Books

The second issue of the first edition of Steinbeck's first novel. This is the first state of this issue, with maroon cloth binding , and in the first state dust jacket for this edition. This edition is an interesting look into the world of publishing inthe 30s and the struggles of Steinbeck and his publishers to turn a profit. The original McBride edition sold poorly. After the success of Tortilla Flat, Covici Friede bought either the plates or the unsold sheets from McBride and reissued the book with a new tipped-in title page, a new introduction by Lewis Gannett, and its own binding. This is the earliest Covici issue of this book, evidenced by maroon cloth rather than blue, and by the presence of the McBride bell colophon on the last page. To make things even more complicated, the printer misspelled Covici Friede on the spine of the new dust jackets. The jackets went back through the presses, the misspelled letters were covered with a black rectangle, and the correct spelling printed above it- see photos. The book is bright, tight, and clean. Minor shelfwear to lower corners. A small sunned strip at top of spine. Former owner's name and address marked out on the front free endpaper. Blue topstain still fairly bright. As nice a copy as I've seen. The dust jacket shows wear on edges and folds, expertly reinforced with archival paper tape. Corners clipped. With the blacked-out rectangle covering the misspelling of Covici.

Cup of Gold is John Steinbeck's first novel, a work of historical fiction based on the life of the infamous pirate Henry Morgan and his quest for the fabled treasures of Panama.