Archive for the ‘Science Fiction’ Category

Library Addition: Signed Willis/Felice Light Raid First

Thursday, March 14th, 2019

Another ex-Meschke/Duarte book:

Willis, Connie, and Cynthia Felice. Light Raid. Ace, 1989. First edition hardback, a Very Good+ copy with rubbing along gilt of spine and bumping at head and heel, in a Fine dust jacket. Inscribed by both the authors: “To Meschke,/The elegeantly/written half is by me./Connie/Willis” “To Meschke/The fun stuff is all/by me! Cynthia Felice.” Karen Meschke was con chair of the 1997 San Antonio Worldcon, where Willis won the Hugo for Best Short Story. Bought from Half Price Books for $13.50.

Library Additions: Signed Editions of Two H. G. Wells Classics

Thursday, March 7th, 2019

Not signed by H.G. Wells, alas, (I have one of those) but by the illustrator.

Wells, H. G. The Time Machine with The War of The Worlds. Limited Editions Club, 1964. First edition thus, #1327 of 1500 numbered sets signed by illustrator Joseph Mugnaini in each book, each Fine copies, sans dust jackets (as issued), in a Very Good+ slipcase with abrasions along the top and other touches of wear. Mugnaini is probably most famous to SF readers for his illustrations of Ray Bradbury books, especially the first edition of The Halloween Tree. This is a handsome set that usually lists for 2-3 times what I paid, and it’s possible I’ll never own nice copies of the true first editions of either. Bought off eBay for $50 for the set.

Library Additions: Two Signed Jack Vance Firsts

Tuesday, March 5th, 2019

The Jack Vance buying spree continues:

  • Vance, Jack. To Live Forever. Charles F. Miller, 1995. First limited edition, #116 of 500 signed, numbered hardbacks, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket and Fine slipcase. Cunningham, 79c. Chalker/Owings (2002), page 533. Supplements a signed copy of the Ballantine Books hardback first edition. Bought off eBay for $46.57 (original publication price was $60).

  • (Vance, Jack) Tim Underwood and Chuck Miller, editors. Jack Vance. Taplinger, 1980. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, signed by Vance. Book of critical essays. Hewett, M74. Replaces an unsigned copy. Bought from a friend for $35.

  • Library Addition: Ward Moore’s Breathe The Air Again

    Thursday, February 21st, 2019

    Most SF readers think Ward Moore only published four books: Bring the Jubilee, Greener Than You Think, Joyleg (with Avram Davidson), and Caduceus Wild. However, Moore publshed two mainstream novels before any of those, Cloud by Day and the book below:

    Moore, Ward. Breathe the Air Again. Harper & Brothers, 1942. First edition hardback (stated), an Ex-Lbrary copy with all the usual flaws, including spine sticker, stamps, pocket, internal stamps and stickers, etc., with touches of wear, some mild page-block soiling, points blunted, etc., lacking the dust jacket. Really only a reading/placeholder copy, but this seems to be a genuinely rare book; the only other copy I’ve seen pop up in all that time was about the same condition, but offered at over 10 times the cost. Reportedly a mainstream novel of labor organizing. Bought from a multilister for $18.63.

    Including two Armchair Fiction magazine reprints, I have all Moore’s books except the Tachyon Press hardback of Lot and Lot’s Daughter.

    Obituary: GAK

    Wednesday, February 20th, 2019

    Only in reading the February Ansible did I learn that artist GAK died mid-January. His real name was evidently Gregg Kanefsky (edited to add: probably not; that seems to be a different GAK), though I also knew him as Glenn Denny Gak (the name he used on Facebook), and an obituary linked from his Facebook page referenced Glenn A. Klinger. He was obviously a man of many mysteries.

    Back when I edited Nova Express, GAK became my go-to guy for cover art. His spikey style seemed a good fit for what I wanted to publish. Among his best covers was the one for the Tim Powers issue:

    As well as the one for the Neil Gaiman issue, the original artwork for which I have matted and hanging in my house above a copy of the issue:

    After Nova Express, he went on to illustrate a number of horor works, including the Dead Cat Bounce series.

    I only met GAK once, at the 2002 World Fantasy Convention in Minneapolis, where I had dinner with him and Nova contributor Hank Wagner. I had no idea he was sick until I read that he had died.

    Here’s his ISFDB listing.

    One more for the road:

    Library Additions: Three Signed Ray Bradbury Books

    Tuesday, January 29th, 2019

    The signed Ray Bradbury buying spree continues apace:

  • Bradbury, Ray. Bullet Trick. Gauntlet Press, 2009. First edition hardback, one of 500 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, still in publisher’s shrinkwrap. Collection of teleplays and short fiction. List price of $85. Bought off eBay for $46.
  • Bradbury, Ray. Christmas Greetings 1982. Self-published, 1982. First edition broadsheet, a Near Fine copy with wrinkling on the right side (probably do to inadequate stiffing in an envelope shipped from France) and a former paperclip impression at top left. Inscribed by Bradbury. Bought for $30 plus shipping.

  • (Bradbury, Ray) Robin Anne Reid. Ray Bradbury: A Critical Companion. Greenwood Press, 2000. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards, sans dust jacket, as issued. Signed by Bradbury. Non-fiction reference book. Bought from an Internet book dealer for $35.

  • Lame Excuse Books December 2018 Catalog

    Friday, January 18th, 2019

    Time for another edition of “Lawrence Put’s The Latest Book Catalog Up As A Big old text File! OK, I’m a little late on this one, but I sent out the last orders from this catalog this week…


    Greetings, and welcome to the latest Lame Excuse Books catalog! I really like this one, as there’s a good bit of variety and some interesting signed items, many from writers who are no longer with us. There are small press books from Charnel House, Centipede Press, Subterranean, Dragonstairs, PS Publishing, SST and Tachyon, as well signed books from Gardner Dozois, Neal Barrett, Jr., Ellen Datlow (several Year’s Best Fantasy volumes), Ian MacDonald, Michael Moorcock, Charles De Lint. Robert Silverberg, Dan Simmons, Pete S. Beagle, Michael Swanwick and Tim Powers, an out-of-print Philip K. Dick first edition, a Thomas Ligotti rarity, some Jack Vance firsts, a very early proof of a Hugo-winning novel, some markdowns, and even a few cheap paperback reading copies. There are also copies from the late Fred Duarte’s collection, and a few from the collection of the still-very-much-alive Austin science fiction writer Don Webb (he just had to clear some space). Something for everyone!

    As usual, I typically only have a 1-2 copies of even the newest books, so if you want something you should act fast!

    The URL for the main Lame Excuse Books webpage is:

    https://www.lawrenceperson.com/lame.html

    My blog, where I do a lot of book geeking (including new additions to my own book collection) is:

    https://www.lawrenceperson.com

    I’m still doing a Lame Excuse Books Twitter feed:

    https://twitter.com/LameExcuseBooks

    My books are also now listed at:

    https://www.biblio.com/bookstore/lame-excuse-books-austin

    But buying directly from me guarantees you the best price.

    Payment, Contact & Shipping Information

    Email me at lawrenceperson@gmail.com. I can hold books ten days on email or phone requests (please leave a message on my voice mail for
    the latter: (512) 569-9036). U.S. shipping is $5.00 for the first book, and $1.00 a book thereafter. Foreign shipping is at cost (please
    inquire; for most locations, Priority International starts at $34.25 now; but check, Biblio has a new way to ship more cheaply for international orders). Books may be returned in the same condition sent for any reason
    within 10 days of purchase for a full refund. Please make checks payable to Lawrence Person. I can also take PayPal payment to this email address at http://www.paypal.com.

    Please mail checks to:

    Lawrence Person
    Lame Excuse Books
    P.O. Box 27231
    Austin, Texas 78755

    Finally, if you want me to take you off this mailing list, please let me know. I hate spam just as much as the next person.

    Now the books!

    Hardbacks

    LP2626. Barrett, Jr., Neal. Dead Dog Blues. St. Martin’s, 1994. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine- dust jacket with slight wrinkling at points, in a dust jacket protector. Inscribed Associational copy by Barrett: “For Fred & Meschke—/Best wishes!/Neal Barrett, Jr.” Fred Duarte and Karen Meshke ran several Armadillocons (and Meschke a Worldcon), and were married for several years. Neal died in 2014, and Fred in 2015. Weird mystery featuring the dead dog of the title, a murdered ex-high school football player whose body is set running by mechanical means back and forth across the local field, and a downfall of suspects. Recommended. $15.

    LP2627. Barrett, Jr., Neal. Skinny Annie Blues. Kensington, 1996. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket in a Mylar dust jacket protector. Signed and dated (“7/96”) by Barrett. The first Wiley Moss mystery. $14.

    LP2628. Beagle, Peter S. The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey. Tachyon, 2018. First edition hardback, one of 250 signed, numbered hardbacks, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. The very first, never-published version of Beagle’s The Last Unicorn. Discover the “genesis of Beagle’s masterpiece, his own wry musings upon his early career, charming original illustrations, and tributes from modern fantasy legends Patrick Rothfuss and Carrie Vaughn.” $95.

    LP2629. Blaylock, James P. River’s Edge. Subterranean Press, 2018. First edition hardback, one of 1000 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, in publisher’s bag. New Langdon St. Ives steampunk adventure. Only have one. $37.

    LP2630. Bradbury, Ray. A Pleasure to Burn: Fahrenheit 451 Stories. Subterranean Press, 2010. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine- dust jacket with just the barest traces of wear, otherwise new and unread. Short stories that relate somehow to Fahrenheit 451. Long out of print from the publisher. $24.

    DW1. Cadigan, Pat. Dirty Work. Mark V. Ziesing, 1993. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Inscribed by Cadigan to fellow SF writer Don Webb and his first wife: “For Rosemary + Don/Sorry about/the missed email/Get Dirty!/Pat Cadigan/11/6/93/Dillo!” Cadigan’s second collection, including some swell stories like “Home By The Sea.” An interesting associational copy. Highly recommended. $25.

    LP2632. Datlow, Ellen and Terri Windling, editors (Joe R. Lansdale, John Brunner, R. A. Lafferty, Richard Christian Matheson, etc.). The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror: Fourth Annual Collection. St. Martin’s, 1991. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine- dust jacket with slight crimping at head and heel. Signed by Datlow. A really nice copy of a very attractive book. $35.

    LP2633. Datlow, Ellen and Terri Windling, editors (Charles De Lint, Karl Edward Wagner, Thomas Ligotti, K.W. Jeter, Pat Cadigan, C.J. Cherryh, etc.). The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror: Fifth Annual Collection. St. Martin;s, 1992. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine- dust jacket with some tiny wrinkles at head and the very slightest age darkening at the very top of the dust jacket; I’m being very picky here. Signed by Datlow. A very nice copy. $35.

    LP2634. Datlow, Ellen and Terri Windling, editors (Clive Barker, Neil Gaiman, Robert Silverberg, Gene Wolfe, Harlan Ellison, John Brunner, Charles DeLint, etc.). The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror: Sixth Annual Collection. St. Martin’s, 1993. First edition hardback, a Fine- copy in a Fine- dust jacket with slight bumping at head and heel. Signed by Datlow. $35.

    LP2635. Datlow, Ellen and Terri Windling, editors (Ursula K. Le Guin, Harlan Ellison, Dan Simmons, John Crowley, Charles DeLint, Ian McDonald, etc.). The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror: Seventh Annual Collection. St. Martins, 1994. First edition hardback, a Fine- copy in a Fine- dust jacket with slight bumping at head and heel. Signed by Datlow. $35.

    LP2636. De Camp, L. Sprague and Catherine Crook. Footprints on Sand. Advent, 1981. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Near Fine+ dust jacket with faint black soiling at head and heel under the Mylar dust jacket proctor, and a small abrasion at heel. “Short stories, verse and non-fiction.” $10.

    LP2637. De Lint, Charles. The Wind in His Heart. PS Publishing, 2018. First hardback edition and first limited edition, one of 500 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread. Big 600+ page novel. This evidently came out as a trade paperback edition just before this, but the PS is the first (and evidently only) hardback, with a beautiful reap-around cover. $55.

    LP2638. Dick, Phillip K. The Man Whose Teeth Were All Exactly Alike. Mark V. Ziesing, 1984. First edition hardback, one of 800 copies, a Fine copy in a Fine- dust jacket with slight wrinkling at head and heel, and a trace of wear at points, with Rick Demarco bookplate laid in. One of Dick’s posthumously-published mainstream novels. Winter & Hyde, Precious Artifacts: A Philip K. Dick Bibliography, MS8.1. Chalker/Owings (1991), page 490. $75.

    LP2639. Dozois, Gardner. Geodesic Dreams: The Best Short Fiction of Gardner Dozois. St. Martins Press, 1992. First edition hardback, a Fine- copy with a pinhead-sized spot off extremely faint discoloration to page block edges (easy to miss), in a Near Fine+ dust jacket with one faint 1/2” scratch at heel, and edgewear at head and heel. Inscribed by Dozois: “For Fred/best,/Gardner Dozois.” Gardner was a frequent guest at Armadillocon, including Armadillocon 14, where Fred Duarte was co-con chair and Gardner was Editor Guest of Honor, making this an associational copy. Some great stories in here, including the award-winning “Morning Child” and “The Peacemaker,” “Down Among the Dead Men,” “Chains of the Sea,” and “A Kingdom By The Sea.” Highly recommended. $35.

    LP2640. Heinlein, Robert A. (edited by Yoji Kondo). Requiem: New Collected Works by Robert A. Heinlein. Tor, 1992. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Includes uncollected works, including two novella (“Destination Moon” and “Tenderfoot in Space”), some non-fiction, some speeches, and tributes to Heinlein by the likes of Jack Williamson, Poul Anderson, Larry Niven. Greg Bear, etc. $15.

    LP2641. Kelly, James Patrick and John Kessel. Freedom Beach. Bluejay, 1985. First edition hardback, a Fine- copy with a bit of bumping at head, in a Fine- dust jacket with slight haze rubbing to black portions and slight edgewear. Inscribed by both authors: “For Fred/Half of an/autographed copy/John Kessel/30 Jan 87/Sercon 1/S.F.” “and here’s/the other half/(better)/Jim Kelly/ 2/14/87 /Boskone.” Another Fred Duarte associational copy. This is one of the few Bluejay books they did as both a trade paperback and hardback, and I’ve heard as few as 100 copies were down (which is probably way too low), but copies signed by both aren’t super common. $35.

    LP1728. King, Stephen. Under the Dome. Simon & Schuster, 2009. First edition hardback, signed/limited edition (precedes the trade), one of reportedly 1,500 copies signed by King, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, still in publisher’s shrinkwrap packet with limited edition trading cards included, in publisher’s mailing box (I’m assuming all this is the case, as the box is still unopened). This edition (which was sold out before the end of the day it was made available for sale) includes a belly band, better paper than the trade, and full-color maps on the endpapers. This is one freaking huge book. LAST COPY! $425.

    LP2642. Lansdale, Joe R. Cosmic Interruptions. Short Scary Tales (SST), 2018. First edition hardback, one of 550 signed, numbered hardbacks, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. New short story collection from this UK publisher, weighing in at a hefty 528 pages, and 550 copies is on the short side for a Lansdale book. $55.

    LP673. Lansdale, Joe R. Dead in the West. Kinnell (UK), 1990. First hardback edition, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Signed by Lansdale. His cowboys and zombies novel, which is quite a bit of fun. Recommended. Back in stock. $20.

    LP2643. Lansdale, Joe R. Driving to Geronimo’s Grave and Other Stories. First edition hardback, one of 1500 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, in publisher’s bag. Still in print last time I checked, but Subterranean sent out a stock notice in October that they only had 50 left. $40.

    DW2. Ligotti, Thomas. The Conspiracy Against the Human Race. Hippocampus Press, 2010. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine- dust jacket with a couple of tiny nicks to rear. Non-fiction book on the nature of human existence, and some have argued that it was behind the “philosophy of pessimism” expressed in the first season of HBO’s True Detective. This first edition actually seems quite hard to find these days. Formerly Don Webb’s copy. $200.

    LP2322. McCarthy, Cormac. No Country for Old Men. Knopf, 2005. First trade edition (preceded, like most of McCarthy’s recent work, by a signed/limited B. E. Trice edition), a Fine copy in a Fine- dust jacket with slight wrinkling at top front conor, a touch of haze-rubbing to rear, and a trace of edgewear. Basis of the Oscar-winning Coen Brothers film. Actually read this, and it’s quite gripping. Recommended. $20.

    LP2644. McDevitt, Jack. A Voice in the Night. Subterranean Press, 2018. First edition hardback, one of 1,000 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, still in publisher’s bag. Jack’s new short story collection, and already out of print. Have you seen what copies of Cryptic, his first Subterranean Press collection, goes for these days? $49.

    LP2645. McDonald, Ian. The Broken Land. Bantam Spectra, 1992. First edition hardback thus (previously published in the UK as Hearts, hands and Voices), a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, signed by McDonald. Has a great Stephen Youll cover. Not seeing another copy of this title online signed by McDonald. $30.

    LP2567. Moorcock, Michael. Doctor Who: The Coming of the Terraphiles. BBC Books, 2010. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Signed by Moorcock. Back in stock. $35.

    LP2646. Powers, Tim. The Collected Stories of Tim Powers. Charnel House, 2018. First edition hardback, 1 of 124 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy, sans dust jacket, as issued. Sold out prior to publication. Large, attractive production that literally sparkles due to being “bound in Japanese ‘Snow Dust’” silk silver foiled boards. $395.

    LP2647. Silverberg, Robert. The Emperor and the Maula. First edition hardback, one of 250 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, in publisher’s bag. Far future Scheherazade novella, never published in complete form before. Only have one. $45.

    LP2648. Simmons, Dan. Hard Freeze. St. Martin’s Press, 2002. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Inscribed by Simmons: “To Fred/Dan Simmons.” Another Fred Duarte associational copy. The second Joe Kurtz, which are great hardboiled mystery fun. Recommended. $15.

    LP2650. Vance, Jack. Maske:Thaery. Berkley Putnam, 1976. First edition hardback, a Fine- copy with a slight bit of bumping at head and heel, in a Very Good+ dust jacket with shallow chipping at head, edgewear at heel, and two closed tears near top back cover and along top back flap fold. Hewett, A52. Cunningham, 57a. One of the Vances I haven’t read. $8.

    LP2651. Wellman, Manly Wade. The Sleuth Patrol. Thomas Nelson & Sons, 1947. First edition hardback (presumed; the copyright page is missing, but they usually didn’t reprint Wellman’s juveniles), an Ex-Library copy in decorated boards with all the usual flaws (pocket removal, etc.), lacking the dust jacket save for the front flap pasted into the front of the book, pages yellowed, worn, with mild spotting to rear cover, a Good only reading copy. $5.

    LP2652. Wilson, Richard. Masters of Science Fiction: Richard Wilson. Centipede Press, 2018. First edition hardback, #349 of 500 copies signed by editor John Pelan, introduction author Paul Di Filippo, and artists Jim & Ruth Keegan (who produced the striking wrap-around dust jacket artwork of a naked blue woman with golden hair riding a giant orange-and-blue space fish). Huge 700+ retrospective collection of this acclaimed writer, including his Nebula Award-winning “Mother of the World,” as well his posthumously-published novella “At the Sign of the Boar’s Head Nebula,” originally slated for appearance in The Last Dangerous Visions. Only have one. $45.

    Trade Paperbacks

    LP2653. Beagle, Peter S. The Overneath. Tachyon, 2017. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy, signed by Beagle. Short story collection, and there’s no hardback edition. Only have one. $15.95.

    LP2654. Beagle, Peter S. Summerlong. Tachyon, 2016. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy, signed by Beagle. Novel. And mysterious, beautiful woman enters the lives of three people, and suddenly things get…complicated. Only have one. $15.95.

    LP2655. Berthed, Berke. Bloom County: Tales Too Ticklish To Tell. Little Brown, 1988. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine- copy with a trace of wear. I pick up anthologies for comic strips I like when I find them cheap, and I accidentally picked up two copies of this somewhere along the way. Includes an introduction from “Mikhail Gorbachev.” With The Frontrunner just out, maybe there’s a market for reliving those halcyon days of 1988! $5.

    LP1197. Datlow, Ellen, Kelly Link and Gavin J. Grant, editors. The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror: Eighteenth Annual Collection. St. Martins, 2005. First edition trade paperback original (simulatenous with the hardback edition), a Fine copy, new and unread. $15.

    LP533. (Dick, Philip K.) Levack, Daniel J. H. PKD: A Philip K. Dick Bibliography. Underwood Miller, 1981. First edition trade paperback original (simultaneous with the hardback edition), a Fine copy. Essential and highly recommended if you collect Dick, and increasingly hard to find. $45.

    LP460. Files, Meg. Meridian 144. SOHO, 1991. Uncorrected Proof of the first edition, Fine. If I remember correctly, this is a literary post-apocalyptic novel, possibly slipstream. Ed Bryant blurbs it. First novel. $5.

    LP2115. Klaw, Rick, editor (Joe R. Lansdale, Howard Waldrop, Neal Barrett, Jr., Lawrence Person, Bruce Sterling, Michael Moorcock, etc.). Rayguns Over Texas. Fandom Association of Central Texas, 2013. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy, new and unread, signed by 13 of the contributors. Anthology of SF stories from Texas writers published for the 2013 Worldcon in San Antonio. I have a story in here, “Novel Properties of Certain Complex Alkaloids,” that’s like a Greg Egan story by way of H. P. Lovecraft and Timothy Leary. Introduction by Bruce Sterling. This copy signed by myself, editor Rick Klaw, cover artist Rocky Kelly, Joe R. Lansdale, Don Webb, Chris Brown, Matthew Bay, Stina Leicht, Nicky Drayden, Rhonda Eudaly, Derek Austin Johnson, Marshall Maresca, Sanford Allen, and Josh Roundtree. $17.

    LP2573. Lansdale, Joe R. Hap and Leonard: Blood and Lemonade. Tachyon, 2017. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy. Signed by Lansdale. Looks like a compilation of Hap and Leonard stories crafted together into a mosaic novel. $15.

    LP2658. (Lovecraft, H.P.) Ambuehl, James. Hardboiled Cthulhu (Richard Lupoid, Cody Goodfellow, C.J. Henderson, etc.). Dimensions Books/Elder Signs Press, 2006. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy. Just what it sounds like: an anthology of hardboiled detective Cthulhu Mythos stories. For some reason I’ve had this around since it came out but never managed to catalog it. $15.

    LP2577. Moorcock, Michael. London Bone and Other Stories. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2016. Trade paperback reprint (of an earlier Simon & Schuster UK trade paperback original), a Fine copy. Collection of Moorcock stories set in various London eras. This may have slipped under Moorcock fans’ radar. $9.

    LP2659. Simmons, Dan. Banished Dreams. Roadkill Press, 1990. First edition chapbook original, #113 of 300 numbered copies signed by Simmons, and additionally inscribed on the title page: “To Meschke & Fred-/Dan Simmons.” A Near Fine+ copy, with phantom crease along left side about an inch from the spine, as though it sat under one or more hardback books for a while. Contains dream sequences removed from Simmons’ novel Summer of night. At one point this peaked around $200, but has come down since. $30.

    LP1369. Skipp, John & Craig Spector, editors (Dan Simmons, Poppy Z. Brite, Nancy Collins, K. W. Jeter, etc.). Still Dead: Book of the Dead II. Bantam, 1992. Uncorrected proof of the Bantam Paperback edition, a Fine- copy with spine fading, otherwise unread. Can’t imagine there were terribly many of these produced. $49.

    LP13050. Sterling, Bruce. Visionary in Residence. Thunders Mouth Press, 2006. Uncorrected proof, trade paperback format, of the trade paperback first edition, a Fine- copy with a moderate crease to rear outer corner (there is also a black marker mark on the spine that appears to have crossed out the name of another press; all copies seen so marked), with review materials laid in. Signed by Sterling. Short story collection. $20.

    LP1564. Vinge, Vernor. A Deepness in the Sky. Tor, 1998 (date is correct). Advanced Uncorrected Bound Manuscript of the first edition hardback (which did not come out until 1999) bound by Tor in red covers (just like a proof), a Fine- copy with slight wear at the corners and a couple of pinhead spots of abrasion, but otherwise obviously unread. A huge 990 page long monster, copied directly from Vinge’s original manuscript, including his e-mail address, page count, and word count (266,000!) crossed out on title page of manuscript. Amazing shape considering how large this is. His Hugo-winning prequel to the (also Hugo-winning) A Fire Upon the Deep, and a great book in it’s own right. Highly recommended. $95.

    LP2662. Walton, Jo. Tachyon, 2018. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy. The first short-story collection by this award-winning UK author. Only have one. $15.95.

    LP2663. Watts, Peter. The Freeze-Frame Revolution. Tachyon, 2018. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy. New novel. “How do you stage a mutiny when you’re only awake one day in a million? How do you engage an enemy that never sleeps, that sees through your eyes and hears through your ears and relentlessly, honestly, only wants what best for you?” Looks interesting. Only have one. $15.95.

    LP1993. Westerfeld, Scott. Evolution’s Darling. Four Walls Eight Windows, 1999. First edition trade paperback original (TPO), a Fine copy, apparently new and unread. Tale of a sentient ship seeking out a dead artist who may not be dead after all. Also has a healthy dusting of sex. Really hard to find now that he’s a big YA author. Can’t find another collectable first online at all. $55.

    DB4. Wood, Edward D., Jr. Killer in Drag. Angora Press, no date (but evidently 1989). Trade paperback reprint of a pulp sleaze novel that come out in 1965 and now brings ridiculously big bucks, a Near Fine copy with a few touches of wear. Pulp novel about a transvestite hitman for the mob. Formerly Don Webb’s copy. $10.

    LP1080. Zelazny, Roger (Gaughan, Jack). Poems. Discon II, 1974. First edition chapbook, #50 of 1000 copies (and not all copies were numbered), a Fine- copy with one pinhole to rear cover and trace of a phantom crease to bottom rear corner. A chapbook of Zelazny’s poetry produced for the 32nd Worldcon. Illustrated by Jack Gaughan. Levack, Amber Dreams, 29. Had this too high and have marked it down by MORE than half. $40.

    LP1928. Zivkovic, Zoran. Steps Through the Mist. Polaris, 2003. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy, new and unread. Either linke short stories or an episodic novel. Like the other Polaris books, this is an odd trim size: thicker than a chapbook and slightly taller and wider than a mass market paperback. This Belgrade edition precedes the U.S. edition by three years. $15.

    Mass Market Paperbacks

    LP2355. Allston, Aaron. Doc Sidhe. Baen, 1995. First edition paperback original (PBO), a Very Good copy with spine creasing and lean. Signed and dated 5/25/01 by Aaron Allston. Aaron’s well-regarded Doc Savage pastiche. Aaron died in 2014 at the untimely age of 54. $10.

    LP2664. Allston, Aaron. Sidhe Devil. Baen, 2001. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with the barest trace of edgewear at head and heel, a touch to top front spine join, and usual foxing to inside front cover, otherwise new and unread. Signed and dated (5/25/2001) by Allston, who died in 2014 at the untimely age of 54. Sequel to Doc Sidhe, his Doc Savage homage. Not seeing any signed copies online, much less one as near to perfect as this one. $10.

    LP1995. Anthony, Mark. Ravenloft: Tower of Doom. TSR, 1994. First edition paperback original (PBO), a Fine- copy with a hint of a non-breaking spine crease and wear at points, otherwise nice and square. Looks Quasimodorific. $3.

    LP2666. LP2665. Barrett, Neal, Jr. Dawn’s Uncertain Light. Signet, 1989. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with traces of edgewear and slight foxing to inside covers, otherwise new and unread. Sequel to Barrett’s dark, twisted post-apocalyptic Through Darkest America. $10.

    LP2667. Barrett, Neal, Jr. The Prophecy Machine. Bantam Spectra, 2000. First edition paperback original, a Near Fine+ copy with one invisible spine crease and traces of edgewear, otherwise a nice, square copy with “Signed by Author at BookPeople” sticker on the front cover . Odd steampunkish fantasy. Not seeing any other signed copies online. $10.

    LP2668. Barrett, Jr., Neal and Barry Malzberg (as K. M. O’Donnell). The Gates of Time. Ace Double (27400), 1970. First edition paperback original, a Very Good+ copy with wear along spine edges, wear at points, slight foxing to inside covers, and slight age-darkening to pages. Currey, page 348. $6.

    LP1711. Beagle, Peter S. A Fine and Private Place. Del Rey, 1982. Paperback reprint, NF- with spine creasing and edgewear. Celebrated love story set in a cemetery, with characters both living and dead. $3.

    LP2669. Blaylock, James P. Homunculus. Ace, 1986. First edition paperback original, a Near Fine copy with edgewear and wear long spine, and to edge very slightly dust stained, but otherwise square and unread. Winner of the Philip K. Dick Award. One of his most acclaimed steampunk works, and the true first edition of this first Langdon St. Ives novel. Not as easy to find as it used to be. $15

    LP2670. Boyett, Steven R. The Architect of Sleep. First edition paperback original (PBO), Near Fine+ with mostly invisible crease to spine and touches of edgewear, otherwise seemingly unread. Celebrated novel of a man transported to an alternate Earth where raccoons evolved as the planet’s sapient species. Named by Orson Scott Card as one of the best SF novels of the 1980s. The projected second book, The Geography of Dreams, has yet to appear. Recommended. $5.

    LP2671. Carroll, Jonathan. The Land of Laughs. Ace, 1983. First paperback edition, a reprint of the Viking first edition, a Fine copy, new and unread. The hardback first has a really meh cover, so the weird cover of the paperback reprint is the first time a lot of people noticed Carroll, they looked at it and went “What the hell?” His acclaimed debut novel, a modern fantasy/slipstream masterpiece. Sterling Slipstream list. Recommended. $5.

    LP818. Chandler, A. Bertram. The Anarch Lords. DAW, 1981. First edition paperback original (PBO), Fine- with just a trace of fading and wear to the spine, a touch of dust soiling to page edges, and one thin line at head, otherwise quite attractive. A John Grimes/Rim World novel. $2.

    LP1310. Chandler, A. Bertram. The Big Black Mark. DAW, 1975. First edition paperback original (PBO) (numberline starting with 1, as per Currey), a Fine- copy with a very faint crease along the front spine join, otherwise tight, square, and apparently unread. $3

    LP2050. Chandler, A. Bertram. The Way Back. DAW, 1978. First paperback and first U.S. edition, a Fine- copy with a tiny bit of wear at extremities. John Grimes/Rimworld novel. $3.

    LP543. Cherryh, C. J. The Dreamstone. DAW, 1983. First paperback edition, first mass market edition, and first appearance under this title, previously published in hardback as Ealdwood by Donald M. Grant. NF+, with slight crease to front top corner. Appears unread. $2.

    LP1575. Cherryh, C. J. Port Eternity . DAW, 1982. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with edgewear. $3.

    LP751. Cherry, C. J. Sunfall. DAW, 1981. First edition paperback original (PBO), NF- with stamps at head and heel,, some edgewear, and a few faint moisture spots on front cover., otherwise a tight copy. Still includes SFBC insert. $3.

    LP778. Cherryh, C. J. Wave Without a Shore. DAW, 1981. First edition paperback original (PBO), a Fine copy. A very attractive first of one of Cherryh’s better regarded PBOs. $3.

    LP2672. Costello, Matthew. Doom3: Worlds on Fire. Pocket Star Books, 2008. First edition paperback original, a Near Fine+ copy with one faint spine crease and a touch of wear. Based on the id first person shooter video game. First printings of all the Doom book seem a lot less common than you would think. $8.

    LP547. Davidson, Avram. Ursus of Ultima Thule. Avon, 1973. A paperback original (PBO) first edition, VG with spine creasing and lean, interior writing, and faint lines stamped at head and heel. Sort of Clan of the Cave Bear looking, except for the fact that Davidson got there first. $2.

    LP2673. Farmer, Philip Jose. The Dark Heart of Time: A Tarzan Novel. Del Rey, 1999. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with a trace of edgewear. A surprisingly uncommon PBO, given the author and subject matter. $35.

    LP2674. Heinlein, Robert A. The Man Who Sold the Moon. Signet, 1963. Paperback reprint, a very Good+ copy with slight spine lean, since creasing and general wear. Four Heinlein stories: “Let There Be Light,” “The Roads Must Roll,” “The Man Who Sold the Moon,” and “Requiem.” Reading copy. $3.

    LP2675. Heinlein, Robert A. Waldo & Magic, Inc. Pyramid Books, 1963. First Pyramid Books edition (and second paperback edition), a reprint of the Doubleday first, a Very Good copy with a shallow chip at head, slight discoloration along spine, and general wear. reading copy of these two novellas. Recommended. $3.

    LP2676. Howard, Robert E. (and David Drake). Cormac Mac Art. Bean, 1995. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with a non-breaking phantom crease to rear cover and foxing to inside covers, otherwise tight and square. Short story collection of Howard’s tales about this legendary Celtic king, as well as the first appearance of David Drake’s Cormac Mac Art story “The Land Toward Sunset.” First in the Baen collected Robert E. Howard series. $8.

    LP2677. Howard, Robert E. (David Drake, editor). Kull. Bean, 1995. First edition paperback original, a Very Good+ copy with spine lean, spine creasing, stamps to inside cover and blurb page, and general wear. “First Complete Edition.” Short story collection of Howard’s tales about this Atlantean warrior. Second in the Baen collected Robert E. Howard series. $5.

    LP1828. Huff, Tanya. Ravenloft: Scholar of Decay. TSR, 1995. First edition paperback original (PBO), a Fine- copy with just the tiniest bit of edgewear, otherwise new and unread. One of the less common Ravenloft books. $3.

    LP2678. Lafferty, R. A. The Reefs of Earth. Berkley, 1968. First edition paperback original, a Very Good- copy with a 1/2” sticker lift at top, stray stains, faint black stray pen marks, faded spine, yellowed pages, etc. Solid reading copy of this early Lafferty novel. Currey, page 296. $3.

    LP828. Lee, Tanith. Anackire. DAW, 1983. First edition paperback original (PBO), Fine- with faint edgewear and an invisible spine crease. Fantasy novel set in Vis. A nice copy. $3.

    LP1493. Lee, Tanith. Day By Night. DAW, 1980. First edition paperback original (PBO), a Fine- copy with touches of edgewear and slight foxing to inner cover edges, otherwise apparently new and unread. $3.

    LP2364. Lee, Tanith. Electric Forest. DAW, 1979. First edition paperback original (PBO), a Very Good+ copy with sticker pull affecting part of the “EE” in LEE on the front cover, written letter “B” at head, and a trace of edgewear, otherwise nice. Science fiction novel. Nice Don Maitz cover. $2.

    LP2444. Lee, Tanith. Night’s Master. First edition paperback original (PBO), a Very Good copy with spine crease, top front corner crease, and rubbing to front and back covers. $2.

    LP1223. Lee, Tanith. Sung in Shadow. DAW, 1983. First edition paperback original (PBO), a Fine- copy with exceptionally slight spine fading (really only noticeable when you look at it next to another “red letters on yellow background” DAW book spine) and just a bare trace of edgewear, otherwise new and unread, still with SFBC insert. A very collectable copy of this alternate Italian Renaissance fantasy. $3.

    LP829. Lumley, Brian. Psychosphere. Tor, 1992. First U.S. edition, paperback original, Fine- with a trace of wear and an almost invisible crease. Despite that, it doesn’t actually seem to have been read. Second in the Psychomech series. $2.

    LP2679. Martin, George R. R., editor (Lewis Shiner, Edward Bryant, etc.). Wild Cards III: Jokers Wild. Bantam Spectra, 1987. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with edgewear, but otherwise new and unread. Third book in the shared-universe superhero anthology. $6.

    LP2680. Martin, George R. R. and Jon J. Miller. Wild Cards VII: Dead Man’s Hand. Bantam Spectra, 1990. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with edgewear, a couple of pinprick abrasions to rear cover, and slight age darkening to pages, but otherwise new and unread. Seventh book in the shared-universe superhero series, this one a collaborative novel between Martin and Miller. $7.

    LP2681. Martin, George R. R., editor (Lewis Shner, Victor Milan, etc.). Wild Cards IX: Jokertown Shuffle. Bantam Spectra, 1991. First edition paperback original, a near Fine copy with thin rubbing line of white along rear join, tiny crease at top front corner, edgewear, and the beginning of an invisible spine crease, but otherwise a nice, square copy. The latter Wild Card PBOs have gotten quite hard to find in just about any condition, much less as nice as this one. $25

    LP2682. McCaffrey, Anne. To Ride Pegasus. Ballantine Books, 1973. First edition paperback original, a Very Good+ copy with a spine crease, rubbing along spine edges, edgewear, slight spine lean, and previous owner’s name on blurb page. Science fiction novel, first in the Wild Talents series. Currey, page 340.

    LP2683. Moore, Ward with Robert Bradford. Caduceus Wild. Futorian/Pinnacle, 1978. First edition paperback original, a Very Good copy with spine creasing and lean, 1″ crease along bottom rear corner, and small dot of black ink remaining over price on front cover. Novel in which the medical profession has taken over the world and rules over “Patients” with an iron fist. Not as common as you might think. $5.

    LP2684. Powers, Tim. The Skies Discrowned. Laser Books, 1976. First edition paperback original, a Very Good copy with a price sticker (usually I remove these, but the Bestine did nothing!) on rear cover (not affecting any text or anything interesting in the art), abrasions up and down the spine, and general wear, and slight foxing to inside covers, otherwise square and apparently unread. Berlyne, A1a. Solid reading copy of Powers’ first novel. $5.

    LP2685. Russell, Eric Frank. Wasp. Bantam Books, 1971. Paperback reprint, a Very Good copy with a spine crease and lean, and a short split at bottom front join. His celebrated novel of a man sent to an alien planet to destabilize the government all by himself. A fun, swift-moving book. Recommended. $3.

    LP2686. Wellman, Manly Wade and Wade Wellman. Sherlock Holmes’s War of the Worlds. Warner Books, 1975. First edition paperback original, a Very Good copy with some sort of translucent red mark to middle of the spine, stamps at head and on blurb page, back cover dust stained, and general wear. Currey, page 514. $4.

    Library Additions: July 1-December 31, 2018

    Tuesday, January 15th, 2019

    Once again it’s time for a half-year book purchase roundup! This post covers all the books I bought between July 1 and December 31, 2018. Most, but not all of these, were covered by individual library addition posts.

  • Adams, Scott. Fugitive From the Cubicle Police: A Dilbert Book. Andrews & McMeel, 1996. First edition? (no additional printings listed) trade paperback original, a Fine- copy with touches of edgewear. Cartoon collection. Bought for $2.50.
  • (Aldiss, Brian)(Frank Hatherly, editor, with Margaret Aldiss and Malcom Edwards). A is for Brian: A 65th Birthday Present. Avernus, 1990. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine- copy with very slight wear at points. Signed by Aldiss. A festschrift put together by Aldiss’ friends, with tributes by J.G. Ballard, Michael Moorcock, Robert Silverberg, etc. Bought for £18 after discount. I also have festschrifts for John Clute (Polder) and Moorcock (Moorcock@60).

  • Allston, Aaron. Sidhe Devil. Baen, 2001. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with foxing to inside covers. Inscribed to fellow Austin SF writer Don Webb: “Don: Hope you like it!/On the other hand, you’ve paid/for it anyway, so what the hell…)/Aaron Allston/ 4/27/01.” Bought from Don for $5. Replaces a signed but uninscribed copy.

  • Beagle, Peter S. The Last Unicorn: The Lost Journey. Tachyon, 2018. First edition hardback, #14 of 250 numbered copies signed by Beagle and illustrator Stephanie Law, a Fine copy in decorated boards, sans dust jacket, as issued. The first, unpublished version of The Last Unicorn.

  • Beagle, Peter S. The Overneath. Tachyon, 2017. First edition trade paperback original, Fine. Signed by Beagle. Short story collection.

  • Beagle, Peter S. Summerlong. Tachyon, 2016. First edition trade paperback original, Fine. Signed by Beagle. Novel.
  • Beagle, Peter S. and Patricia A. McKillip. The Karkadann Triangle. Tachyon, 2018. First edition chapbook original, a Fine copy, signed by Beagle. Two unicorn stories, one by each author.
  • Beagle, Peter S. and Jacob Weisman, editor. The New Voices of Fantasy. Tachyon, 2017. First edition trade paperback original, Fine. Anthology. Signed by Beagle and Weisman.
  • Beatts, Anne and John Head. Saturday Night Live: Host, Francisco Franco. Avon, 1977. First edition trade paperback original, a Near Fine+ copy with wear at point. Sort of a mock scrapbook with pictures, scripts, jokes, etc. from the first few seasons of Saturday Night Live (you know, back when it was funny). The price sticker on the cover is actually part of the design. Bought for $2.50.

  • Bester, Alfred. Tiger! Tiger!. Sidgwick and Jackson, no date (but 1956). First edition hardback (no statement of printing on copyright page, as per Currey), a Near Fine- copy with bookstore stickers (Foyle’s) inside front cover (under flap), slight bumping at head and heel, darkening to page edges, and a tiny bit of spine lean, in a Very Good- dust jacket with three significant chips at top front, longest two 1″ long by 1/8″ high and 3/4″ high by 1/4″ long near flap join, with shallower chipping at head, heel and points, slight age darkening to white rear cover, and a 1 1/2″ closed tear at top front cover near spine join. These would be significant enough flaws that I would have avoided buying this copy except that it was only $40! That’s somewhere between 1/5th and 1/10th what it’s worth. The true first edition, first printing of Bester’s masterwork, later published in the U.S. as The Stars My Destination, and a science fiction keystone I’ve lacked for a long, long time. I will probably purchase facsimile dust jackets to wrap around to better display both this and the Heinlein below better. Currey (1979), page 33. Locke, A Spectrum of Fantasy, page 33. Locke, Science Fiction First Editions, pages 18-19. Wendell, Alfred Bester, pages 28-36. Barron, Anatomy of Wonder 4, 3-19. Magill, Survey of Science Fiction Literature, pages 2168—2172. Day, Supplemental Checklist of Fantastic Literature, page 8. Aldiss, Billion Year Spree, page 247.

  • Blaylock, James P. River’s Edge. Subterranean Press, 2018. First edition hardback, #487 of 1000 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, in publisher’s bag. New Langdon St. Ives steampunk adventure.
  • Blish, James. A Case of Conscience. Faber and Faber Limited, 1959. First hardback edition (“First published mcmlix” on copyright page, as per Currey), a Very Good copy with spine lean and dust soiling along top, in a Very Good dust jacket with a 1″ closed tear along top front and moderate dust soiling to white rear cover, and slight rubbing and wear at points. All in all, better condition than I expected from a description of “Good”. Hugo winner for Best Novel. The first volume in the After Such Knowledge thematic trilogy. Currey (1979), page 40. Pringle, SF 100 26. Locke, A Spectrum of Fantasy, page 36. Locke, Science Fiction First Editions, pages 19-20. Barron, Anatomy of Wonder 4, 3-21 (referencing the Ballantine PBO). Magill, Survey of Science Fiction Literature, pages 303-307. Bought for £60.63 from an online UK book dealer know more for quantity than quality, which is why it was a risk, but just slightly better copies list for over a grand. Supplements a copy of the Walker first U.S. hardback edition.

  • Bradbury, Ray. Dogs Think Every Day is Christmas. Gibbs/Smith, 1997. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, inscribed by Bradbury: “Marion! Chuck!/Enjoy! Love!/Ray Bradbury/Valentine’s /Day/1999!” Small trim size hardback containing the illustrated title poem and an introduction. I suspect this and the companion volume, With Cat For Comforter, were issued for the pet store trade. Replaces an unsigned copy. Bought off eBay for $36.

  • Bradbury, Ray. The Martian Chronicles. Doubleday, 1950. First edition hardback (stated, as per Currey (1979), page 56), a Very Good+ copy with faint crease and fading to spine, non-authorial ownership plate on inside front cover, foxing on inside covers, FFE and RFE, slight bumping at head and heel and very slight wear at points, in a Very Good corner-clipped dust jacket with 1/2″ chip at heel join, 1/4″ shallow chipping to head, 1/8″ shallow chipping at heel and points, and age-darkening to spine. With a Ray Bradbury signature plate laid in. Weist, Bradbury: An Illustrated Life, pages 50-52. Pringle, SF 100 3. Locke, A Spectrum of Fantasy (1), page 39. Barron, Anatomy of Wonder 4, 3-32. Magill, Survey of Science Fiction Literature, Volume 3, pages 1348-1352. A great book and a vitally important science fiction keystone. Bought for $334.56.

  • Bradbury, Ray. They Have Not Seen The Stars. Stealth Press, 2002. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Signed by Bradbury. Bradbury’s collected poetry. Bought off eBay for $40. Stealth Press was an interesting publishing experiment that probably lost it’s backers a ton of money…

  • Bradbury, Ray. We’ll Always Have Paris. Morrow, 2009. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Inscribed by Bradbury: “Russ,/Ray Bradbury.” Short story collection. Tiny story: At the most recent Half Price Books coupon sale, they had several signed early Bradbury firsts from the late Fred Duarte estate for sale, but the condition was too poor for me to buy any of them. Then they had a signed copy of this, which was unpriced. “How much for this one?” “Let me check.” Comes back a minute later. “$150.” “Pass.” Then I went online and found this copy for $25, including shipping…
  • Bradbury, Ray (with Dave Gibbons, James Sherman, Daniel Torres, Raph Reese, Mark Charello, and Bernard Krigstein). The Ray Bradbury Chronicles Volume 2. Byron Preiss/NBM, 1992. First edition hardback graphic novel,#250 of 1200 signed, numbered copies, a Near Fine copy with trace of dampstaining to bottom boards (but not pages) in a Near Fine dust jacket with slight waviness at bottom and slight blindside dye transfer from boards, along with a few other traces of wear. Signed by Bradbury, Gibbons, Reese and Charello. Tempted to send it back, but the terse listing only said VG, so, eh, caveat emptor. Bought for $37 off eBay.

  • (Bradbury, Ray) Kipen, David, Campbell Iriving and Erika Koss. Reader’s Guide: Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. National Endowment for the Arts, 2006. Presumed first edition chapbook (no additional printings stated), a Fine- copy with a couple of specks of edgewear. Inscribed by Bradbury on the cover: “Carol!/Love!/Ray/B.” With a photograph of Bradbury signing books laid in. Non-fiction critical companion. Bought off eBay for $29.99.

  • Cadigan, Pat. Mindplayers. Bantam, 1987. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with foxing to inside covers. Inscribed: “For/Rosemary / & / Don /With stray/ideas &/peculiar behavior/Best,/Pat Cadigan /Armadillocon/1987.” Bought from Don Webb for $5.

  • Campbell, Bruce. If Chins Could Kill: Confessions of a B-Movie Actor. St. Martin’s Press, 2001. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Inscribed by Campbell: “Hey Audio Adam/Stay Groovy!/Bruce Campbell.” Autobiography of the Evil Dead star. Bought for $9 from Half Price Books, discounted from $18.

  • Cargill, C. Robert. Dreams and Shadows. Gollancz, 2013. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy. Inscribed: “It was a pleasure/sharing a table/with you./Robert Cargill.” Cragill is an Austin science fiction writer most famous for having written the screenplay for Doctor Strange. Bought from Don Webb for $5.

  • Chabon, Michael. Moonglow. Harper, 2016. First edition hardback, one of an unstated number of signed limited copies sold by Powell’s Books, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket in a special slipcase, with a non-fiction Moonglow chapbook containing “The Box,” “The Facts,” and “The Interview” (Near Fine, with slight creasing) laid in. #63 in the Powells’ “Indiespensible” series, special signed editions sent out to book club members with various extras. Bought for $25.
  • Chabon, Michael. The Yiddish Policeman’s Union. HarperCollins, 2007. First edition hardback, one of 1,000 copies signed by Chabon in a wooden slipcase, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket and slipcase, still in publisher’s shrinkwrap (I think it’s the publisher’s, which is why I haven’t removed it). Winner of the Hugo and Nebula Awards for Best Novel. Supplements a trade copy of the novel inscribed to me by Chabon right after he won the Nebula for it. Original list price was $150. Bought off eBay for $50.

  • Cooper, James. In Conversation: A Writer’s Perspective: Volume One: Horror. British Fantasy Society, 2009. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards, sans dust jacket, as issued. Interviews with various horror writers, including Joe R. Lansdale, Graham Joyce, Ray Garton, etc. Bought for £9 after discount.

  • Crais, Robert. The Wanted. Putnam, 2017. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, signed by Crais. I was looking through the discounted section of a Half Price Books, saw that this was a nice copy, thought to myself “I wonder if it’s signed,” picked it up, and it was. Hence George Locke’s dictum: “Don’t look for books, look at books.” Mystery novel. Bought for $3.00.

  • Crowther, Pete and Nick Gevers. Postscripts 30/31: Memoryville Blues. PS Publishing, 2013. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards in a Fine dust jacket. Trade edition. Supplements a signed, limited, traycased edition.
  • Gevers, Nick. Postscripts 32/33: Far Voyager. PS Publishing, 2014. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards in a Fine dust jacket. Trade edition.
  • Gevers, Nick, editor. Postscripts 34/35: Breakout. PS Publishing, 2015. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Volume in the long-running anthology series. Includes two posthumous Steven Utley collaborations (among other works). Bought for £12 after discount.
  • Gevers, Nick. Postscripts 36/37: The Dragons of the Night. PS Publishing, 2016. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards in a Fine dust jacket. Trade edition. All three Postscripts bought for £12.99, plus shipping.
  • Datlow, Ellen, editor. Lovecraft’s Monsters. Tachyon Press, 2014. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy. Signed by Datlow. Mostly reprints, with a couple of originals. Bought for £6 after discount.
  • De Camp, L. Sprague and Catherine Crook. Spirits Stars And Spells: The Perils and Profits of Magic. Canaveral Press, 1966. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Near Fine, price-clipped (but otherwise mint) dust jacket; Chalker/Owings says Owlswick obtained extra stock and printed a dust jacket “overprinted in red,” which matches this one. Signed by both authors. Non-fiction. Laughlin/Levack, de Camp: An L. Sprague de Camp Bibliography, 82a. Chalker/Owings (1991), page 84. Bought for £12 plus shipping.

  • Delany, Samuel R. The Motion of Light in Water: Sex and Science Fiction Writing in the East Village: 1957-1965. First edition hardback, a Fine- copy with just a trace of foxing to inside front covers in a Fine- dust jacket with just a touch of wear. Inscribed by Delany: “To/Don + Rosemary/in remembrance/of a wonderful/evening at/the County Line/from/Samuel R. Delany/Austin/Feb. 1988” The County Line is a local BBQ chain, and Delany came down for Sercon 2 that month. Nonfiction autobiography. Hugo Award Winner for Best Nonfiction. Supplements an unsigned copy (which I forget to bring when I had Delany sign all my hardback fiction firsts at Readercon in 2009). Bought for $20 from Don Webb.

  • Derleth, August. The Chronicles of Solar Pons. Mycroft & Moran, 1973. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine- dust jacket with a thin line of wear at the very bottom of the heel. Collection of Derleth’s Sherlockian Solar Pons stories from Arkham House’s sister imprint. Joshi, Sixty Years of Arkham House, M&M15, page 183. Jaffrey, Horrors and Unpleasantries, 128. Nielsen, Arkham House Books: A Collector’s Guide, M15, page 154. Bought for £9 after discount.

  • Di Filippo, Paul. Harp, Pipe and Sympathy (with Walking the Great Road). Prime Books, 2004. First edition hardback (though Prime is a division of Wildside, so usual PD caveats apply), a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, signed by Di Filippo, with Walking the Great Road chapbook laid in. I’ve heard that only 100 copies were signed with the chapbook laid in, but that limitation isn’t stated anywhere. Replaces an unsigned copy without the chapbook. Bought off an Internet book dealer for $10.

  • Dozois, Gardner, editor. The Year’s Best Science Fiction: Thirty Fifth Annual Collection. St. Martin’s, 2018. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. The last Dozois annual, alas. Obtained for trade credit.
  • Farmer, Philip Jose. The Purple Book. Tor, 1982. First edition paperback original, a Near Fine- copy that, while tight and square, shows numerous small spots of rubbing across the front and rear cover as well as slight age-darkening to pages. Inscribed to fellow SF/F author Robert Adams of Horseclans fame: “To Bob Adams/From/Philip Jose/Farmer.” Thematic collection, containing “The Oögenesis of Bird City,” “Riders of the Purple Wage,” “Spiders of the Purple Mage,” “The Making of Revelation, Part I”, and “The Long Wet Purple Dream of Rip van Winkle.” Bought for $10 off eBay.

  • Duncan, Andy and Ellen Klages. Wakulla Springs. Tor, 2015. First edition hardback (evidently a reprint of an electronic version), a Fine copy in decorated boards, sans dust jacket, presumably as issued. Weird trim factor, being a small format hardback sightly smaller than a paperback. Bought for $4.99.

  • (Ellison, Harlan) Richmond, Tim, compiler and editor. Fingerprints on the Sky: The Authorized Harlan Ellison Bibliography. Edgeworks Abbey/Subterranean Press, 2017. First edition hardback, #238 of 500 numbered copies signed by Ellison and Richmond, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Massive oversized hardback, roughly 12 1/2″ high by 11″ wide. Lacks an index. Bought for $30, marked down from $75.

  • (Farmer, Philip Jose) Croteau, Michael. The Best of Farmerphile: The Magazine of Philip Jose Farmer. Meteor House, 2017. First edition hardback, one of 175 hardcovers signed by five of the contributors, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Contains a mixture of Farmer’s fiction, non-fiction, and essays about Farmer and his works by others. Bought for $20, marked down from $50.

  • Fawstin, Bosch. My Mohammed Cartoons Vol. 1. Oink Comics, 2018. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy, signed by Fawstin on the cover. Mohammed cartoons by the winner of the Draw Mohammed Contest in Garland. Evidently I got one of the last copies.

  • (Francis, Bruce (uncredited), compiler/editor, with Ray Bradbury, Robert Bloch, Elvira, Rowena, and William F. Nolan.) The Undead (AKA The Book Sail 16th Anniversary Catalogue). McLaughlin Press, 1984. First edition hardback, #326 of 550 copies of the Deluxe (and only hardback) edition, a Near Fine copy with fading to spine, in a Near Fine slipcase, from which the cloth is starting to peel away at the bottom (which I intended to repair), sans dust jacket, as issued. An extremely elaborate affair for a book catalog, including a lenticular image of horror hostess Elvira (who has signed a signature page in the book) embedded in the cover, a Rowena full-page, full-color illustration, “Sorceress,” opposite her signature, which looks like something of a self-portrait, a signed Forward from Ray Bradbury, a signed story (“The Undead”) from Robert Bloch, and a signed William F. Nolan chapbook (“The Dandelion Chronicles”) inserted into a special pocket at the back of the book. In addition to all that, there’s also an extensive book and manuscript catalog which makes up the bulk of the book, including a ridiculous amount of Lovecraft material, including amateur press publications, original manuscripts, letters, postcards, etc. It also includes Sonia Haft Greene Lovecraft’s passport, which I’ve seen at listed for sale/auction least twice since (from L. W. Currey and later listed by Heritage Auctions). Also includes many non-book rarities, including the first appearance of Siegel and Shuster’s Superman character in a fanzine (where he was a bald villain), an original stop-motion armature of King Kong, and Judy Garland’s contract for The Wizard of Oz. Bought for $75 off eBay.

  • Goodfellow, Cody. Radiant Dawn. Perilous Publishers, 2000. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy. Inscribed: “For Don Webb/who dares/mess with/Texas?/Cody Goodfellow.” Bought from Don Webb for $5.

  • Golden, Christopher, editor (Clive Barker, Joe R. Lansdale, Charles L. Grant, John Ferris, etc). Cut! Horror Writers on Horror Film. Borderlands Press, 1992. First hardback edition and first edition thus, #318 of 500 signed, numbered copies signed by most of the contributors (doesn’t look like Anne Rice signed it), a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket and Fine slipcase. Bought for $20 marked down from $50 (list price was $65).

  • Greenberg, Martin, editor. Coming Attractions. Gnome Press, 1957. First edition hardback, a Near Fine- copy with two 1/4″ tears at head, dusty top and bottom page blocks and the usual age-darkening to pages for Gnome Press books of this era, in a Very Good dust jacket with shallow 1/8″ deep by 1″ wide chip at top rear cover, tears and shallow chipping at head, slight loss at top points, and slight spine fading (on the plus side, the white portions of the dust jacket are much brighter and free of dust staining than usually found). Anthology of speculative non-fiction about the future. Chalker/Owings (1991), page 203. Kemp, Gnome Press #64, page 258. Bought for $9.98 off eBay.

  • Haldeman, Joe. Forever Peace. To Stop War.. Temporary Culture, 2008. Second edition chapbook original, A very good copy with some creasing and wear. Two page poem with illustrations by Judith Clute. The first edition was a 25 copy hardback at a list price of $1,000 (not seen). Free.
  • Haldeman, Joe. Vietnam and Other Alien Worlds. NESFA Press, 1993. First edition hardback, #18 of 175 signed and numbered (and 8 lettered) copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket and slipcase. Supplements a trade copy. Bought for $25 from Half Price Books, discounted from $50.
  • Hendrix, Grady. Paperbacks From Hell: The Twisted History of ’70s and ’80s Horror Fiction. Quirk Books, 2017. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy. Oversized illustrated trade paperback popular history of horror paperbacks of the 1970s and 80s, broken up by theme. Lacks key bibliographic information about the books covered, alas. Bought for £10.80 after discount.

  • Heinlein, Robert A. The Past Through Tomorrow. Putnam, 1967. Second printing, a Very Good copy with one BB-sized indention in the spine with a small hole in the middle, with slight bumping at head and heel, in a Poor dust jacket (and it’s not even the right dust jacket, having coming from a book club edition) with the front, back and spine split into three panels (now taped back together), with further chips, tears, separation between the pieces, etc. Inscribed by Heinlein: “To Karol, Best Wishes/Robert A. Heinlein.” For some reason, this is one of the hardest of his books to find signed by Heinlein. Bought for $200. This is only the second signed Heinlein in my collection, after a signed book club edition of Time for the Stars I bought from David Hartwell for $40.

  • Hill, Joe. The Fireman. Signed, limited edition hardback, #472 of 900 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in decorated boards in a Fine dust jacket and Fine slipcase, with tissue paper laid in at signature page. An attractive edition, though it was preceded by no less than three U.S. signed/limited editions, specific to different bookstore chains. The scan is the front of the decorated slipcase. Bought for £19, marked down from £70.

  • Howard, Robert E. Trails in Darkness. Baen, 1996. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with slight edgewear to top front cover and slight foxing to inside covers. Volume VII in the Robert E. Howard library.
  • Howard, Robert E. Beyond the Borders. Baen, 1996. First edition paperback original, a Fine copy. Volume VI in the Robert E. Howard library.
  • Hunter, Stephen. I, Sniper. Simon & Schuster, 2009. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine Mylar-protected dust jacket, with bookstore event slip laid in. Signed and dated (“Jan 17, 2010”) by Hunter. Bought at auction for $6.15 plus shipping.

  • Keene, Brian and Nick Mamatas. The Damned Highway: Fear and Loathing in Arkham. Dark Horse Books, 2011. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy. A “Hunter S. Thompson does the Cthulhu Mythos” pastiche novel. Nice mock-Steadman Ian Miller cover. Bought from Half Price Books for $4.99.
  • King, Stephen, with John Mellencamp and T. Bone Burnett. Ghost Brothers of Darkland County. Concord Music Group, 2013. Trade paperback original in slipcase, the size and shape of an old multi-record LP boxed set, with two CDs of music and a DVD in pockets at the back. Libretto for a “Southern Gothic supernatural musical thriller.” The cast they’ve assembled to sing this thing is amazing: Elvis Costello, Neko Case, Kris Kristofferson, Roseanne Cash, Sheryl Crowe, etc. Bought for $19.99 marked down from $49.99.

  • Koontz, Dean R. The Darkest Evening of the Year. Charnel House, 2007. First limited edition hardback, #26 of 350 signed, numbered hardbacks, a Fine copy in a Fine slipcase, sans dust jacket, as issued. Bought for $75.

  • Koontz, Dean R. (as K. W. Dwyer). Dragonfly. Random House, 1975. First edition hardback (“First Edition” and numberline starting with “2”, as per Random house practice), an Ex-Library copy with most of the usual flaws, including stamps at head and page block side, tape ghosts inside covers, spine lean, ink writing and some edge-staining on FFE; call it a Very Good- Ex-Lib copy, in a Fine- dust jacket with a bit of wrinkling at head and heel. Kotker, Dean R. Koontz: A Critical Companion, page 175. Bought at Half Price Books for $2.
  • Koontz, Dean R. Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein. Charnel House, 2005. First edition hardback, #209 of 750 numbered copies, a Fine- copy (the Japanese Silver Wave silk the book is bound in appears darker on the spine than the rest of the book; that may be sun fading, or just air exposure the rest of the slipcased book did not get) in a Fine slipcase. A original script for a TV pilot that the network evidently so butchered that Koontz had his name taken off the production. Bought for $75.

  • Kurtz, Scott. PVP: The Dork Ages. Image Comics, 2004. First edition thus (“First Printing” stated), a compilation of the first six issues of the PvP comic books, which were themselves a spinoff of the web comic. Bought from Half Price Books for $2.
  • Kuttner, Henry (& C. L. Moore). Clash By Night. Hamlyn, 1980. First edition paperback original, a Very Good copy with a a long crease across the front cover. Short story collection. Kuttner’s name alone appears on the cover, but the title page also has C.L. Moore’s name, and all the stories are collaborations between the two.
  • Lafferty, R.A. It’s Down the Slippery Cellar Stairs. Chris Drumm, 1984. First edition chapbook original, #76 of 100 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy. Drumm Booklet No. 14. Non-fiction collection. Bought off eBay for $23.95. Obviously I should have bought all these signed Lafferty chapbooks from Drumm back when they were $5 each, but I wasn’t collecting him then…

  • Lansdale, Joe. R. By Bizarre Hand. Mark V. Ziesing, 1989. First edition hardback, #347 of 500 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket and a Fine slipcase. Supplements a trade copy. Bought from Half Price Books for $30 after the 50% off coupon.

  • Lansdale, Joe R. Coco Butternut. Subterranean Press, 2017. First edition hardback, 244 of 400 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Hap and Leonard novella. Supplements a trade copy. Bought for $18, marked down from $45.
  • Lansdale, Joe R, editor. Cosmic Interruptions. Short Scary Tales (SST) Publications, 2018. First edition hardback, #105 of 550 signed, numbered hardbacks, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. New short story collection from this UK publisher, weighing in at a hefty 528 pages. Also have copies for sale through Lame Excuse Books.
  • Lansdale, Joe R. Driving to Geronimo’s Grave and Other Stories. First edition hardback, #571 of 1500 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, in publisher’s bag.
  • Lansdale, Joe R. A Fist Full of Stories (And Articles). Cemetery Dance, 1996. First edition hardback, 420 of 500 signed, limited copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket and a Fine slipcase. Supplements a trade copy and a traycased lettered copy. Bought for $26, marked down from $65.
  • Lansdale, Joe R. Honky Tonk Samurai. Gauntlet Press, 2017. First limited edition hardback, #60 of 500 signed, numbered copies. Supplements the Mulholland Books trade edition (which precedes). Bought for $24, marked down from $60.
  • Lansdale, Joe R. Jackrabbit Smile. Mullholland Books/Little Brown, 2018. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Inscribed to me by Lansdale. Hap and Leonard novel.
  • Lansdale, Joe R. Jonah Hex: Shadows West. DC Comics, 2013. First edition trade paperback graphic novel thus, compiled from previous individual comic books, a Fine copy, inscribed to me by Lansdale.

  • Lansdale, Joe R. Rusty Puppy. Mullholland Books/Little Brown, 2017. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Signed by Lansdale. Hap and Leonard novel.
  • Lansdale, Joe R, editor. The Horror Hall of Fame. Cemetery Dance, 2011. First edition hardback, one of 550 signed (by Lansdale) copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Bought for $26, marked down from $65.
  • Lansdale, Joe R., editor. The Horror Hall of Fame. Cemetery Dance, 2011. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Trade edition. Bought for $14, marked down from $35.
  • Lansdale, Joe R, editor. Retro Pulp Tales. Subterranean Press, 2006. First edition hardback, 129 of 250 numbered copies signed by all the contributors, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket and a Fine slipcase. Supplements a trade edition copy. Bought for $26, marked down from $65.
  • Leiber, Fritz. The Pale Brown Thing. Swan River Press, 2016. First edition hardback, one of only 350 hardback copies, a Fine copy in decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket, with a postcard reprinting the cover of F&SF the story originally appeared in laid in. In addition to the story, there are extensive notes about how Leiber expanded the story into his novel Our Lady of Darkness. Bought for £16.80 after discount. There were plenty of scans of the dust jacket on the Internet, but none of the book itself, so the scan below shows the cover of the book itself (which, oddly enough, has no printing on the spine).

  • Lovecraft, H.P. and Willis Conover. Lovecraft at Last. Carrollton-Clark, 1975. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Oversized volume that reprints the correspondence between Lovecraft and the then-teen-aged Conover, some in two-color facsimile. Joshi, H. P. Lovecraft: An Annotated Bibliography, I-A-62. Chalker/Owings (1991), page 91, who note that Conover lost tens of thousands of dollars on the project. Bought for £24 after discount.

  • (Lovecraft, H.P.) S.T. Joshi. H.P. Lovecraft: A Comprehensive Bibliography. University of Tampa Press, 2009. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. An update of Joshi’s 1981 Lovecraft bibliography. Weighs in at a hefty 681 pages. 200 Books by S. T. Joshi, I33a.

  • (Lovecraft, H.P.) S.T. Joshi. An Index to the Selected Letters of H. P. Lovecraft. Necronomicon Press, 1980. First edition chapbook original, a Fine copy. Reference work. Joshi, H. P. Lovecraft: An Annotated Bibliography, Supplement C-III, page 412. Bought for £12 after discount.

  • (Lovecraft, H.P.) Joshi, S.T., editor. Black Wings IV: New Tales of Lovecraftian Horror. PS Publishing, 2015. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket. Bought for £9.33 as part of a bundle.
  • (Lovecraft, H.P.) Joshi, S.T., editor. Black Wings V: New Tales of Lovecraftian Horror. PS Publishing, 2016. First edition hardback, #94 of 300 copies, a Fine copy in decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket, in a Near Fine slipcase with 1 1/4″ x 2″ abraded spot at back cover bottom, with tissue paper laid in at signature page. Bought for $12.99, marked down from £50.
  • (Lovecraft, H.P.) Joshi, S.T., editor. Black Wings VI: New Tales of Lovecraftian Horror. PS Publishing, 2015. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket. Bought for £9.33 as part of a bundle.
  • MacAvoy, R. A. Trio for Lute. Nelson Doubleday (SFBC), 1984. First hardback and first omnibus edition thus (with code P08 on page 631, as per ISFDB), a Very Good copy with some dampistaining transfer to blind side of dust jacket, in a Very Good- dust jacket with same, as well as multiple small tears at head, slight wear at head and heel, and abrasions along rear flap fold. Signed by MacAvoy: “For Fred/Bertie/MacAvoy.” Almost certainly another book from Fred Duarte’s library. Omnibus edition of Damiano, Damiano’s Lute and Raphael. Bought for $2.

  • MacCargo, J.T. Mannix # 1: The Faces of Murder. Belmont Tower, 1975. First edition paperback original, a very Good copy with spine creasing and fading and general wear. TV novelization. Bought for me by Dwight as a Christmas present because we’ve been working our way through Season 2 of the Mannix TV show.
  • MacLeod, Ian R. Hector Douglas Makes a Sale. PS Publishing, 2011. First edition chapbook original, a Fine copy. Signed by MacLeod. Freebie given away at the 2011 Eastercon to promote MacLeod’s forthcoming collection Wake Up and Dream. Bought for £3 after discount.

  • MacLeod, Ian R. Red Snow. PS Publishing, 2017. First edition hardback, #86 of 100 signed, numbered copies a Fine copy in decorated boards in a Fine dust jacket and Fine slipcase, with tissue paper laid in at signature page. Bought for £12.99, marked down from £50.
  • Matheson, Richard. Generations. Gauntlet Press, 2012. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Autobiographical novel. Bought for $9.98, marked down from $24.95.
  • Matheson, Richard. Matheson Uncollected Volume I. Gauntlet Press, 2008. First edition hardback, #105 of 500 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Bought for $30 marked down from $75.
  • Matheson, Richard. Matheson Uncollected Volume II. Gauntlet Press, 2010. First edition hardback, #129 of 500 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Bought for $30 marked down from $75.
  • Matheson, Richard. Other Kingdoms: Original Draft. Gauntlet Press, 2011. First edition hardback, #75 of 300 signed, numbered copies (though Matheson, ailing at the time, only initialed copies), a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Bought for $20 marked down from $50.

  • Matheson, Richard. Through Channels. Footsteps Press, 1990. First edition chapbook original, #53 of 550 copies, a Fine copy, signed by Matheson, with gray full-page illustration laid in.

  • Matheson, Richard Christian. The Ritual of Illusion. PS Publishing, 2013. First edition hardback, #205 of 250 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket. Bought for $19.80 marked down from $49.50.
  • McDevitt, Jack. A Voice in the Night. Subterranean, 2018. First edition hardback, one of 1,000 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Purchased at the usual dealer discount from the publisher. Copies will be available through Lame Excuse Books.
  • Moorcock, Michael. A Cornelius Calendar. Phoenix House, 1993. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Jerry Cornelius omnibus that includes four novels (The Adventures of Una Persson and Catherine Cornelius in the Twentieth Century, The Entropy Tango, Gold Diggers of 1977 (AKA The Great Rock’n’Roll Swindle), and The Alchemist’s Question (AKA The Opium General)). First hardback edition of Gold Diggers of 1977/The Great Rock’n’Roll Swindle, originally published in tabloid newspaper format (which I also have). Bought for £12 after discount.

  • Moorcock, Michael. Jerusalem Commands. Jonathan Cape, 1992. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Colonel Pyat novel. Bought for £9 after discount.

  • Moorcock, Michael. Moorcock’s Book of Martyrs. Quartet Books, 1976. First edition paperback a original, a Fine copy save for slight page yellowing (endemic to many UK books of this era). Short story collection. No hardback edition. Currey (1979), page 371. Tanelorn Archives, page 25. Bought for £6 after discount.

  • Moorcock, Michael. My Experiences in the Third World War. Savoy Books, 1980. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy save the slight page yellowing. Signed by Moorcock. Short story collection. Bought for £9 after discount.

  • Moorcock, Michael. Pegging the President. PS Publishing, 2018. First edition hardback, #71 of 100 signed, numbered copies (reportedly; production difficulties meant I got short shipped this for Lame Excuse Books, so there may be less than 100 copies existent), a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, with tissue paper protector for signature page laid in. A new Jerry Cornelius novella.

  • Moore, C.L. The Best of C. L. Moore. Nelson Doubleday, 1975. First Edition hardback (as per Currey, with printing code 42 R in the gutter of page 307), a Near Fine- copy with a line and the letter A in blue ink at head, and slight wear at head and heel, in a Very Good dust jacket with a 3″ split along rear flap, with slight loss along it and front flap, as well as general wear. Signed by C.L. Moore. I collect C. L. Moore, but it didn’t occur to me to looked for signed copies of this title until this showed up. Bought off eBay for $16.

  • Morrell, David. Black Evening. Cemetery Dance, 1999. First edition hardback, one of 1500 copies signed by Morrell, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Short story collection. Bought for $16, marked down from $40.
  • Morrell, David. Stars in My Eyes: My Love Affair With Books, Movies and Music. Gauntlet Press, 2016. First edition hardback, #29 of 300 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Essays on Morell’s favorite books, movies and music, including essays on Richard Matheson, Dan Simmons and William Tenn, in addition to Geoffrey Household’s Rogue Male, the inspiration for First Blood. Bought for $20, marked down from $50.

  • Morrell, David. Rambo: First Blood II. Borderlands Press/Gauntlet Press, 2016. First hardback edition, first signed/limited edition, and first edition thus, with material not in the Jove paperback novelization, #27 of 500 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. (The original First Blood is a very good action movie, but it’s a great novel.) Bought for $24, marked down from $60.

  • Morrow, James. The Madonna and the Starship. Tachyon, 2014. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy, signed by Morrow. Bought for $4.99.
  • Powers, Tim. The Collected Stories of Tim Powers. Charnel House, 2018. First edition hardback (or first thus; see below), #58 of 124 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy, sans dust jacket, as issued. Even though this was sold out shortly after it was announced, I will have copies for sale in the next Lame Excuse Books catalog.

  • (Pournelle, Jerry) Acres, Mark. Combat Command in the World of Jerry E. Pournelle’s Janissaries: Lord of Lances. Ace, 1988. First edition paperback original, a Fine- copy with some edgewear. These Combat Command novels were strategic “pick your own path” adventures. Sort of an oddball concept. I also have the one for did for Zelazny’s Amber. Bought for $1.
  • Reynolds, Alastair. Pushing Ice. Gollancz, 2005. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. One of the few Reynolds novels I didn’t manage to snag when it first came out. Bought for £24 after discount.
  • Russell, Eric Frank. Dark Tides. Dobson, 1962. First edition hardback, a Very Good+ copy with two Australian ownership stamps (one for “McGill’s Agency Book Department;” possibly a literary agent’s copy) along with the number “2456” written in ink on the FFE and the same number written in ink on the half-title page, in a Near Fine- price-clipped dust jacket with wear at head, heel and points. Short story collection. Currey (1979), page 423. Bought for £30 after discount.

  • Ruz, Bruce. Hollywood vs. The Aliens: The Motion Picture Industry’s Participation in UFO Disinformation. Frog Limited, 1997. First edition trade paperback original, a Near Fine- with a crease across back top cover. Conspiracy theory movie history. Bought from Don Webb for $5. Don: “Well worth reading for the shock around page 120 when you realize that he’s serious.”
  • Sammon, Paul M., editor. Splatterpunks: Extreme Horror. St. Martin’s Press, 1990. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine- dust jacket with slight edgewear at head, heel and points. Signed by contributors Joe R. Lansdale, Ed Bryant, Nancy Collins and Chas. Balun. I had a copy of this (and I’m cited as an expert in here), but I didn’t get Ed Bryant to sign my copy, so this was a nice find. Bought for $12.49.

  • (Shaver, Richard) Toronto, Richard. War Over Lemuria: Richard Shaver, Ray Palmer and the Strangest Chapter of 1940s Science Fiction. McFarland, 2013. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine- copy that looks like it’s been read once. With review slip laid in. Book on the Shaver Mystery by someone who knew Shaver and published the Shaverton fanzine. Bought from Don Webb for $5.
  • Shaw, Bob. The Best of the Bushel (complete BoSh-vol 1). Paranoid/Inca Press, 1978. First edition chapbook original, a Fine- copy with a slight bit of sunning along the spine. Inscribed by Shaw: “For Ted, /with best wishes/Bob Shaw.” Collection of fan work by this British SF author. Not in Currey.

  • Shaw, Bob. The Eastercon Speeches (Complete BoSh-vol 2). Paranoid/Inca Press, 1979. First edition chapbook original, a Fine copy. Inscribed by Shaw: “Best wishes/Bob Shaw.” Collection of fan work by this British SF author, and companion volume to the above. Not in Currey. The pair bought off eBay for $9.

  • Shiner, Lewis. Heroes and Villains. Subterranean Press, 2017. First edition hardback, #547 of 750 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket protected by Mylar. Bought of eBay for $10.80 plus shipping.
  • Shiras, William. Children of the Atom. Gnome Press, 1953. First edition hardback, a Fine- copy with slight dust soiling to top page block, in a Near Fine- dust jacket with, alas, small ink “x”s next to 13 titles on the back cover, as well as slight dust staining to white rear cover and wear along points and edges; save those flaws, an extremely nice, bright example of the dust jacket. Chalker/Owings (1991), page 200. Kemp, Gnome Press #28, page 215. Locke, A Spectrum of fantasy [One], page 197. Bought off eBay for $44.99.

  • Silverberg, Robert. The Emperor and the Maula. First edition hardback, #239 of 250 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, in publisher’s bag. Far future Scheherazade novella, never published in complete form before.
  • Silverberg, Robert. Time and Time Again. Three Rooms Press, 2018. Advanced Reading Copy of the trade paperback original first edition, a Fine copy, new and unread. All Silverberg’s time travel stories in one place. Bought for $9.99 off eBay.

  • Smith, Clark Ashton. Ebony and Crystal: Poems in Verse and Prose. Auburn Journal, 1922. First edition hardback, #522 of 525 signed, numbered copies, a Very Good copy with pronounced foxing to inside front and rear covers, cracked inner hinge and cloth pulled away from binding staples to rear (which, looking from the construction, I’m guessing is an endemic flaw for this book), slight bend at head and heel and slight wear at points, sans dust jacket, as issued. Currey, page 453. Not in Bleiler’s Guide to Supernatural Horror. Bleiler Checklist (1978), page 181. Sidney-Fryer, Emperor of Dreams, page 128-128.

  • Smith, Clark Ashton. In the Realms of Mystery and Wonder: Collected Prose Poems and Artwork of Clark Ashton Smith. Centipede Press, 2017. First edition hardback, #36 of 300 signed (by editor Scott Conners) and numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket and a Fine slipcase. This actually sold out before I could pick it up, but I ended up buying this copy off eBay for $110.06, which is less than half the $225 offering price.

  • Smith, Clark Ashton. Odes and Sonnets. The Book Club of San Francisco, 1918. First edition hardback, #70 of 300 copies, a Very Good copy with long, thin abrasion along outer front edge, pinhead black spot to spine, word “Clark” worn away from spine label, and two faint dime-sized splash marks to rear cover, sans dust jacket, as issued. Thin, oversized volume printed in three colors (red, green and black) on uncut sheets (so half the poems are rather difficult to read). Not in Currey. Not in Bleiler’s Guide to Supernatural Horror. Not in Bleiler’s Checklist (1978). Sidney-Fryer, Emperor of Dreams, page 127.

  • Smith, Clark Ashton. The Star-Treader and Other Poems. A.M. Robertson, 1912. First edition hardback original, a Near Fine+ copy with top front point bumped, a few traces of grubbiness to rear boards, and an Ex-Libris sticker inside front cover under flap, in a Very Good+ dusty jacket with slight loss at head and top points, a few pots of grubbiness here and there, a crease to inside front flap at bottom, a thin line of abrasion at heel; quite a nice copy for a book more than 100 years old. Not in Currey. Not in Bleiler’s Guide to Supernatural Horror. Bleiler Checklist (1978), page 181. Sidney-Fryer, Emperor of Dreams, page 128.

  • Smith, Clark Ashton (David E. Schultz and Scott Conners, editors). Selected Letters of Clark Ashton Smith. Arkham House, 2003. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Signed by Conners. Bought for $30 off eBay.
  • (Smith, Cordwainer) MacNair, Harley Farnsworth. The Real Conflict Between China and Japan. University of Chicago Press, 1938. First edition hardback, a Very Good copy with spine and page blocks slightly grubby, lacking a dust jacket (possibly as issued). Formerly Paul M. A. Linebarger’s copy, with his signature, “Duke” and “1938” written at the top of the front free endpaper. Linebarger is most famous for writing science fiction under the pen name Cordwainer Smith (as well as Carmichael Smith and Felix C. Forrest). He was also a renowned Sinologist whose father was one of the chief advisors for Chinese nationalist leader Sun Yat-Sen (I also own a copy of Linebarger’s non-fiction work The Political Doctrine of Sun Yat-Sen, as well as his book Psychological Warfare, which was used for many years as a text at West Point). Books signed by him are uncommon. Bought off eBay for $45.

  • Spencer, Robert. The History of Jihad: From Muhammad to ISIS. Bombardier Books, 2018. Presumed first edition hardback (no additional printings listed), a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket.
  • Spinrad, Norman. The Iron Dream. Avon, 1972. First edition paperback original, a Very Good+ copy with spine creasing, slight foxing, and general wear. Currey (1979), page 463. Bought from Don Webb for $3.
  • Steiger, Brad. The Werewolf Book. Visible Ink Press, 1999. First edition trade paperback original, a near Fine copy with wear along edges, a tiny crese to bottom front corner, and a few bits of writing inside. Non-fiction book on werewolves and other shapechangers in folklore and media. Bought from Don Webb for $5.
  • Straub, Peter. 5 Stories. Borderlands Press, 2007. First edition hardback, #328 of 350 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Bought for $24, marked down from $60.

  • Swanwick, Michael. The Third Frankenstein. Dragonstairs Press, 2018. First edition chapbook original, #60 of 100 signed copies, a Fine copy. Essay written to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Mary Shelly’s novel.

  • Swanwick, Michael. small wonders. Dragonstairs Press, 2018. First edition chapbook original, #5 of 120 copies, a Fine copy. Three short-shorts. Though you can’t tell from the scans, this is a much smaller trim size than the above.

  • Tatulli, Mark. Lio: Happiness is a Squishy Cephalopod. First edition trade paperback original, a Fine copy, inscribed: “To Meshke[sic]/(drawing of Lio’s head)/MT/Mark Tatulli.” Comic strip collection. Bought for $5.00 from Half Price Books.
  • Vance, Jack. Coup de Grace and Other Stories. Vance Integral Edition, 2001. First edition hardback, a Fine copy, sans dust jacket, as issued, matching the appearance of the “Reader’s Edition” of the Vance Integral Edition. Short story collection done as a “preview” edition to generate interest in the VIE project. Offered at $75. Chalker & Owings (2002), page 946. Chalker & Owings list a print run of 1,000 copies, which seems to high given the relative scarcity of the title, though several were evidently distributed at the Frankfurt Book Fair. Bought off eBay for $102.50.

  • Vance, Jack. Gold and Iron. Underwood-Miller, 1982. First edition hardback, one of 200 copies signed by Vance, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Originally published in paperback original as Slaves of the Klau. Supplements the trade edition. Hewett, A9e. Won off eBay for $81.

  • Vance, Jack. Maske: Thaery. Berkley, 1976. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Very Good+ dust jacket with shallow chipping at head and a few other nicks. Signed by Jack Vance. Hewett, A52. Won off eBay for $40.96.
  • Vance, Jack. Showboat World (or, to use the title embossed into the front boards of the book itself, The Magnificent Showboats of the Lower Vissel River, Lune XXIII South, Big Planet). Underwood-Miller, 1983. First hardback edition, a Presentation Copy of 200 signed, numbered copies, a Fine- copy with slight bumping at points in a Fine- dust jacket with a few small spots of slight browning discoloration. Hewett, A47h, who notes there were 28 Presentation Copies. Cunningham, Jack Vance: Critical Appreciations and a Bibliography, 71c, who notes that there were 20 Presentation Copies. Supplements a copy of the trade edition. Bought off eBay for $76.

  • Vance, Jack. Strange She Hasn’t Written/Death of a Solitary Chess Player/The Man Who Walks Behind (AKA 14 bis). Vance Integral Edition, 2006. First edition hardback, a Fine copy, sans dust jacket, as issued, matching the appearance of the “Reader’s Edition” of the Vance Integral Edition. The original titles for three mystery novels originally published under the Ellery Queen pseudonym as (respectively) The Four Johns, A Room to Die In and The Madman Theory, with textual corrections based on evidence of Vance’s original manuscripts uncovered as part of the VIE text correction process. Evidently one of 400 copies printed. ISFDB gives an offering price of $63, [Edited to add: Though this issue of Cosmopolis says they were available to subscribers like myself for $45]. Bought off eBay for $122.50. [Edited to add: This source says that there were only 100 copies of this volume printed, which accords much more with how rarely I’ve seen it offered…]

  • Wakfield, H.R. Strayers From Sheol. Arkham House, 1961. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine- dust jacket with just a trace of dust soiling to the white cover (exaggerated in the scan). Joshi, Sixty Years of Arkham House, 60. Jaffrey, Horrors and Unpleasantries, 60. Nielsen, Arkham House Books: A Collector’s Guide, 63. Bleiler, Supernatural Horror in Literature, 1647. Chalker/Owings (1991), page 30. Bought for £30 after discount.

  • Walton, Jo. Starlings. Tachyon, 2018. First edition trade paperback original, Fine. Short story collection.
  • Watson, Ian. The Uncollected Ian Watson. PS Publishing, 2014. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket. Bought for £5, marked down from £25.
  • Watts, Peter. The Freeze-Frame Revolution. Tachyon, 2018. First edition trade paperback original, Fine. New novel. “How do you stage a mutiny when you’re only awake one day in a million? How do you engage an enemy that never sleeps, that sees through your eyes and hears through your ears and relentlessly, honestly, only wants what best for you?” Looks interesting.
  • Wellman, Manly Wade and Wade. Sherlock Holmes’s War of the Worlds. Warner Books, 1975. First edition paperack original, a Near Fine copy with age darkening to white spine and rear cover and Rosemary Webb’s ownership inscription on blurb page. Replaces a less attractive copy. Currey (1979), page 514. Bought from Don Webb for $5.
  • Williams, Liz, and Trevor Jones. Diary of a Witchcraft Shop. NewCon Press, 2011. First edition hardback, #49 of 50 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in decorated boards, sans dust jacket, as issued. I already owned the second volume, of which there were 100 hardbacks. Bought for $12 marked down from $30.
  • Williamson, Chet. Dreamthrop. Dark Harvest, 1989. First edition hardback, Letter G of 26 signed, lettered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine wooden slipcase. Horror novel. Chalker/Owings (1991), page 121. Chalker/Owings (2002), page 1045. Bought off eBay for $49.

  • Wilson, Richard (John Pelan, editor). Masters of Science Fiction: Richard Wilson. Centipede Press, 2018. First edition hardback, #350 of 500 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, new and unread, still in shrinkwrap. A hefty 700 page short story collection from the Nebula-winning author of “Mother Goddess of the World.” Bought from the publisher at the usual dealer discount, and I’ll have a copy available in the next Lame Excuse Books catalog.

  • Finally, two non-books worth noting: I won a promotional photo for the movie IT signed by Stephen King at auction for $25 (which I tucked inside my copy of Knowing darkness: Artists Inspired by Stephen King, and a Dean R. Koontz letter to some UN official for $5.90, which I tucked inside the Land of Enchantment edition of Twilight Eyes.

    Library Additions: Nine PS Publishing Books

    Saturday, January 5th, 2019

    So it wasn’t enough that Camelot Books had a sale. Right before that, PS publishing had a sale on their website, so after the Camelot order came in, I received three more big boxes of books to catalog:

  • Crowther, Pete and Nick Gevers. Postscripts 30/31: Memoryville Blues. PS Publishing, 2013. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards in a Fine dust jacket. Trade edition. Supplements a signed, limited, traycased edition.
  • Gevers, Nick. Postscripts 32/33: Far Voyager. PS Publishing, 2014. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards in a Fine dust jacket. Trade edition.
  • Gevers, Nick. Postscripts 36/37: The Dragons of the Night. PS Publishing, 2016. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards in a Fine dust jacket. Trade edition. All three Postscripts bought for £12.99, plus shipping.
  • Hill, Joe. The Fireman. PS Publishing, 2016. Signed, limited edition hardback, #472 of 900 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in decorated boards in a Fine dust jacket and Fine slipcase, with tissue paper laid in at signature page. An attractive edition, though it was preceded by no less than three U.S. signed/limited editions, specific to different bookstore chains. The scan is the front of the decorated slipcase. Bought for £19, marked down from £70.

  • (Lovecraft, H.P.) Joshi, S.T., editor. Black Wings IV: New Tales of Lovecraftian Horror. PS Publishing, 2015. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket. Bought for £9.33 as part of a bundle.
  • (Lovecraft, H.P.) Joshi, S.T., editor. Black Wings V: New Tales of Lovecraftian Horror. PS Publishing, 2016. First edition hardback, #94 of 300 copies, a Fine copy in decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket, in a Near Fine slipcase with 1 1/4″ x 2″ abraded spot at back cover bottom, with tissue paper laid in at signature page. Bought for $12.99, marked down from £50.
  • (Lovecraft, H.P.) Joshi, S.T., editor. Black Wings VI: New Tales of Lovecraftian Horror. PS Publishing, 2015. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket. Bought for £9.33 as part of a bundle.
  • MacLeod, Ian R. Red Snow. PS Publishing, 2017. First edition hardback, #86 of 100 signed, numbered copies a Fine copy in decorated boards in a Fine dust jacket and Fine slipcase, with tissue paper laid in at signature page. Bought for £12.99, marked down from £50.
  • Watson, Ian. The Uncollected Ian Watson. PS Publishing, 2014. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket. Bought for £5, marked down from £25.
  • Library Additions: Five Reference Books (And One Oddity)

    Saturday, December 29th, 2018

    The last of the books from the Camelot 60% off sale. All but one of these are reference books, and the other is an oddity I just didn’t include with the previously listed books.

  • (Ellison, Harlan) Richmond, Tim, compiler and editor. Fingerprints on the Sky: The Authorized Harlan Ellison Bibliography. Edgeworks Abbey/Subterranean Press, 2017. First edition hardback, #238 of 500 numbered copies signed by Ellison and Richmond, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Massive oversized hardback, roughly 12 1/2″ high by 11″ wide. Lacks an index. Bought for $30, marked down from $75.

  • (Farmer, Philip Jose) Croteau, Michael. The Best of Farmerphile: The Magazine of Philip Jose Farmer. Meteor House, 2017. First edition hardback, one of 175 hardcovers signed by five of the contributors, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Contains a mixture of Farmer’s fiction, non-fiction, and essays about Farmer and his works by others, so I’ll probably end up shelving this under fiction anyway. Bought for $20, marked down from $50.

  • Golden, Christopher, editor (Clive Barker, Joe R. Lansdale, Charles L. Grant, John Ferris, etc). Cut! Horror Writers on Horror Film. Borderlands Press, 1992. First hardback edition and first edition thus, #318 of 500 signed, numbered copies signed by most of the contributors (doesn’t look like Anne Rice signed it), a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket and Fine slipcase. Bought for $20 marked down from $50 (list price was $65).

  • King, Stephen, with John Mellencamp and T. Bone Burnett. Ghost Brothers of Darkland County. Concord Music Group, 2013. Trade paperback original in slipcase, the size and shape of an old multi-record LP boxed set, with two CDs of music and a DVD in pockets at the back. Libretto for a “Southern Gothic supernatural musical thriller.” The cast they’ve assembled to sing this thing is amazing: Elvis Costello, Neko Case, Kris Kristofferson, Roseanne Cash, Sheryl Crowe, etc. Bought for $19.99 marked down from $49.99.

  • (Lovecraft, H.P.) S.T. Joshi. H.P. Lovecraft: A Comprehensive Bibliography. University of Tampa Press, 2009. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. An update of Joshi’s 1981 Lovecraft bibliography. Weighs in at a hefty 681 pages. 200 Books by S. T. Joshi, I33a.

  • Williams, Liz, and Trevor Jones. Diary of a Witchcraft Shop. NewCon Press, 2011. First edition hardback, #49 of 50 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in decorated boards, sans dust jacket, as issued. I already owned the second volume, of which there were 100 hardbacks. Bought for $12 marked down from $30.