RE: Book Collections
Sam Rosenthal (sam.rosenthal@ucop.edu)
Tue, 12 Aug 1997 11:34:47 -0800
nice collection! -- the 2nd ptg of the uncollected has the picture from the
opening page of The Stranger from the Saturday Evening Post or Colliers --
mattie & babe sitting on a bed -- i'm guessing -- my mags are at home --
the 2 vols go for roughly $5-800, depending on condition & printing, $200
for single vols -- 2) is the holy grail -- i've seen it going for $2M
>Having seen the recent posts about collections, I thought I'd toss my
>own out there:
>
> 1) All of four of JDS' books in First Edition, all are in good to
>excellent condition, and all have complete, non-price clipped jackets.
>
> 2) I have uncorrected proofs of "A Writing Life" (which was suppressed
>by Salinger with help from the U.S. Supreme Court and therefore NEVER
>published) and "In Search of J.D. Salinger" by Ian Hamilton. I have as
>well the British and American First Edition copies of "In Search of J.D.
>Salinger".
>
> 3) The second edition copies of the "Uncollected Short Stories of J.D.
>Salinger".
>
> 4) A paperback first edition of "Nine Stories".
>
> 5) I confess to owning 5 copies of "The Catcher in the Rye": the first
>edition, a nineteenth printing with dust jacket (my reading copy), two
>(one with a full dust jacket) Modern Library copies, and the original
>paperback (cloth feel to it) put out by Little, Brown in 1991. I would
>like to find an original paperback copy of it, too!
>
> 6) I also have hardcover (not first editions) reading copies of the
>three books as well.
>
> To clear up confusion about the "Uncollected..." volumes, I submit the
>following information: about 1974, someone published the two volume
>set, apparently having dug up all the stories from magazines or
>microfilm, and put them out WITHOUT a publisher name or any other usual
>markings that go with the publication of books. They were clearly
>pirated. The FBI investigated and caught someone (though I've never
>read any names) and the matter was settled out of court. Salinger,
>obviously not happy (who would be?), agreed the piracies could be sold
>in the used market after a "reasonable amount of time." So possession
>or re-sale of these is not illegal, and, in fact, contrary to our great
>list administrator Tim O'Connor, I have seen them being sold in rare
>book dealers' catalogs from time to time. The first printing of the two
>volume has no picture on the cover; the second printings have a
>Victorian scene on the covers. The value of the second printing is
>usually half of the first. Hope this helps.
>
>Regards,
>
> D.