Snyder, Gary

The Gary Snyder Reader: Prose, Poetry and Translations 1952-1998 with: Ephemera

ISBN: 1887178902
Washington DC: counterpoint, 1999. First Edition. Hardcover. "This monumental collection gathers the essays, travel journals, letters, poems, and translations of one of the most influential voices of the twentieth century. Gary Snyder has been a major cultural force in America for five decades- prize-winning poet, environmental activist, Zen Buddhist, earth-householder, and reluctant counterculture guru. Having expanded far beyond the Beat scene that first brought his work to the public ear and eye, Snyder has produced a broad-ranging body of work that encompasses his fluency in Eastern literature and culture, his commitment to the environment, and his concepts of humanity's place in the cosmos." (from front flap) A magisterial door-stopper compilation of the immortal works of Gary Snyder (b. 1930), the canonical primary poet & environmentalist of the Beat Generation/ San Francisco Renaissance who is still with us & active as of this writing at almost age 95. Published at the end of the twentieth century, this volume encompasses Snyder's most essential & profound writings from the first five decades of his career, including well-known classics in various genres & theretofore unpublished material. Hardcover in unclipped dust jacket, first edition, first printing as stated at copyright page & as indicated by number sequence thereon. From the archive of Thomas Rain crowe (b. 1949), the acclaimed American poet who was at the center of the Baby Beat Generation/ Second San Francisco Renaissance during the 1970s. The TRC archive was acquired, catalogued & offered as a single item by Third Mind Books (see our item No. 1010), & its individual items (or small ensembles as here per ephemera described below) are being incrementally curated & presented throughout this year of 2025. See also Starting From San Francisco (item No. 3071), published by TMB, wherein Crowe provides an anecdotal history of the BBG/SSFR phenomenon, & its legacy of collaboration/mentorship with key figures of the original Beat Generation/ San Francisco Renaissance- including of course Snyder in the uppermost Pantheon of mentors, referred to extensively in SFSF. Included in this offering are two pieces of ephemera: Found & retained between front paste-down & endpaper is a pamphlet for "Nature and Culture: an innovative curriculum for the 21st century" held at the University of California at Davis during 1994-95, single sheet folded vertically into four sections with printing on both sides. At verso of final panel (or rear cover folded) & following panel is a capsule-biography of Snyder among the faculty of this curriculum, hand-encircled in red ink twice, with brief marginalia in black ink & black ink-circling of following faculty member, all presumably by Crowe, whom we also presume attended this curriculum, in near-fine condition with only light rubbing, faint scratching, occasional creasing & a bit of age toning to surfaces; a few tiny bumps, creases at edges & corners; & one very small tear-crease & pinhole at blank upper margin of second panel, with very slight loss of paper. Also included separately is a copied facsimile letter by Snyder to Crowe, originally typed or processed on his personal stationary, dated "17.I.OO" (17 January 2000), in which Snyder writes: "Thank you for the excellent little review of The Gary Snyder Reader, and all your other good words and support over the years for my work." Signed "Gary" in Snyder's elegant calligraphy, below which he has drawn the Japanese symbol & written the phonetic & English words for "Rain," a play on Crowe's adoptive Native-American middle name. Single copied sheet printed on recto only, in fine condition with only faint scratches, creases to surfaces & a few tiny bumps, creases at edges & corners. A foundational Snyder collectible in its rarest contemporary form, with enriching ephemera & most-distinguished, relevant association & provenance. Book in relatively very fine condition with only a touch of wear, fading & a few tiny bumps, creases at/from edges & corners of front, back covers & spine; mild rubbing, age toning & spotting to edges of text block esp. upper edge. Interior very fine with only miniscule bleeding of spots noted above onto edges of a few page leaves. Dust jacket (also relatively) very fine with only light rubbing, faint scratching to front, back covers & spine; some tiny bumps, creases at edges & corners of same & flaps. Very Fine / Very Fine. [Item #7520]

Price: $200.00