John Steinbeck, Ruth Gannett / TORTILLA FLAT 1st Edition 1935

Description: His First HitTORTILLA FLATBy John Steinbeck, illustrated by Ruth Gannett(1935)First edition of this oft-comical tale of post-World War I Monterey, following the exploits of a wine-loving and vaguely Arthurian group of paisanos, a beautiful copy in the scarce original dust jacket.Near fine in very good plus dust jacket."This is the story of Danny and of Danny's friends and of Danny's house." The lighthearted tone of TORTILLA FLAT lifted the spirits of Americans during the Great Depression, for whom "reading and the movies were escape... escape from grinding poverty, escape from worrying about how to pay the rent, escape from worrying about how to find a job" (San Jose). Danny and his round table of friends are rarely concerned with any of those issues as they meander through life in Monterey, undeniably poor, but not experiencing the tragedy of poverty in the same way as many of Steinbeck's later characters. Steinbeck even drew joy from writing the work: "it is light and I think amusing... I don't care whether it amounts to anything. I am enjoying it and I need something to help me over this last ditch" (Steinbeck and Wallsten).TORTILLA FLAT did, of course, amount to something, earning the California Commonwealth Club's Gold Medal and a mention in the justification for Steinbeck's 1962 Nobel Prize. It was also made into a 1942 film starring Spencer Tracy and Hedy Lamarr, and was one of the top box office grossers of the year.This first edition is a crystallization of the beginning of Steinbeck's career, before his works were required reading in classrooms across America. With Ruth Gannett's illustrations nestled throughout the text, TORTILLA FLAT is a refreshingly light title in a broad oeuvre.Read more: Adrian H. Goldstone and John R. Payne, John Steinbeck: A Bibliographical Catalogue, item A4b; San Jose State University, "Tortilla Flat - Contemporary Reviews;" Elaine Steinbeck and Robert Wallsten, Steinbeck: A Life in Letters, page 88. New York: Covici Friede Publishers, (1935). 7.5'' x 5''. Original tan cloth binding with blue spine lettering. Original unclipped ($2.50) pictorial dust jacket in blue and black. Blue topstain. Fore-edge machine deckle. Illustrated throughout in black and white. 318 pages. Housed in custom blue leather-backed clamshell box. Jacket with some edgewear, mild chipping to spine ends; spine sunned. Binding corners and spine ends lightly bumped, topstain a bit faded; tiny creases to lower margins of pages 316-318. A clean, sound copy. Type Punch Matrix Type Punch Matrix is a rare book firm founded by Rebecca Romney and Brian Cassidy. Between them, they bring over 30 years of experience in the antiquarian book trade. TPM sells a mixture of beloved classics and innovative texts from throughout print history, for collectors and institutions alike. Handpress and modern books, archives and manuscripts, letterpress and ephemera: TPM aims to make collecting both more accessible and more diverse, and believes in the mindful acquisition, preservation, and celebration of the materials of our literary cultures. Proud member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of American (ABAA), the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB), and the International Online Booksellers Association (IOBA). Guarantee We guarantee the accuracy and authenticity of all our listings. "First edition" always means first printing unless otherwise indicated. Items may be returned for any reason within 30 days, through prior arrangement, and in original condition. Maryland residents must add 6% sales tax. Shipping We pride ourselves on our packaging. All books are carefully packed to help ensure safe arrival in condition sent. We use new boxes, with not a single bubble envelope to be found in our shipping room. We ship most packages via USPS media mail and include delivery confirmation at no additional charge. Delivery typically takes 5-10 days, but may be longer, especially during the holidays. Orders are shipped within two business days. Priority USPS, UPS, and Fed-Ex services are available on request; please inquire for a specific quote. We combine shipping on items purchased at the same time. If you check out immediately and are overcharged for shipping during checkout, we will issue you a prompt refund, once actual shipping costs are known. International shipping is available, and we are happy to ship to our international customers. Please contact is BEFORE PURCHASING for an exact quote.This listing was created by Bibliopolis.

Price: 7700 USD

Location: Silver Spring, Maryland

End Time: 2024-11-03T02:12:06.000Z

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