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First editions

PBA features first editions, pulp fiction at Jan. 7 auction

Tom Hoepf
Tom Hoepf
First editions
The Charles Bukowski oil painting contained in his book ‘Hot Water Music,’ Black Sparrow Press, 1983. Estimate: $5,000-$8,000. PBA image

BERKELEY, Calif. – PBA Galleries will conduct an auction of Fine Literature – Science Fiction & Mystery on Jan. 7. Offerings will include over 450 lots of fine literature, science fiction and mystery books. Bid absentee or live online through LiveAuctioneers.

Section One comprises a wide variety of modern literature (with some earlier works represented as well) and features a large section of scarce and early titles by Raymond Carver, many of them signed, including his first chapbook of poetry and his first story to appear in book form. Section Two showcases a large collection of the works of Ray Bradbury, with many signed and scarce pieces, as well as a wonderful selection of the works of H.P. Lovecraft and related ephemera.

First editions
Saul Bellow, ‘Dangling Man,’ The Vanguard Press, 1944, first edition. Estimate: $3,000-$5,000. PBA image

First editions, many signed, are featured throughout the sale. A scarce first edition of Saul Bellow’s Dangling Man in the scarce dust jacket will be up for bidding (est. $3,000-$5,000). Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, signed by the author on the title page, also includes a publisher’s review slip laid in and dust jacket (est. $2,000-$3,000). The first edition of Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, the classic story of the “cynical adolescent” Holden Caulfield, is available with the first issue jacket (est. $2,500-$3,500). The first edition of Beckett’s existential classic, Waiting for Godot, was preceded only by the near-impossible-to-obtain 35-copy large paper edition (est.  $4,000-$6,000).

First editions
Samuel Beckett, ‘En attendant Godot,’ first edition, with original wrappers printed in blue and black. Estimate: $4,000-$6,000. PBA image

Other highlights include Hot Water Music, with an original painting by Charles Bukowski. Bukowski’s classic collection of stories is one of 100 numbered copies with an original painting by the author (est. $5,000-$8,000). A scarce, signed limited edition of Simone de Beauvoir’s classic work, The Mandarin, for which she won the Prix Goncourt in 1954, will be on the auction block (est. $2,500-$3,500). H.P. Lovecraft’s The Outsider is in the first volume of his posthumous works, and the first book published by Arkham House (est. $2,500-$3,500). One of the most important novels of the 20th century, Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, is a first edition with the dust jacket (est. $2,000-$3,000). The complete 36-issue run of Dell Ten Cent Books, a short-lived experiment by the publishing company in publishing short fiction, is expected to draw competitive bidding.

First editions
Complete 36-issue run of Dell Ten Cent paperback books, 1951. Estimate: $2,000-$3,000. PBA image

For more information about upcoming PBA sales or to schedule a Zoom preview or phone bidding for a future auction, contact the galleries at 415-989-2665 or pba@pbagalleries.com.

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