100 Fine Literary Works from Lorne Bair Rare Books
- by Michael Stillman
M.L.K., inscribed to his Aunt Woodie.
Item 22 is described by Bair as “long the bane of middle-school readers to whom it has been thoughtlessly prescribed as a moral tonic.” That would be SilasMarner:TheWeaverofRaveloe, written by Mary Anne Evans, better known by her pseudonym of George Eliot. It is the tale of a poor weaver who is falsely accused of theft, loses his sweetheart to the real thief and his supposed friend, who then goes off to live in isolation, makes a lot of money, only to have that stolen. But... Silas finds a small child, who grows to be a fine young lady, giving meaning to Silas' life and his ultimate redemption from solitude. Its message is a bit clearer than Godot's, but it never has been much of a young people's favorite, as Bair points out. Published in 1861. $1,200.
This next one might be the bane of high school students except that this regularly assigned reading is generally much better appreciated by the young than is Silas' tale of woe. Item 30 is William Goulding's LordoftheFlies, the 1955 first American printing. It is a story of children, stranded on an island, who turn into something less than we might like to imagine without the guiding hand of society to keep them in line. Poor Piggy. $1,750.
Henry Thoreau is most remembered for his years at Walden Pond, but he made a few forays into some really serious wilderness. Item 83 is TheMaineWoods, published in 1864, after Thoreau's death. In time, Walden would become a Boston suburb, but the north woods of Maine remains more or less like the forests of Thoreau's time, though logging has stripped it of its old trees. $1,500.
High Bids Win Rare Books, Catalogs, Magazines and Machine Manuals December 24 to January 9
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Ellis Smith Prints unsigned. 20” by 16”.
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: United typothetae of America presidents. Pictures of 37 UTA presidents 46th annual convention United typothetae of America Cincinnati 1932.
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec signed Paper Impressionism Art Prints. MayMilton 9 1/2” by 13” Reine de Joie 9 1/2” by 13”.
High Bids Win Rare Books, Catalogs, Magazines and Machine Manuals December 24 to January 9
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Aberle’ Ballet editions. 108th triumph, American season spring and summer 1944.
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Puss ‘n Boots. 1994 Charles Perrult All four are signed by Andreas Deja
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Specimen book of type faces. Job composition department, Philadelphia gazette publishing company .
High Bids Win Rare Books, Catalogs, Magazines and Machine Manuals December 24 to January 9
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: An exhibit of printed books, Bridwell library.
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur Court By Mark Twain 1889.
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: 1963 Philadelphia Eagles official program.
High Bids Win Rare Books, Catalogs, Magazines and Machine Manuals December 24 to January 9
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: 8 - Esquire the magazine for men 1954.
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: The American printer, July 1910.
High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Leaves of grass 1855 by Walt Whitman.
Sotheby's Fine Books, Manuscripts & More Available for Immediate Purchase
Sotheby’s: William Shakespeare. The Poems and Sonnets of William Shakespeare, 1960. 7,210 USD
Sotheby’s: Charles Dickens. A Christmas Carol, First Edition, 1843. 17,500 USD
Sotheby’s: William Golding. Lord of the Flies, First Edition, 1954. 5,400 USD
Sotheby's Fine Books, Manuscripts & More Available for Immediate Purchase
Sotheby’s: Lewis Carroll. Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There, Inscribed First Edition, 1872. 25,000 USD
Sotheby’s: J.R.R. Tolkien. The Hobbit, First Edition, 1937. 12,000 USD
Sotheby’s: John Milton. Paradise Lost, 1759. 5,400 USD
