Charters, Samuel

To This Place

Berkeley, CA, USA: Oyez Press, 1969. First Edition. Hardcover. Inscribed, signed, and dated by Samuel Charters to Brother Antoninus, a.k.a. William Everson. Samuel Charters (1929-2015) was a legendary polymath—historian, musician, poet & scholar—as well as the partner in life & work of Ann Charters, the acclaimed, pioneering Beat scholar, the supreme authority on Jack Kerouac, & our esteemed colleague at the European Beat Studies Network (ebsn.eu). Charters’ profound observational verse translates ordinary moments into something beautiful with a larger meaning in life than would be first thought. He expresses the desire to share these momentous feelings and the frustration with the futility of this goal. This copy is inscribed by Charters on the uncut, orange front endpaper in thin, black ink to William Everson (a.k.a. Brother Antoninus)(1912-1994), the American poet, educator, literary critic, and printer who was a primary & influential member of the San Francisco Renaissance and Beat Generation. The inscription reads: “For Brother Antoninus—/ A small return for / the great things your / poems have given me—/ With love— / Samuel Charters / May 26, 1969”. A monk in the Catholic celibate Dominican Order, Everson/Antoninus revoked his monk's vows in 1969, married, and became a stepfather. Hardcover in unclipped dust jacket: first edition, first printing, “limited to 1000 copies of which 250 are hardbound and 750 in wrappers” as stated at colophon (see our item #6857 for softcover). Book is in fine-to-very-fine condition with only the slightest bumping to the fine edges and corners of front, back covers & spine, otherwise pristine. Dust jacket is in good-to-near-fine condition with moderate creasing to the lower area of front cover; closed tear approximately 1½” along right edge of front cover, near bottom; mild rubbing, scuffing, scratching to front, back covers & spine. Fine-Very Fine / Good-Near Fine. [Item #6859]

Price: $65.00