MacNeil, Robert

Wordstruck: A Memoir

ISBN: 0670818712
New York, NY: Viking Penguin Inc., 1989. First Edition. Hardcover. Inscribed & signed by Robert MacNeil. "In Wordstruck, Robert MacNeil hauntingly and poignantly re-creates his own youth, his own growing love of words, the world they opened up to him, the experiences they enriched. Delving into his past to unearth these treasured experiences, he recaptures the lost world of his childhood. MacNeil's delight infuses his own words with magic, with an incandescent vitality that reminds us of the power of words to evoke, to enthrall, to move." (from front flap) The acclaimed memoir by Robert MacNeil (b. 1931), the honored & venerable Canadian-American journalist who famously co-anchored the MacNeil/ Lehrer NewsHour program with Jim Lehrer (1934-2020). Of great interest to this writer is MacNeil's eyewitness presence as a reporter at the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963. The events & impressions recorded in this volume precede these later adventures & accomplishments, but illuminate their foundation. With captioned historical photographs of young MacNeil, his family et al. Hardcover in unclipped dust jacket, first edition, first printing as indicated by number sequence on copyright page. On blank front endpaper, MacNeil has hand-written & signed in bold black ink: "For Marleen/ with best wishes for/ your visits (to? in?)/ Nova Scotia/ (signed) Robert MacNeil (underline)." As recounted here, MacNeil was born & raised in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. From the collection of James V. Buehler (1933-2020), who was a prominent real estate developer & collector in Massachusetts & Arizona. We found & have retained, between blank rear endpaper & paste-down, a printed-out document from the esteemed Ed Conroy, Bookseller concerning Buehler's purchase of this volume during 2013, folded twice horizontally & in very fine condition. A rich & rewarding MacNeil collectible, especially rare with his warm & relevant inscription & signature, & with distinguished provenance. Book in very fine condition with only slight browning & a touch of wear at/ near edges & corners of front, back cover boards; slight bend of spine toward front; light rubbing & sparse spotting to edges of text block esp. side edge. Interior very fine with only tiny bumps at upper corners of a few page leaves. Dust jacket fine with mild rubbing & scratching to front, back covers & spine; a bit of wear & some tiny bumps, creases at edges & corners of same; one tiny area with loss of surface paper at mid-right edge of front cover/ flap; several tiny spots at lower front cover (the latter two points are penetrations from spotting to blank inner front cover & flap-edge). Very Fine / Fine. [Item #4986]

Price: $50.00