Franzen, Jonathan

The Discomfort Zone: A Personal History

ISBN: 9780374299194
New York, NY, USA: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2006. First Edition. Hardcover. Inscribed & signed by Jonathan Franzen. "As Jonathan Franzen tells it, he was the kind of boy who was afraid of spiders, school dances, urinals, music teachers, boomerangs, popular girls- and his parents. He had nothing against geeky kids except a desperate fear of being taken for one of them, a fate that would result in instant Social Death. Approaching puberty the way a fraud artist confronts a particularly tough scam, he pretended to be a kid who naturally said "shit" a lot and didn't enjoy doing calculations on his new six-function Texas Instruments calculator." (from front flap) A thoughtful memoir by Jonathan Franzen (b. 1959), the acclaimed, prolific & much-honored American author. Here Franzen intimately describes "...growing up squirming in his own uber-sensitive skin, from a "small and fundamentally ridiculous person," through a strangely happy adolescence, into an adult with strong and inconvenient passions." (front flap) Hardcover in unclipped dust jacket, "First edition, 2006" as stated on copyright page, first printing as indicated by number sequence thereon. On the second title page, Franzen has hand-written, signed & dated in bold black ink: "For Karl-/ with friendly midwestern/ greetings-/ (signed) Jonathan Franzen (above line of signature) 9.12.(200)6." A most-worthwhile & rewarding collectible in the Franzen canon, in its rarest contemporary form & greatly enriched by Franzen's inscription, stylish signature & date within year of publication. Book in very fine condition with only a hint of wear & a few tiny bumps, creases at edges & corners. Interior very fine, substantially mint. Dust jacket very fine with only a touch of rubbing, faint scratching & occasional spotting to front, back covers & spine; a bit of wear & a few tiny bumps at edges & corners of same & flaps. Very Fine / Very Fine. [Item #6518]

Price: $45.00