Collectibles

This ten-volume set of Tennyson's works include some of his most beloved poems, including "The Lady of Shalott" and "Idylls of the King." You will surely enjoy these verses from the wordsmith who gave us "'Tis better to have loved and lost/Than never to have loved at all." Bound in three-quarter leather stamped in gilt, with marbled boards and endpapers. more info...

The African-born Roman author and philosopher Theodosius Ambrosius Macrobius, active in the early fifth century C.E., is probably best known today for his "In Somnium Scipioniis" and "Saturnaliorum." The first is the text of Cicero's "Scipio's Dream" with Macrobius's commentary, while the second is a series of dialogues on a variety of topics, including history, mythology, criticism, and grammar. The most remarkable aspect of this volume is the "Macrobius map," which is the first map of the world that shows ocean currents and that names "frigid" and "temperate" zones. It depicts the earth as a sphere, and is most likely based on the second-century Globe of Crates, the first-known representation of the Earth as a globe. An early edition bound in full vellum. more info...

In 1916, with the world at war, Edmund Gosse selected a representative fairy tale from each of the eight Allies fighting as one: Great Britain (with a story from each England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland), France, Italy, Portugal, Japan, Russia, Serbia, and Belgium. In his introduction, Gosse notes the universal existence of tales of enchantment, noting that the magical creatures that inhabit them "have no politics and are ignorant of patriotism...and we cannot be sure what part they take in the quarrels and dissensions of mankind." Their only law? "Be kind to those who are kind to you." Each story in this limited numbered edition has been illustrated with 12 color plates by Arthur Rackham, who also signed this copy (and, as a contemporary review notes, "There are lots of little decorations, too, by the same hand, which are delicious"), making it magically entertaining. more info...

Raymond Carver's first collection of short stories, Will You Please Be Quiet, Please?, established his reputation as a master of the form, earning a spot on the short-list for the National Book Award in 1977. Offered here is the scarce uncorrected proof of this breakthrough work. more info...

Called the "inspired idiot" by Horace Walpole, Oliver Goldsmith was an Anglo-Irish playwright famous for his flamboyant lifestyle and popular comedies. This large-format edition of She Stoops to Conquer, a farce that has been performed frequently even to this day, features 10 heliogravures by Edwin A. Abbey, a nineteenth-century artist, illustrator, and painter. Abbey's work appeared in Harper's Weekly and Scribner's Magazine, and he is best known for painting a series of murals for the Boston Public Library as well as murals and other artworks for the rotunda of the new Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Bound in bright blue cloth and stamped in silver, this book brings together two masters, Goldsmith and Abbey, each complementing the other. more info...

The bombing of Pearl Harbor stunned a nation and catapulted it into a war. Soon after, Boris Karloff set out to explain the reasons for action in America Goes to War. Using quotes from speeches by Roosevelt, Churchill, Mussolini, Hitler, and much more, encourages "all Americans" to read this book to inspire us to "make every sacrifice needed to win an Allied victory and achieve a new era of peace, justice, and freedom for the whole world." This small octavo is bound in dark blue leather stamped in red and gilt, and signed by Karloff, Josephine Hull, John Alexander, and Jean Adair. This book provides great insight into a dramatic moment in history, and is a great gift for World War II buffs, Karloff fans, and anyone interested in the intersection of Hollywood and politics. more info...

William Makepeace Thackeray's most famous work, Vanity Fair, is a satire of life in early eighteenth century England. The title comes from the seventeenth-century story Pilgrim's Progress, in which the never-ending fair in a town called Vanity is a stop along the way, representing man's attachment to material things. Despite the 250-plus years that separate the writing of this novel and today, Vanity Fair remains a classic and has inspired multiple film adaptations. This is a lovely early printing of the original edition that includes charming illustrations on steel and wood by the author. more info...

Few people today do not recognize the ringing call to action, "Run, Forrest, Run!", even without having seen the 1994 film, Forrest Gump. Based on the 1986 eponymous novel by Winston Groom, this funny and heartwarming story is told from the perspective of the slow title character, following Gump from the American South to Vietnam, as an unwitting witness to some of the more famous moments in twentieth-century American history. This copy is a first edition that has been signed by the author. more info...

Busman's Honeymoon is the eleventh and last novel to feature Dorothy L. Sayers's beloved character, Lord Peter Wimsey, and the fourth and last novel to feature Harriet Vane. This book is Sayers's theatrical adaptation to this beloved whodunit, with the help of M. St. Clare Byrne. In the introduction, the authors stress the important distinction between the "true detective story" and the "thriller" on the one hand and the "psychological crime-story" on the other: the "fair-play rule." Sayers sums it up thus: the audience and the detective get the same clues at the same time -- and therefore both have the opportunity to solve the crime. This first edition copy is a delightful whodunit that will keep you guessing until the end. more info...

Simply: Makes you want to keep reading M.F.K. Fisher... forever. more info...

Morphed from box of ashes into book and 11" record, this highly personal limited edition comes darkly our way from the esteemed Heartworm Press. Through the plodding, deliberate layout, precise collage work, the finality of the memoir, and dark, intense sound Prurient (Dominick Furnow) and his mother Jean Feraca have given us a glimpse of a strange, disquieting procession. more info...

(Tokyo). (1974). 8vo. LTD NUMBERE D ED., ltd to 260 (of 780) copies, with two original SIGNED intaglio prints, one by Nishiwaki and one by Ikeda. Includes a slipcase and a publisher's wrap around cardstock... more info...

As a follow-up to Terry Richardson's Clown piece, RxArt returns with a 200-piece puzzle of downtown art star Dan Colen's "ROCK! PAPER! SCISSORS! SH...", "NO! NO! SCISSORS! ROCK! PAPER! SHOOT!" (2007). Edition limited to 700 copies. Also available in a kid-friendly 35-piece puzzle. more info...

Often referred to as "the forgotten man" of legendary pulp magazine Black Mask, Raoul Whitfield produced more work for the publication than any other writer, except for Erle Stanley Gardener. And although many details of Whitfield's life are murky, his imagination generated over 300 short stories and nine books for the publishing world. While known primarily for his detective fiction, Whitfield also published five collections of air adventure and battle stories for young readers, gleaning inspiration from his experience in the United States Army (either as a flying cadet or a Lieutenant, depending on who's telling the story). Indeed, Peter Ruber and Victor Berch, in their article, Raoul Whitfield: Black Mask's Forgotten Man, note that during an interview his ex-wife remarked that Whitfield credited himself as having created a new genre of short fiction, the "Flying Ace" stories. Abounding with nose-diving jets flying through enemy territory and fast paced dialogue, Silver Wings contains a dozen Flying Ace stories, all but one, previously published in Boy's Life Magazine. This copy with the bright Frank Dobias illustrated dust jacket in very good condition. more info...

4to. LTD SIGNED ED., one of 2,500 copies, with sericel reproduction of animation, this copy unnumbered. SIGNED by the film's directors (2), producer, and Disney's president of animation. Full leather with... more info...