Posts Tagged ‘Easton Press’

Library Additions: Three Samuel R. Delany Firsts, Two Signed

Wednesday, October 18th, 2023

More from that private library purchase. Two of these replace less desirable copies.

  • Delany, Samuel R. The American Shore. Dragon Press, 1978. First edition hardback, #77 of 100 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy, sans dust jacket, as issued. Detailed, close-reading non-fiction critical analysis of Thomas Disch’s “Angouleme,” a segment of 334. Weedman, The Starmont Reader’s Guide to Samuel R. Delany, page 22 (“Here Delany exercises himself as the critic’s critic, remaining fairly inaccessible to a general audience.”). Chalker/Owings, page 132. Replaces an unsigned copy.
  • Delany, Samuel R. The Einstein Intersection. Easton Press, 1986 (stated; the Locus database lists this coming out in 1991). First edition thus, a special leatherbound collector’s edition, a Fine copy, sans dust jacket, as issued, inscribed by Delany to the previous owner and with an Ex-Libris plate and “Collector’s Notes” laid in. Nebula winner for Best Novel, Hugo finalist. Magill, Survey of Science Fiction pages 703-707. Supplements a signed copy of the Gollancz first hardback edition. Strictly speaking this is just a “nice to have,” but it is signed, and Easton Press makes attractive books.

  • Delany, Samuel R. The Straits of Messina. Serconia Press, 1989. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Delany essays on Delany. Chalker/Owings, page 390 (“these at least are readable”). Replaces a copy with a less attractive dust jacket.

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    Library Additions: Two Charles Stross, One Jack Williamson Easton Press Editions

    Sunday, February 27th, 2022

    The final three Easton Press library additions from that big purchase.

  • Stross, Charles. Glasshouse. Easton Press, 2006. First edition thus, #469 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by Stross), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about GLASSHOUSE and the author CHARLIE STROSS” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued. Supplements a copy of the trade first edition (ISFDB the books came out the same month; usually when that happens, the author gets the Easton Press books FedExed to them a few days before the laydown date of the trade edition, but most subscribers get their copies just after the trade is released.)
  • Stross, Charles. Halting State. Easton Press, 2007. First edition (ISFDB says it came out a month before the trade), #35 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by Stross), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about HALTING STATE and the author CHARLIE STROSS” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued. Supplements a copy of the trade first edition.
  • Williamson, Jack. The Stonehenge Gate. Easton Press, 2005. First edition hardcover (ISFDB says this came out in March of 2005, while the serialized version was finishing up in Analog, while the Tor edition didn’t come out until August) #120 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by Williamson), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about THE STONEHENGE GATE and the author JACK WILLIAMSON” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued. I note that it is fairly unusual for Tor to allow Easton Press to do an edition of one of their books, and I’ve seen writers complain that Tor contracts forbade them from Easton Press (or other signed/limited special editions), as they wanted their own books to be the true firsts. Williamson’s editor there was David Hartwell, a long-time fan of his work, and I can believe that such was his stature that an exception was made.

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    Library Additions: Two Elizabeth Moon Easton Press Titles

    Sunday, February 20th, 2022

    More Easton Press editions from that bulk purchase:

  • Moon, Elizabeth. Marque and Reprisal. Easton Press, 2004. First edition thus, #408 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by Moon), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about MARQUE AND REPRISAL and the author ELIZABETH MOON” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued.
  • Moon, Elizabeth. The Speed of Dark. Easton Press, 2003. First edition thus, #809 of 1,000 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by Moon), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about THE SPEED OF DARK and the author ELIZABETH MOON” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued. Interesting near future novel told from the viewpoint of a high-functioning autistic programmer. Nebula winner for Best Novel. Supplements a copy of the trade hardcover first inscribed to me (ISFDB says that the UK Orbit paperback edition is the true first).

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    Library Additions: Seven Jack McDevitt Easton Press Editions

    Thursday, February 17th, 2022

    Continuing the list of Easton Press editions from the previous post.

    Most Easton Press titles come out after the trade edition, but several of these Jack McDevitt books came out months before the trade edition.

  • McDevitt, Jack. Cauldron. Easton Press, 2007. First edition (ISFDB shows it out three months before the Ace trade edition), #677 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by McDevitt), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about CAULDRON and the author JACK McDEVITT” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued.
  • McDevitt, Jack. The Devil’s Eye. Easton Press, 2008. First edition thus, #824 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by McDevitt), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about THE DEVIL’S EYE and the author JACK McDEVITT” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued.
  • McDevitt, Jack. Odyssey. Easton Press, 2006. First edition (ISFDB shows it out two months before the Ace trade edition), #881 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by McDevitt), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about ODYSSEY and the author JACK McDEVITT” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued.
  • McDevitt, Jack. Omega. Easton Press, 2003. First edition (ISFDB shows it out three months before the Ace trade edition), #885 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by McDevitt), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about OMEGA and the author JACK McDEVITT” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued.
  • McDevitt, Jack. Polaris. Easton Press, 2004. First edition (ISFDB shows it out five months before the Ace trade edition), #526 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by McDevitt), an unused personalization plate, a thin color-printed paper bookmark for the novel with McDevitt’s name, SFWA URL (no longer valid) and white out in the middle upon which “Cryptic, Inc.” (which I think used to be Jack’s business entity) typed or stamped on top, and an insert card “a note about POLARIS and the author JACK McDEVITT” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued.
  • McDevitt, Jack. Seeker. Easton Press, 2005. First edition thus, #666 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by McDevitt), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about SEEKER and the author JACK McDEVITT” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued. Nebula winner for Best Novel.
  • McDevitt, Jack. Time Travelers Never Die. Easton Press, 2009. First edition thus, #90 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by McDevitt), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about TIME TRAVELERS NEVER DIE and the author JACK McDEVITT” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued.

    • Another set of attractive books, all with the ephemera.

    I had some of these in trade editions, but not all of them. There are at least three additional McDevitt Eastons that came out before these (Ancient Shores, Infinity Beach and The Engines of God) and one later (Moonfall) that I don’t have.

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    Library Additions: Three Greg Bear Easton Press Books

    Sunday, February 13th, 2022

    As part of that same purchase that included some signed Harlan Ellison firsts, I picked up several Easton Press books. I didn’t catalog them until now because I knew wouldn’t be able to file them until I finished staining and gloss coating my new bookshelf. I’m about halfway through that process, but these are pretty much the only library additions left over from 2021 that I haven’t cataloged here yet, so I’m going to do that so I can close out the year.

  • Bear, Greg. Mariposa. Easton Press, 2009. First edition thus, #412 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by Bear), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about MARIPOSA and the author GREG BEAR” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued. Sequel to Quantico (see below).
  • Bear, Greg. Quantico. Easton Press, 2005. First edition thus, #339 of 900 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by Bear), an unused personalization plate, and an insert card “a note about QUANTICO and the author GREG BEAR” laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued.
  • Bear, Greg. Vitals. Easton Press, 2002. First edition thus, #341 of 1,150 signed copies, a Fine copy in embossed leather boards, with certificate of authenticity (also signed by Bear), an unused personalization plate, an insert card “a note about VITALS and the author GREG BEAR” and a foldout brochure for the Signed First Editions of Science Fiction line laid in, sans dust jacket, as issued. Supplements a hardback first and a proof copy.

    Though none of these are true firsts, they are attractive and well-made books, and you don’t usually see them with all the ephemera inserted.

    More Easton Press additions from the same book buy to follow…

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    Library Additions: A Third Major Zelazny Purchase Part 1

    Monday, September 28th, 2020

    You may remember these two previous Zelazny purchases. Well, Bob Pylant, the same guy I bought them from, wanted to sell off the reminder of his collection, so I went over to his house and cleaned him out of virtually all his remaining books, Zelazny and otherwise. I’ll be listing some over the next few days, while I’ll be selling others in the next Lame Excuse Books catalog, and still others (like his collection of Zelazny first magazine appearances) will have to wait until even later while I figure out how I want to store and display them.

    My primary collecting focus has been on first editions, but Bob collected almost everything Zelazny related, from foreign editions, library market hardback reprints, got Zelazny to sign pristine book club editions, and to every anthology that reprinted a Zelazny story. (I think there are six of seven featuring “Home is the Hangman” alone). I’ll be incorporating the interesting ones into my own collection because, well, I’ve already paid for them, haven’t I?

    Bob also did things that I wouldn’t have done, like adding aftermarket dust jackets to books that weren’t issued with them. And there’s one book in this batch he did something particularly odd to.

    Here’s the first batch of Zelazny books, the only theme among these that they didn’t fit into any other themes.

  • Zelazny, Roger. The Doors of His Face, The Lamps of His Mouth, And Other Stories. Doubleday, 1971. First edition hardback, a Fine- copy with very slight bend at head and heel and a trace of foxing to inside front gutter, in a Fine- dust jacket with touches of wear and a tiny bit of age darkening to the spine and at top rear. With signed Zelazny bookplate laid in. Kovacs, V9a. Levack, 12a. Currey, page 570. Replaces an Ex-Library copy.

  • Zelazny, Roger. Gone to Earth. Pulphouse, 1991. First edition hardback, #40 of 50 signed, numbered copies bound in leather, a Fine copy, sans dust jacket, as issued. Author’s Choice Monthly #29. (Well, they say leather; I have my doubts. Also note that between volumes 18 and 19, the color of the “leather” edition went from a dark gray to a dark blue.) Supplements a signed “trade” clothbound hardcover in dust jacket. Kovacs, V13iv. Chalker/Owings (2002), page 728. I suppose that now I should look for one of the 10-copy red leather staff editions…
  • Zelazny, Roger. Lord of Light. Easton Press, 1994. Hardback, a Fine copy bound in decorated leather, sans dust jacket, as issued, with unused personalization bookplate sticker laid in (as issued), as well as a signed Zelazny signature plate. According to Kovacs, copies in aquamarine-colored leather like this one are reprints. Kovacs, I29m.

  • Zelazny, Roger. Manna From Heaven. DNA Publications/Wildside Press, 2003. Hardback, a Fine copy in non-decorated boards and a Fine dust jacket. The 1-59224-199-9 ISBN matches the first edition listed at the ISFDB, but Kovacs says this is the UK Lightening Source hardback reprint. Signed by publisher Warren Lapine. Kovacs, V18b. Supplements the first printing with pictorial boards.
  • Zelazny, Roger. This Immortal. Garland Publishing, 1975. First (and only) edition thus, a hardback reprint for the library trade, a Fine copy in a Fine- aftermarket dust jacket Bob created from a copy of the SFBC/Ace Books reprint from 1988 with Richard Powers’ cover art, and which has some faint creasing along the folds. Signed by Zelazny. This edition is reproduced from the 1973 Ace third paperback printing, as stated on the reproduced Ace copyright page. Part of the Garland Library of Science Fiction. Kovacs, I40c.

  • Zelazny, Roger and Jane Lindskold. Donnerjack. Avon Books, 1997. First edition hardback, either a Fine or a Poor copy (depending on how you count the annotations), in a Fine dust jacket. Novel started by Zelazny and finished by Lindskold after Zelazny’s death. Zelazny was a famously lean prose stylist, and Bob felt that Lindskold was not, so he has annotated the book by crossing out in brown or blue marker every section he felt was un-Zelazny-like from page 167 on. I passed on picking this up in the first bulk buys, but took it this time around because, well, it’s not like I can sell it to anyone else, and who else would know or appreciate the story behind it? Kovacs, I16b. Supplements a Fine/Fine copy inscribed to me by Lindskold.

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