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Literature

Rare & Classic, American or English Literature Books for Sale Online

Browse rare first edition classics in American, English, world literature, poetry, and plays. View our entire collection of rare literature below, search our inventory with advanced search, or use our sorting tools to find exactly what you’re looking for. Please call with any questions you may have on a specific item or order online today.

Showing items 120-144 of 4540

Shakespeare, William

The Works of William Shakespeare.

London : Macmillan and Co., 1887.

The Victoria edition of the works of William Shakespeare. Octavo, two volumes, bound in full polished calf with gilt titles and elaborate tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, double gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, “Via Veritas Vita” pictorial vignette stamped in gilt to the front panels, allContinue reading "The Works of William Shakespeare."

$500.00

Item Number: RRB-151128

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Wolfe, Tom [Tom Hanks]

The Bonfire of the Vanities.

New York : Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1987.

First edition of the author’s first novel, basis for the film starring Academy Award-winning actor Tom Hanks. Octavo, bound in full morocco by the Harcourt Bindery with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in five compartments within raised gilt bands, gilt ruling to the front and rear panel, gilt signature to the front panel,Continue reading "The Bonfire of the Vanities."

$2,250.00

Item Number: RRB-151086

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Wells, H.G

The Passionate Friends.

London : Macmillan and Co, 1913.

First edition of this novel, which was the first introduction of Wells’ notion of an “open conspiracy” of individuals to achieve a world state through an “open conspiracy against potentates and prejudices and all the separating powers of darkness.” Octavo, original publisher’s green cloth with titles stamped in gilt and botanical detailing stamped in blind.Continue reading "The Passionate Friends."

$100.00

Item Number: RRB-149399

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Mark Twain's Letters.

Paine, Albert Bigelow [Mark Twain; Samuel L. Clemens]

Mark Twain’s Letters.

New York and London : Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1917.

First limited edition of this seminal documentary collection on Samuel Langhorne Clemens. Octavo, two volumes, original publisher’s half-cloth with paper titles, frontispieces, illustrated throughout, with the original paper dust jackets. One of 350 copies. Each volume is fine in a very good dust jackets. Uncommon in the original jackets.

$500.00

Item Number: RRB-150662

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[Kerouac, Jack; Jean-Pierre Lemaire]

RUpTure.

Paris, France : Printed at 21 Rue de Saintonge, 1965.

Rare vintage January 1965 issue of RUpTure, a left-leaning French-language literary magazine, gifted to and personally owned by Beatnik writer Jack Kerouac. Oblong octavo, written in French, original soft red wrappers with brass brad binding, title page vignette, unpaginated, illustrated with three gelatin silver photos. Stamped with the Jack Kerouac Estate stamp and the raised blind sealContinue reading "RUpTure."

$2,000.00

Item Number: RRB-150642

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Connell Jr., Evan S

Mrs. Bridge and Mr. Bridge.

New York : The Viking Press, 1959 & 1969.

First editions of the author’s classic work and its sequel. Octavo, 2 volumes, original cloth. Each volume is signed by Evan Connell. Each are fine in a near fine to fine dust jackets. Jacket design by Susanne Suba.

$2,800.00

Item Number: RRB-151087

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Milton, John

The Works of John Milton in Verse and Prose: Printed From the Original Editions With a Life of the Author by John Mitford.

London : William Pickering, 1851.

Finely bound collection of the works of John Milton, published by William Pickering. Octavo, 8 volumes bound in full polished calf with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, morocco spine labels lettered in gilt, double gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt turn ins andContinue reading "The Works of John Milton in Verse and Prose: Printed From the Original Editions With a Life of the Author by John Mitford."

$3,000.00

Item Number: RRB-142882

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Hersey, John

Hiroshima.

New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 1946.

First edition of Hersey’s classic work, which has sold over three million copies. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author to fellow writer and publisher Kirby Congdon on the front free endpaper, “For Kirby Congdon: ‘The crux of the matter is whether total war…is justified even when it serves a just purpose.’ pp.Continue reading "Hiroshima."

$4,000.00

Item Number: RRB-142065

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Christie, Agatha

Hallowe’en Party.

London : The Crime Club by Collins, 1969.

First edition of Christie’s classic murder mystery. Octavo, original cloth. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket.

$350.00

Item Number: RRB-150692

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Maugham, W. Somerset

A Writer’s Notebook.

New York : Doubleday & Company, Inc, 1949.

Signed limited edition of Maugham’s semi-autobiographical confessional. Octavo, original publisher’s cloth with gilt titles and tooling to the spine, top edge gilt, frontispiece. One of 1,000 numbered copies, this is number 964. Boldly signed by W. Somerset Maugham on the limitations page. In fine condition, bookplate to the rear pastedown of Craig V. Showalter. HousedContinue reading "A Writer’s Notebook."

$400.00

Item Number: RRB-150519

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Marquez, Gabriel Garcia

The Nobel Lecture: The Solitude of Latin America.

New York : Targ Editions, 1984.

Rare first edition of Garcia Marquez’s Nobel Lecture. Original wrappers as issued. Presentation copy, inscribed by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Translated from the Spanish by Marina Castaneda. In near fine condition. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Exceptionally rare, especially signed.

$20,000.00

Item Number: RRB-151083

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Saint-Exupery, Antoine de

Wind, Sand and Stars.

New York : Reynal and Hitchcock, 1939.

First edition of Saint-Exupery’s philosophical memoir of flight. Octavo, original half cloth, pictorial endpapers. Decorations in color by John O’Hara Cosgrave II. Translated from the French by Lewis Galantiere. Near fine in a very good dust jacket. Uncommon in the original dust jacket.

$600.00

Item Number: RRB-150722

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Wells, H.G

Ann Veronica.

London : T. Fisher Unwin, 1909.

First British edition of this Edwardian era novel. Octavo, original publisher’s red cloth with titles stamped in gilt, along with “Vita sine litteris mors est” written in golden gilt on the front. This translates as “Life without learning is death,” a phrase traditionally attributed to Seneca (Epistle 82). From the collection of British science fictionContinue reading "Ann Veronica."

$125.00

Item Number: RRB-150887

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Hemingway, Ernest [Taylor Williams]

Ernest Hemingway Signed Photograph.

.

Rare original black and white photograph of legendary American writer Ernest Hemingway. Black and white matte photograph of Hemingway at his peak wearing Western garb and leaning on a car. Inscribed by Ernest Hemingway in black ballpoint at the bottom margin below the image, “For Taylor Williams with affection and admiration from his friend ErnestContinue reading "Ernest Hemingway Signed Photograph."

$16,000.00

Item Number: RRB-150070

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Dahl, Roald

Charlie And The Chocolate Factory.

New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 1964.

First edition of the author’s classic work. Octavo, original cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author to the family of film director Fred Zinnemann on the front free endpaper, “THIS BOOK IS FOR THE GRANDCHILDREN OF RENEE AND FRED WITH LOVE FROM Roald Dahl 1969.” The recipient, Fred Zinnemann was a revered film director andContinue reading "Charlie And The Chocolate Factory."

$12,500.00

Item Number: RRB-147400

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Williams, Tennessee

A Streetcar Named Desire.

New York : New Directions, 1947.

First edition of Williams’ classic play, which won Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1948. Octavo, original illustrated boards. Boldly signed by Tennessee Williams on the title page. Near fine in an very good dust jacket. Jacket design by Alvin Lustig. Laid in is the original New Directions Book postage reply.

$7,800.00

Item Number: RRB-151080

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Dylan, Bob

The Philosophy of Modern Song.

New York : Simon & Schuster, 2022.

First edition. Quarto, original cloth, illustrated. Boldly signed by Bob Dylan on the half-title page. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Cover photograph of Little Richard (left), Alis Lesley (center), and Eddie Cochran (right). Bookplate. Rare and desirable signed.

$3,500.00

Item Number: RRB-150157

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Kipling, Rudyard

Songs For Youth.

London : Hodder & Stoughton, 1924.

First edition this classic selection of Kipling’s songs for children. Octavo, original cloth, illustrations by Leo Bates with 8 tipped-in color plates. Boldly signed by Rudyard Kipling on the title page. Letter of provenance laid in which states that the book was signed for the then-owner’s father who attended Caterham School in Surrey, near Batermans.Continue reading "Songs For Youth."

$2,500.00

Item Number: RRB-151070

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Silverstein, Shel

Where the Sidewalk Ends: Poems and Drawings.

New York : Harper & Row, Publishers, 1974.

First edition of the author’s first collection of children’s poetry. Small quarto, original brown cloth, illustrated. Fine in a near fine dust jacket.

$1,400.00

Item Number: RRB-151077

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Wolfe, Tom

The Right Stuff.

New York : Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 1979.

First edition of Wolfe’s classic work. Octavo, original cloth with titles to the spine in silver. Presentation copy, lengthily and warmly inscribed by the author in the year of publication on the second free endpaper, “For Nancy with thanks for such splendid hospitality and marvelous company Tom Wolfe September 15 1979.” Fine in a nearContinue reading "The Right Stuff."

$975.00

Item Number: RRB-151079

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Wells, H.G

Mr. Britling Sees Through.

London : Cassell and Company, Ltd, 1916.

First British edition of Wells’ influential First World War novel depicting the moral and emotional upheaval of wartime Britain. Octavo, original publisher’s cloth with gilt titles to the spine, titles and floral tooling stamped in blind to the front panel. From the collection of British science fiction author Christopher Priest with his ownership signature toContinue reading "Mr. Britling Sees Through."

$100.00

Item Number: RRB-151148

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Maugham, W. Somerset

Cakes and Ale.

Melbourne : William Heinemann Ltd, 1954.

Signed limited edition of Maugham’s classic satire printed for the author’s eightieth birthday. Octavo, original publisher’s half-leather with gilt titles to the spine, top edge gilt, frontispiece, four pages of facsimile reproductions of the first and last two pages of the original manuscript, illustrated throughout. Boldly signed by the author and illustrator, Graham Sutherland, onContinue reading "Cakes and Ale."

$800.00

Item Number: RRB-150504

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McGuane, Thomas

Some Horses.

New York : The Lyons Press, 1999.

First edition of this American West literary collection of essays. Octavo, original publisher’s half cloth, illustrated with black and white sketches. Boldly signed in the year of publication on the half-title page “Thomas McGuane Montana 1999.” Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by John Gray. Author photograph by Kurt Markus.

$200.00

Item Number: RRB-150713

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Maugham, W. Somerset

Cosmopolitans.

London : William Heinemann LTD, 1936.

Signed limited edition of this collection of short stories, originally published in Cosmopolitan Magazine during the 1920s Jazz Age. Octavo, original publisher’s cloth with gilt titles to the spine, top edge gilt, silk ribbon bound in. One of 175 numbered copies, this is number 69. Boldly signed by W. Somerset Maugham on the limitations page.Continue reading "Cosmopolitans."

$750.00

Item Number: RRB-150498

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