The latest group of literary firsts and poetry from Alexander Rare Books.
By Michael Stillman
We have received the latest catalogue from Alexander Rare Books, Winter 2007, just in time for spring! Alexander offers Literary Firsts and Poetry, with this collection focused primarily on poetry. Most works are from the 20th century, but a few items from the previous one have managed to sneak into the catalogue. Actually, the majority of items come from the second half of the 20th century. There is no shortage of material to consider with 345 pieces being offered. I would not even pretend to be knowledgeable in the field of poetry from the past fifty years, so the samples from this catalogue described in the next few paragraphs are perhaps more atypical than typical of the majority of what is offered. Those who collect in the area of more recent poetry will find much more of interest in their field being offered by the Barre, Vermont, bookseller than this review reveals. You should check it out. Now, for some samples.
Item 8 is an important piece for collectors of the "beat" generation. It is volume one, number two of the Evergreen Review, published by the Grove Press in 1957. It introduced the writing and poetry of the emerging San Francisco "beat" culture to the nation. Alexander describes this issue as "the most important issue of this long-running literary journal..." It featured works by Henry Miller, Ferlinghetti, McClure, Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg. It includes the first separate publication of Ginsberg's Howl. This piece would be the focus of an important first amendment legal case that year. It was the subject of an obscenity trial, saved when the judge determined it had redeeming social value. Ginsberg (in 1993) and McClure signed this copy of the periodical. Priced at $300.
Item 277 is an early printing of Poe's last poem (or at least one of the two poems generally considered to be his "last). It is The Bells, as it appeared in The Boston Cultivator on November 3, 1849. This poem was originally submitted to Sartain's Magazine, but was picked up and republished by this long-running farm magazine less than a month after Poe died. Offered is volume 11 number 44 of this Boston farm publication containing Poe's poem. $295.
Item 22 is the first printing of the first novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, This Side of Paradise. It was published in April 1920, in a run of 3,000 copies, which Alexander notes, was reported to have sold out in three days. This copy is in exceptionally good condition, though it lacks the scarce dust jacket. $5,000.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Jerry Thomas. How to Mix Drinks, or the Bon-Vivant's Companion, Containing Clear and Reliable Directions for Mixing All the Beverages Used in the United States…
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Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Francesco Colonna. Hypnerotomachie, Paris, 1546, Parisian calf by Wotton Binder C for Marcus Fugger. €200,000 to €300,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Nausea. De principiis dialectices Gorgias, and other works, Venice, 1523, morocco gilt for Cardinal Campeggio. €3,000 to €4,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Billon. Le fort inexpugnable de l'honneur, Paris, 1555, Parisian calf gilt for Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld. €120,000 to €180,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Salinger, J.D. The Graham Family archive, including autographed letters, an inscribed Catcher, a rare studio photograph of the author, and more. $120,000 to $180,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of Sense and Sensibility, the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Massachusetts General Court. A powerful precursor to the Declaration of Independence: "every Act of Government … without the Consent of the People, is … Tyranny." $40,000 to $60,000.
![<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/8caddaea-4c1f-47a7-9455-62f53af36e3f.jpg "<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.")
![<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/9a74d9ff-42dd-46a1-8bb2-b636c4cec796.png "<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.")
