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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 24-48 of 4665

Tolkien, J.R.R

The Lord of The Rings Trilogy: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King.

London : George Allen and Unwin, 1967.

Second editions of the author’s classic trilogy, signed by Tolkien in each volume. Octavo, 3 volumes, original cloth, folding maps. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the half-title page, “Signed for Ethel May with love J. R. R. Tolkien.” Volumes two and three are signed by J.R.R. Tolkien on the half-title page. The recipient,Continue reading "The Lord of The Rings Trilogy: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King."

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$75,000.00
Item Number: RRB-134590
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Kerouac, Jack

Jack Kerouac Autograph Manuscript Signed.

February 28,1964.

Autograph manuscript signed, being Kerouac’s answers to twelve typed questions from Robert Dodd, two pages, quarto, 28 February 1964. Kerouac candidly replies to a young man’s questions. Given a ninth-grade classroom assignment to contact his favorite writer, Robert Dodd chose Jack Kerouac. The author provides lengthy answers to the young Dodd’s questions. On the questionContinue reading "Jack Kerouac Autograph Manuscript Signed."

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$75,000.00
Item Number: RRB-79098
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Joyce, James

Ulysses.

Paris : Shakespeare and Company, 1922.

First edition of Joyce’s masterpiece, one of 750 numbered copies printed on handmade paper from a total edition of 1000 copies, this is number 276. Thick quarto, original blue and white wrappers. In near fine condition, square and tight with a touch of rubbing to the crown and foot of the spine. Housed in aContinue reading "Ulysses."

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$75,000.00
Item Number: RRB-126933
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Rand, Ayn

The Fountainhead.

Indianapolis : Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1943.

First edition, first issue with first edition stated on the copyright page of the author’s first major novel, as well as her first best-seller. Octavo, original red cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author in the year of publication on the front free endpaper, “To Gertrude Lynneberg- – with my best wishes for long yearsContinue reading "The Fountainhead."

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$75,000.00
Item Number: RRB-121447
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Kerouac, Jack

Big Sur.

New York : Farrar, Straus & Cudahy, 1962.

First edition of Kerouac’s poignant masterpiece of self-reflection. Octavo, original cloth. Boldly signed by Jack Kerouac on the front free endpaper. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Janet Halverson. Exceptionally rare with no other signed examples traced at auction since publication, while signed copies of On the Road have rarely appearedContinue reading "Big Sur."

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$75,000.00
Item Number: RRB-150040
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Rand, Ayn

The Fountainhead.

Indianapolis and New York : The Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1943.

First edition, early printing of Rands’s breakthrough work and her first major literary success. Octavo, original cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, “To Barbara- for a very heroic achievement- with love- Ayn April 9,1956.” Born in Winnipeg, Barbara Weidman met Nathaniel Branden because of their mutual interest in Ayn Rand’s works. TheyContinue reading "The Fountainhead."

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$75,000.00
Item Number: RRB-138297
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Bronte, Charlotte; Edited by Currer Bell

Jane Eyre: An Autobiography.

London : Smith, Elder, & Co, 1847.

Rare first edition of this revolutionary feminist romance, of which reportedly only about 500 copies were printed in the first edition. Octavo, three volumes, finely bound in full calf with gilt titles and elaborate tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, gilt tooling to the front and rear panels, marbled endpapers,Continue reading "Jane Eyre: An Autobiography."

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$72,000.00
Item Number: RRB-146830
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Joyce, James

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

New York : Huebsch, 1916.

First edition of Joyce’s classic stream-of-consciousness work, his first novel, in the exceptionally rare dust jacket. Octavo, original blue cloth with titles to the spine in gilt. Near fine in a very good dust jacket with small chips and wear to the extremities. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Rare especially in thisContinue reading "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man."

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$72,000.00
Item Number: RRB-129144
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Melville, Herman

Moby Dick; Or, The Whale.

New York : Harper & Brothers, 1851.

First edition, first issue binding, with the circular Harper’s device of Melville’s masterpiece. Octavo, original purple-brown cloth (BAL’s A grain), covers stamped in blind with the publisher’s circular device at the center within a heavy blind rule frame, original orange-coated endpapers. Of the 2,951 copies printed, 125 were review copies. About 1,500 sold in 11Continue reading "Moby Dick; Or, The Whale."

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$65,000.00
Item Number: RRB-99735
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Twain, Mark and Charles Dudley Warner. [Samuel L. Clemens]

The Gilded Age: A Novel.

London : George Routledge and Sons, 1874.

First English edition of the rarest of Mark Twain’s works: the only novel he wrote with a collaborator and the book that gave the era its name in history. Octavo, three volumes, original publishers green cloth, gilt titles to the spine, illustrated. The only multi-volume work Clemens produced, except for the two-volume Tramp Abroad (London,Continue reading "The Gilded Age: A Novel."

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$65,000.00
Item Number: RRB-133018
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Lee, Harper

To Kill A Mockingbird.

Philadelphia & New York : J.B. Lippincott Company, 1960.

First edition with the review slip of one of the most important American novels of the 20th century which had an initial first printing of 5,000 copies and went on to earn Harper Lee the 1961 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Octavo, original half cloth. Boldly signed by the author on the front free endpaper, “withContinue reading "To Kill A Mockingbird."

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$65,000.00
Item Number: RRB-148055
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Fleming, Ian

Goldfinger.

London : Jonathan Cape, 1959.

First edition of the seventh novel in Ian Fleming’s James Bond series. Octavo, original black cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, “To Una, who again wrote the whole thing! from Ian Fleming.” The recipient, Una Trueblood, whose surname was later appropriated by Fleming for the character of Mary TruebloodContinue reading "Goldfinger."

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$60,000.00
Item Number: RRB-133728
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Fleming, Ian

Diamonds Are Forever.

London : Jonathan Cape, 1956.

First edition of the fourth novel in Ian Fleming’s James Bond series. Octavo, original black cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, “To Lionel from Ian with affection.” The recipient is most likely British Conservative politician and newspaper proprietor Lionel Berry, 2nd Viscount Kemsley, was professionally and socially connected toContinue reading "Diamonds Are Forever."

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$60,000.00
Item Number: RRB-150781
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Boccaccio, Giovanni

The Decameron.

London : Isaac Jaggard, 1620.

First edition in English of Boccaccio’s masterpiece, published by Jaggard published three years prior to his printing of the Shakespeare First Folio. Boccaccio’s masterpiece. Folio, 2 volumes, bound in full morocco by Riviere, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, all edges gilt, errata leaf at end of volume one, B1 is a cancellans, woodcutContinue reading "The Decameron."

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$60,000.00
Item Number: RRB-128726
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Austen, Jane

Emma: A Novel.

London : Printed for John Murray, 1816.

First edition of the last of Austen‘s works to be published during her lifetime, with Cooper-Powys family provenance and in a fine contemporary binding. Duodecimo, three volumes bound in three quarter contemporary calf over marbled boards with gilt titles and Greek key ruling to the spines, rebacked with original spines laid down, half-titles. From the libraryContinue reading "Emma: A Novel."

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$60,000.00
Item Number: RRB-149892
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Beethoven, Ludwig van

Sinfonie mit Schluss-Chor uber Schillers Ode: “An die Freude” fur grosses Orchester, 4 Solo- und 4 Chor-Stimmen componirt und Seiner Majestaet dem Konig von Preussen Friedrich Wilhelm III in tiefster Ehrfurcht kugeeignet von Ludwig van Beethoven. [The Ninth Symphony].

Mainz and Paris : B. Schotts Sohnen, 1826.

Exceptionally rare first edition, first issue of one of the most frequently performed symphonies in the world, containing the subscribers’ list, but not the composer’s notorious metronome markings which were added in later issues. Quarto, bound in nineteenth-century marbled boards with a blank label to the front panel, all edges yellow, printed with plate numberContinue reading "Sinfonie mit Schluss-Chor uber Schillers Ode: “An die Freude” fur grosses Orchester, 4 Solo- und 4 Chor-Stimmen componirt und Seiner Majestaet dem Konig von Preussen Friedrich Wilhelm III in tiefster Ehrfurcht kugeeignet von Ludwig van Beethoven. [The Ninth Symphony]."

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$55,000.00
Item Number: RRB-146837
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Orwell, George

Burmese Days.

New York : Harper & Brothers, 1934.

First American edition, preceding the British edition by one year of Orwell’s first novel. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author with his given name on the verso of the front free endpaper, “With very best wishes from Eric Blair.” As explained in the accompanying typed letter signed by Adrian Fierz, this copyContinue reading "Burmese Days."

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$55,000.00
Item Number: RRB-67096
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Lee, Harper

To Kill A Mockingbird.

Philadelphia & New York : J.B. Lippincott Company, 1960.

First edition with the review slip of one of the most important American novels of the 20th century which had an initial first printing of 5,000 copies and went on to earn Harper Lee the 1961 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Octavo, original half cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author in the year of publicationContinue reading "To Kill A Mockingbird."

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$55,000.00
Item Number: RRB-148867
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West, Nathanael

Miss Lonelyhearts.

New York : Liveright, 1933.

First edition, first issue of this humorous tale of alienation and advice in Depression era New York which was well-received, but the publisher went bankrupt almost immediately and bookshops were unable to source copies. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket with light rubbing and wear. Easily one of the nicest examples extant, withContinue reading "Miss Lonelyhearts."

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$55,000.00
Item Number: RRB-140436
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Baum, L. Frank. Illustrated by John R. Neill. [Judy Garland; Billie Burke; Ray Bolger; Frank Morgan; Bert Lahr; Margaret Hamilton; Jack Haley; Victor Fleming

The Magic of Oz.

Chicago : The Reilly & Lee Co, 1919.

First edition, first printing of this classic work in L. Frank Baum’s celebrated Oz series, the last of the series to appear during Baum’s lifetime, as he passed away shortly before its release in 1919. First printing with the verso of the ownership page listing Baum titles through The Tin Woodman of Oz. Octavo, originalContinue reading "The Magic of Oz."

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$55,000.00
Item Number: RRB-149586
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McCarthy, Cormac

Blood Meridian or The Evening Redness in the West.

New York : Random House, 1985.

First edition of Cormac McCarthy’s fifth novel, widely considered his masterpiece and among the greatest novels of the 20th century. Octavo, original half cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, “For Anne With Love Cormac.” The recipient, Anne DeLisle was McCarthy’s second wife. McCarthy published his debut novel, The OrchardContinue reading "Blood Meridian or The Evening Redness in the West."

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$55,000.00
Item Number: RRB-149734
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Dylan, Bob

Bob Dylan Lyrics 1962-1985.

New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 1985.

First printing of the second edition of this compilation of Dylan’s lyrics. Quarto, original glossy illustrated boards. Association copy, inscribed by Dylan to close friend and fellow legendary musician, George Harrison on the front free endpaper: “To George [surrounded by a sun] You’re Great And Always will be! Best wishes Bob Dylan/3/’86.” George Harrison wroteContinue reading "Bob Dylan Lyrics 1962-1985."

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$50,000.00
Item Number: RRB-80146
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Lewis, C.S

The Screwtape Letters.

London : Geoffrey Bles, 1943.

First edition of Lewis’ classic work. Octavo, original cloth. Boldly signed by C.S. Lewis on the front free endpaper. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Housed in a custom half morocco chemise and clamshell box. Exceptionally rare signed.

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$50,000.00
Item Number: RRB-150091
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Rowson, Susanna Haswell

Charlotte. A Tale of Truth.

Philadelphia : Printed by D. Humphreys for M. Carey, 1794.

Exceedingly rare first American edition (and the earliest obtainable example) of the first American bestseller. Octavo, two volumes bound into one in three quarter calf over marbled boards, morocco spine label lettered in gilt, marbled endpapers. Although the first American edition was preceded by the first English edition published in 1791, no examples of theContinue reading "Charlotte. A Tale of Truth."

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$50,000.00
Item Number: RRB-125183
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