Books

New York: Grove Press, 1961. First authorized and first trade edition issued in America. With a long introduction by Karl Shapiro and a preface by Anais Nin. 8vo., publisher's original cloth backed boards in dustjacket. xxxiii, 318 pp. A handsome, clean and pleasing copy, some light evidence of age or shelving to the dustjacket, the book very fine. FIRST AUTHORIZED AND FIRST TRADE EDITION ISSUED IN AMERICA. Of the book, John Ciardi said, [it] "is a substantial work of art. The violence of Miller's attack on orthodoxy and falseness is indispensable to his human vision of things. In [the book] the test is ferocity, a ferocious and yet naive sincerity that castigates all sham. It cannot fail to be moral finally, because the ferocity is radically moral. And because the author is an artist--a very good one, as the continued 'underground life' of the book attests." Ours is a very nice copy of this classic.

Tropic of Cancer is a semi-autobiographical novel by Henry Miller, first published in 1934. It is widely considered an important work of 20th-century literature, noted for its candid portrayal of Miller's life, its potently individualistic voice, and its frank discussions of sexuality, which have led to legal battles and debates about censorship.