was a bestseller in America, although it did not get good reviews elsewhere. It did stay at the top of the New York Time bestseller's list for seven weeks in 1950. It is set in Italy after the war in 1946.
Advise and Consent
New York: Doubleday & Company, 1959. 616 pp. Advanced Bookseller's Copy as noted by the the label on the front paste-down endpaper. Pictorial dust jacket has some rubbing and minor tears with a small stain on the bottom of the spine, previous repair tape on the inside of the cover, price of $5.75 intact with original price marked out, in very good condition. Tan cloth over boards with crisp blue and brown lettering on spine, top edges foxed, some stains on page edges, "First Edition" stated on copyright page, black and white illustrations throughout, otherwise in very good + condition.
Allen Drury (1918-1998) was an American novelist who was a reporter in the Senate during the terms of Presidents FDR and Truman. This is his first novel, which won a Pulitzer Prize in 1960 for Fiction and was on the The New York Times Best Seller list for 102 weeks.
An Historical Dictionary of Forestry and Woodland Terms
Oxford: Blackwell Publishers, 1991. First Edition, Hardcover. 236pp; Dust jacket in very good condition with minor shelf wear. Book has minimal corner bumping, green boards in fine condition, minor foxing to fore-edges. Very good condition.
This helpful book describes "the special words used by those working or hunting in England's woodlands and forests from the early Middle Ages until the present." Some quotations and line drawing illustrations throughout.
Andromeda. A Space-Age Tale.
Moscow: Foreign Language Publishing House, 1959. 373 pp. Approximately 5 1/4 x 8". First English Language Edition. Illustrated dust jacket in very good condition with moderate edge wear and tear near spine, price-clipped; Maroon cloth over boards, slightly worn gilt title on spine and crisp gilt design on cover, black and white illustrations throughout, some foxing of top pages edges, otherwise in very good + condition.
Ivan Antonovich Yefremov (1908 - 1972) was a Russian paleontologist and science fiction writer. This book is described as a scientific fantasy, telling of the growth of science and engineering on earth which enables us to communicate in a friendly way with others in the universe through the Great Circle. Andromeda was translated by George Hanna and made into a film in 1967 called "The Andromeda Nebula".
Arthur C. Clarke: The Authorized Biography
Chicago: Contemporary Books, 1992. 430 pp. 6 x 9 1/4"; Pictorial dustjacket in fine condition; Black paper over boards with gilt lettering on spine, signed Arthur C. Clarke bookplate on front paste-down endpaper, many black and white photographs, in fine condition.
Sir Arthur Charles Clarke (1917 - 2008) was the author or more than sixty books and has received many awards for both his science fiction and his scientific non-fiction writing. This biography explores his career and personal vision though candid interviews with Clarke, his friends, family members, and colleagues. The numerous black and white photographs enhance the biography in a delightful way. Bookplate printed "Ex Libris, Arthur C. Clarke" with illustrations of the monolith from his 2001 Space Odyssey series and dolphins from his novel, Dolphin Island.
Blood Sport
London: Michael Joseph, 1967. Approximately 5 1/2 x 8". Illustrated dust jacket in near fine condition, designed by Broom Lynne, very little edge wear and slight creases as the top of the spine, original price of 25s intact. Blue cloth over boards with crisp gilt titles on spine, clean and tight, in fine condition.
Born Richard Stanley Francis (1920 - 2010), Dick Francis was a British crime writer whose novels were mostly centered on horse racing in England (he was a former steeplechase jockey himself). This book is Dick Francis' 7th book, with Gene Hawkins appearing for the first time as a government security agent. Edgar Award nominee. Adapted into TV film in 1989 with Ian McShane in the protagonist role of David Cleveland.
Bones: A Nameless Detective Mystery
New York: St. Martin's Press, 1985. 5 3/4 x 8 1/4". 196 pp. Illustrated dust jacket with some creasing and wear at the edges, in very good + condition; Black cloth over boards with silver lettering on spine, in near fine condition.
Bill Pronzini, winner of the Best Novel of 1981, awarded by the Private Eye Writers of America for his novel "Hoodwink", Pronzini lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, as does his nameless detective. Bones is a mystery about a dead man's reasons for suicide and end up involving a figid wife, a ruthless lawyer, a bitter ex-wife, and a beligerant taxidermist turned landlord (according to the dust jacket flap). Full of deceit, intrigue and murder, it's an exciting mystery.
Burchardus de Bellevaux: Apologia de Barbis
Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1935. Dust jacket in very good condition with price of 17s 6d net intact, some discoloration, especially to the spine, some loss near top of spine and minor edge wear. Green cloth over boards with crisp gilt lettering on cover and spine, limited to 350 copies, bookseller label (B.H. Blackwell Ltd., Oxford) on front paste-down endpaper, browning to endpapers, text in Latin, some tanning to page edges due to rough cut, in very good plus condition.
Sub title: A Twelfth Century Treatise on Beards and their Moral and Mystical Significance. Edited by Goldschmidt from the only known Manuscripts at the British Museum, this book also covers the medieval manners and customs of the time.
Burning Bright
New York: The Viking Press, 1950. 159 pp. Approximately 5 x 7 1/2". First edition, first printing. Dust jacket is very good with minor chips and wear and does have the $2.50 price on flap, small closed tear on front top edge of cover. Original tan cloth over boards, red lettering on cover and spine, orange dye on top edges, bookseller's ticket on rear paste-down endpaper, very minor foxing to edges, otherwise in near fine condition. (Goldstone & Payne, A29a)
The form of this book is a "play-novelette", which is a play that is easy to read or a short novel that can be played. Steinbeck used this method experimentally in "Of Mice and Men" and "The Moon is Down" but this book is a more complete attempt at this form. While this book was not critically acclaimed, Steinbeck, as always, is a very vivid writer and bring his four characters to life in this play concerned with the timeless themes of love, jealousy, friendship, and the desire to have a child.