[Item #4723] The Friday Book: Essays and Other Nonfiction. John Barth.
The Friday Book: Essays and Other Nonfiction
The Friday Book: Essays and Other Nonfiction
The Friday Book: Essays and Other Nonfiction
The Friday Book: Essays and Other Nonfiction

The Friday Book: Essays and Other Nonfiction

ISBN: 0399129979
New York, NY: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1984. First Edition. Hardcover. "(John) Barth's first work of nonfiction, The Friday Book is what he calls "an arrangement of essays and occasional lectures, some previously published, most not, most on matters literary, some not, accumulated over thirty years or so of writing, teaching, and teaching writing." With the full measure of playfulness and erudition that he brings to his novels, Barth glances into his crystal ball to speculate upon the future of literature and the literature of the future. He looks back, too, upon historical fiction and fictitious history. And he does not skip prose, prosaic poetry, dippy verses, or- perish the thought- letters...This is not only a book about books; it is also a tale about tales and tales within tales." (from front flap) A collection of essays by John Barth, the great American author (still with us & active at age 91 as of this writing), winner of the National Book Award. Barth's novels & stories are hilarious, while full of a profound understanding of human inner & outer life & relations, he is critically regarded as a founding inventor-practitioner of the postmodern & metafictional literary movements. These essays set forth the insight & wisdom acquired by Barth during his decades of reading, writing & educating. The essays are preceded by three prefaces including one explaining "The Subtitle of This Book" ("or,/ Book-Titles Should Be/ Straightforward / and Subtitles Avoided"), table of contents, & epigraphs. Hardcover in unclipped first-issue dust jacket (with $17.95 price & "8410" printed on front flap), first edition, presumed first printing (this publisher's contemporary custom was not to state these facts, nor refer to further printings, in order to indicate this). A very rewarding Barth collectible, especially for practicing writers, in its rarest original form. Book in very fine condition with only a tiny bit of wear & fading to thin edges & corners of front, back covers & spine; mild-to-moderate spotting to upper edge of text block; hardly any to side & lower edges of same. Interior very fine with only miniscule bleeding of spots noted above onto upper edges of a few page leaves; otherwise substantially mint. Dust jacket very fine with only very slight rubbing & occasional spotting to front, back covers, spine & flaps; a touch of wear & a few tiny bumps, creases at edges & corners of same. An extra handling charge will be added for shipping due to the weight of this item. Very Fine / Very Fine. [Item #4723]

Price: $40.00