Ginsberg, Allen

Airplane Dreams: Compositions from Journals

San Francisco, CA: City Lights Books, 1969. First American Edition. Softcover. (Cook 74, pp. 80-81; Morgan A12, a3.1, p. 21). This is the first American edition of a compilation of journal excerpts written by Allen Ginsberg & described by him in a note preceding them as "...compositions from Journals kept decades 1948-1968, a few solid fragments typed up published out of context, not exactly poems, nor not poems: journal notations put together conveniently, a mental turn-on printed across the border by long hair youthful exiles disunited from these States by the war of sighs and spears." Famous for a 1968 censorship row in which the first Canadian editions were seized by U.S. Customs upon importation into the States, it was published the next year by City Lights Books in collaboration with the original publisher, the obscure House of Anansi press. One wonders whether this controversy was engendered by the entry piece in "Airplane Dreams," "The History of the Jewish Socialist Party in America" or the usual explicit homosexuality to be found in Ginsberg's most personal works. With books like "Airplane Dreams," it is a surprise that the young, progressive, social democrats of today have not taken a greater interest in Ginsberg and his work. A significant Ginsberg collectible that deserves a closer look. Trade-format softcover: First American Edition, published the year following the initial seizure of the Canadian edition [1968] referred to, above. From the collection of Richard Cupidi (b. 1945), our esteemed mate in the UK who managed the fabled Unicorn Bookshop in Brighton, England with Bill Butler (1934-1977, the famed American-expatriate bookseller & publisher). From the late 1960s through the early 1970s, Unicorn proffered & published many outstanding productions by William S. Burroughs, J.G. Ballard et al., some of which have become the scarcest, all-but-unobtainable Beat-&-Beyond collectibles (see for example our item no.s 8217, 8366). After prevailing against censorious harassment efforts, Unicorn closed & Butler died in short order. Cupidi went on to found the Public House Bookshop in Brighton, which had a long & successful run but is also now closed, & he still resides there. We have been honored to obtain what Cupidi has termed "The Last Hurrah," all the remaining gems of Unicorn & Public House, including this. In strong near fine condition with only mild-to-moderate shelf-wear, light bumping & select, low-visibility exhibits of bump-creasing to fine-edges & corners of front, back covers & spine-edge; similarly mild-to-moderate rubbing & variant exhibits of age-toning throughout, otherwise clean. Near Fine. [Item #8740]

Price: $100.00 save 15% $85.00