Captain Ahab's Rare Books Archives - Rare Book Insider

Captain Ahab's Rare Books

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HEAT WAVE - REVIEW COPY

HEAT WAVE – REVIEW COPY

Bukowski, Charles (poems); Price, Ken (illustrations) One of 20 Review Copies, this one unnumbered on the colophon. Folio (37.75cm); original cream cloth, with titling and pictorial elements silkscreened in colors on front cover; brown endpapers; [ii],[6],7-71,[3]pp, with black & white illustrations by Ken Price throughout the text. Some light, scattered dust-soil to cloth (particularly along the right edge of the front cover), else clean internally; Near Fine. Advance issue of this collaborative work between Bukowski (1920-1994) and Kenneth Price (1935-2012), a poetic and artistic ode to the City of Los Angeles. Among the towering achievements of John Martin's Black Sparrow Press – the regular and deluxe issues were produced in a special binding with a traycase holding serigraph prints by Price, housed in a thick Plexiglass slipcase. The Review Copies were produced in an entirely different binding, some numbered, some signed, some including the one-hour CD of Bukowski reading his poetry. Considering the high cost at publication ($1250 for the regular issue, $3500 for the deluxe), there is every possibility that only a few of the 20 Review Copies were sent out. Additionally, according to the binder, the books, prints, slipcases, CD's, and even the foam-lined cardboard boxes were produced in different locations. This copy (unnumbered, unsigned, and without the CD) comes from the holdings of Earle and Larry Gray (of the Earle Gray Bookbinding Company), who bound most of the Black Sparrow Press titles produced between 1967-2001. Uncommon in this state, not mentioned in Aaron Krumhansl's descriptive bibliography.
  • $850
KODAK - LIMITED EDITION

KODAK – LIMITED EDITION, SIGNED

Smith, Patti (poems); Mapplethorpe, Robert (cover) One of 100 numbered copies signed by the author, this being copy no. 48. Slim octavo (21.5cm); offset printed sheets, hand-sewn into pictorial card wrappers; [20]pp. Light wear to wrapper extremities, mild touch of separation between rear pastedown and inner rear wrapper; contents fresh; Near Fine. A well-preserved copy of one of Smith's earliest works – one of three chapbooks published the same year that Seventh Heaven, her first full-length book, was published by Telegraph Books. This collection of poems was published by the Philadelphia-based bookshop Middle Earth Books, founded in 1969 and owned by Samuel and Sims Amico. Their shop, located at 1134 Pine Street, was a hub for the underground literary and arts scene, hosting readings as well as embarking on a publishing venture. In a 1995 interview, when A.D. Amorosi asked Smith about the significance of Middle Earth Books, she replied: "If it wasn't my first reading, it was the first out-of-town thing because I was living in New York at the time, which made it very exciting. Like a first job.I was 22 and Robert Mapplethorpe and I were living together.in the Chelsea Hotel and he took the Polaroid for the cover. Didn't make any money (laughs) but just the thrill of seeing one's work, that someone thought it worthy of printing." (Sly, Margery. Blog post: "Patti Smith at Middle Earth Books." March 31, 2022). The most elusive and desirable of Smith's early books, uncommon in commerce. OCLC notes 10 holdings.
  • $5,500
  • $5,500
YOU KISSED LILLY - HEAVILY-CORRECTED TYPESCRIPT [SIGNED] TOGETHER WITH A COPY OF THE DELUXE ISSUE

YOU KISSED LILLY – HEAVILY-CORRECTED TYPESCRIPT [SIGNED] TOGETHER WITH A COPY OF THE DELUXE ISSUE

Bukowski, Charles Original draft typescript on nine leaves of white bond, measuring 8.5" x 11", numbered at upper right corners, with Bukowski's Carlton Way address appearing at upper left corner of preliminary leaf. Numerous holograph corrections and elisions appear throughout the text, on eight of the nine leaves, with the most significant omissions and re-writes appearing beginning on p.5. Signed by Bukowski on the terminal leaf, dated 9-25-77. Mild handling, occasional subtle toning, horizontal fold smoothed-out at center, with some scattered soil to lower half of p.1; a well-preserved draft, accompanied by an original unused sample cover design for the Black Sparrow Press edition, signed by Bukowski, with additional decorations by him in red and green marker.Together with a copy of the Deluxe Issue, one of 75 numbered copies specially bound and signed by the author, who has additionally hand-colored the front cover (this is copy no.11). Small octavo (20.5cm); pictorial paper-covered boards and purple leaf-patterned cloth backstrip, with title label mounted to spine; original printed paper dustjacket; [28]pp; illus. Fine in a Fine dustjacket. Complete typescript for this humorous, violent short story of middle-aged marital discord, set in a small town in Illinois. The preliminary leaf and running head notably print Bukowski's original title for this story – The Split – which he has crossed out on p.1 and re-titled You Kissed Lilly. This draft, written five months before the book by Black Sparrow Press was published, shows significant interaction with the text. Large portions were omitted, significant sections re-written, and there are portions of dialogue Bukowski made no changes to that were ultimately (and noticeably) changed in the published version. In addition to the 1978 publication, it appears as the fifth story in his 1983 collection Hot Water Music, and was published again in the September, 1984 issue of High Times. Complete typescripts for any of Bukowski's books rarely appear in the marketplace. Most are held in institutions, and while we know the whereabouts of a few in private hands, in 20 years of chasing down Bukowski material, we've had a single opportunity to handle one. Krumhansl 61b.
  • $12,500
  • $12,500
HOMESICK: NEW & SELECTED STORIES - INSCRIBED TO SIDNEY GOLDFARB
  • $1,500
GEEK LOVE - UNCORRECTED PROOF

GEEK LOVE – UNCORRECTED PROOF, INSCRIBED TO MEL WAGGONER

Dunn, Katherine First Printing. Octavo (21cm); first state in blue-gray card wrappers, with only the month and year of publication printed on front cover; [x],351,[7]pp. Inscribed on the title page to Mel Waggoner, the host of a popular book program on public radio in the Pacific Northwest: "For Mel & Emogene / with many thanks for your wit and kindness / Best, Katherine Dunn. On the preceding page, Dunn has written Waggoner a holograph note on a Post-it: "Dear Mel – This has some major flubs in it – I've marked some but have certainly missed others – Best to you and Emmy – Katherine." Dunn has added two holograph notes on pages 202 and 254, indicating missing text, and has crossed out substantial passages on pp.211-212, 216-217. Subtle forward lean, gentle sunning to spine, with some faint finger-soil to right edge of textblock, a small tear to lower front joint, and a few stray pen marks to front wrapper; Very Good, with the generic publisher's letter and promotional review sheet folded and laid in. Proof copy of Dunn's third novel, centered around a a family-owned traveling carnival freak show. Geek Love was Mehta's first acquisition for Knopf, published with a modest print run of 20,000 copies. The brilliant storytelling, coupled with Chip Kidd's innovative jacket design, was an unexpected hit, as well as a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction. A warmly inscribed copy to an early reader, bearing ample evidence of the author's hand prior to publication.
  • $950