Algren's first book, inscribed, with interesting provenance
Somebody in Boots.
New York: The Vanguard Press, 1935.
Price: $1,750.00
About the item
First edition. 322 pp. 8vo. Algren's first book, inscribed, with interesting provenance. Brown cloth on boards with some soiling and slight fraying along seam at spine and at head and foot of spine, previous ownership of Edward Landberg on ffep, inscribed on verso of half title. Very good.
Item #338553
At some point Matthew Monahan who oversaw rare books at Gotham Book Mart and Gallery maintained a close relationship with many of the writers the shop worked with over the years obtained the book and had Algren sign it
Inscribed, at a later date to Matthew Monahan of the Gotham Book Mart, and with the previous ownership signature of Ed Landberg, the founder of the Berkeley Cinema Guild and Studio in Berkeley California in the late 1950s, with film critic Pauline Kael. An Oakland Tribune article from 1961 describes a lawsuit by Kael against Landberg, noting misappropriation of corporate funds to purchase items such as “a hi-fi set . . . and a sports car, too.” Nevertheless, Landberg continued operating the Cinema Guild, whileKael later moved to New York City, likely bringing this book with her.
