Please note that delivery of items bought in the last few weeks are subject to delay in common with all businesses relying on postal services.

This is the latest from the Post Office website, 22nd October, 2007: 'There is a build-up of mail that will still take some time to clear, which we are clearing in the order in which we received it ... We apologise for the disruption and inconvenience the strikes have caused our customers'.

During October 2007 the special theme is crime and adventure books.

First Editions:

SOLD  JAMES ELLROY My Dark Places TRUE CRIME *RARE UK SIGNED*James Ellroy, My Dark Places, published Century, London 1996 – the First UK Edition.  This is specially signed with the author’s initials (as shown). Ellroy apparently signs frequently in the US, but more rarely in the UK, marking this out as particularly collectable.  The item is Very Good + in a like dustjacket:  some bumping to the bottom d/j along the spine (as shown), light scratches to the reverse and typical light tanning of page ends but still a bright, tight copy. An American cult crime novelist, here Elroy turns to non-fiction, and the mystery of his mother’s murder. On the night of June 21, 1958, Geneva Hilliker Ellroy left her home in El Monte, California. She was found strangled the next day. Her 10yr. old son James had been away with Jean’s estranged husband all weekend and was confronted with the news on his return. Jean’s murderer was never found, but her death had an enduring effect on her son who spent his teen and early adult years as a wino, petty burglar and derelict. Only later, through his obsession with crime fiction, an obsession triggered by his mother’s murder, did Ellroy begin to delve into his past. Shortly after the publication of his ground-breaking novel "White Jazz", Ellroy determined to return to Los Angeles and, with the help of veteran detective Bill Stoner, attempt to solve the 38yr. old crime. The result is one of the classics of true crime, non-fiction and autobiography.

SOLD  Colin Forbes TARGET FIVE 1^st 1973 Ex/Ex

This item is ‘First Published 1973’and part of a consignment from a private collection of crime and adventure books going to auction over the next month.  This is an excellent copy, the dust jacket having been protected by a PVC wrapper and therefore minimal rubbing (a little at base of spine, see image) and is not price-clipped.  The book has blue cloth covers with gilt titles, no inscriptions and no sunning to speak of -- a lovely bright clean copy (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below).  The item has real collector value, particularly in its condition, and this starting price is low. 

‘...Urgent you penetrate icefield for possible rendezvous. Maximum risk must be accepted. Repeat. Must be accepted.’ In the weird world where huge ice islands rotate round the North Pole, Soviet submarines still prowl beneath the icecap. Top Russian oceanographer Michael Gorov, early believer in world peace, flees from his Soviet base to hand the West secrets which would neutralize the East's potential stranglehold. His escape route is across the grimmest terrain on earth - the empty wastes of the frozen Arctic. Keith Beaumont, Polar veteran, is sent to bring Gorov in to safety. Moscow sends master polar strategist, Colonel Igor Papanin to seize him first. Exposed to traitors and worsening weather, Beaumont struggles to outwit a whole Soviet fleet to save Gorov - to help him to reach the Western base.

£12.00 / £3.99 Gavin Lyall MIDNIGHT PLUS ONE 1^st Print 1965 Ex/Ex

This item is ‘First Printed 1965’ and part of a consignment from a private collection of crime and adventure books going to auction over the next month.  This is an excellent copy, the dust jacket having been protected by a PVC wrapper and therefore minimal rubbing and is price-clipped.  The book has blue cloth covers with gilt titles and blue dye to the top page edges with marginal tanning and a discreet book seller price of 10/- inside in red ink, other than which there is no inscription or marking (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below).  The book is sought after in first edition but rarely available in such great condition.  Worth a lot more than the starting price.

Lewis Cane fought with the French Resistance during the Second World War and gained a justified reputation as a tough and resourceful man. So it's no great surprise when one of his ex-Resistance comrades, now a successful lawyer in the early 1960s in Paris employs him to escort a businessman from Brittany to Liechtenstein for a crucial meeting. There are just two problems: the man's associates don't want him to get there, and the police have a warrant out for the man's arrest on a charge of rape. For Cane, it becomes a desperate race across France, fighting against resourceful and ruthless adversaries and avoiding the forces of law and order every step of the way.

£12.00 / £3.99 Gavin Lyall  THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME  1^st Ex/VG+

This item is ‘First Published 1964’ [published date 1964] and part of a consignment from a private collection of crime and adventure books going to auction over the next month.  This is a very good +/excellent copy, the dust jacket having been protected by a PVC wrapper and therefore minimal rubbing and is not price-clipped.  The book has red cloth covers with gilt titles and has some foxing and mino sunning but no inscriptions at all (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below).  The book is the author’s second book and is sought after; the condition of the cover makes this item particularly valuable in comparison with other seller’s copies and worth a good deal more than the starting price.

Bill Cary flies surveys for mineral companies and pilots hunters around the remote forests of Lapland. Late in the summer, strange people start appearing north of the Artic. Now the action begins.

£12.00 / £3.99 Gavin Lyall SHOOTING SCRIPT  1^st Printing 1966 Ex/Ex

This item is ‘First Printed 1966’ and part of a consignment from a private collection of crime and adventure books going to auction over the next month.  This is an excellent copy, the dust jacket having been very well protected by a PVC wrapper, even to vulnerable edges, and is not price-clipped.  The book has blue cloth covers with gilt titles and has marginal tanning and no inscriptions at all (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below).  The item is hard to find in this condition and status and is worth considerably more than the starting price.

Carr is flying a film company's plane around the Caribbean. The plane is an old war-time bomber, and Carr's job soon proves to be less peaceful than he expected. Gavin Lyall is an ex-RAF bomber, has spent four years writing for "The Sunday Times" and wrote his first thriller in 1961.

Vintage HBs

The following is the system I use for grading books ~

Mint ~ New or as new, clearly unread, no tanning to pages, no creasing to spine or cover, no marks or inscriptions. This is the condition you would expect to find in a high street bookstore or on mail-order.

Excellent ~ The book appears to be in fine condition. A closer look reveals some signs of previous ownership, such as shelf-rubbing and in some cases an inscription. Yet on the whole, the book is perfect.

Very Good + ~ Less than excellent condition with no more than mild tanning or foxing to pages, minor creasing to spine or cover, possible shop sticker/pencilled price or previous owner name, but no other marks or inscriptions. This is still a tight and bright copy.

Very Good ~ The book shows clear signs of previous ownership / shelf wear. There may be some tanning / foxing to pages, slight creases to spine or cover, inscriptions from previous owner (typically their name or words of presentation).

Good + ~ The book cover and contents may have faded in colour and there may be creases, wear and inscriptions. However the book is still intact and readable and there is no loosening to spine or pages.

Good ~ This is an acceptable reading copy and there may be several of the reported problems above as associated with age and/or mishandling.

Poor ~ A book such as this is sent to auction for reasons such as the edition's rarity. This will probably not make an acceptable reading copy, and is more likely to have value in relation to its collectable status.

N.B. where a double grading is given, the latter refers to the dust-jacket, wrapper or cover

This grading guide is updated monthly to save you scrolling through archives. 

£2.99 / £2.99 Michael Biddis THE AGE OF THE MASSES 1st Ed ACADEMIC Ex History Philosophy Michael Biddis, The Age of the Masses: Ideas and Society in Europe Since 1870, Harper & Row, New York, 1978. This item is first Harper Colophon edition as stated [published date1978]. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in Excellent condition, clean and attractive art/graphic design, with no defects, with a strong spine, unread tightness, a marginal crease on spine and nice bright pages (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). The item is difficult to find, let alone in such fine condition. See back of book image for outline. 362pp + index + index of names

£5.00 / £2.99 Norberto Bobbio OLD AGE & OTHER ESSAYS New ACADEMIC Mint Philosophy Norberto Bobbio, Old Age and other essays, Polity, 2001. This item is new. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in Mint condition with no defects and unread (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). This work by one of Italy’s oldest and wisest intellectuals is a philosophical and personal meditation on ageing. Bobbio"s conclusions are often sobering, yet his investigation into memory and mortality is written with both humour and emotion. 108pp inc notes + index

£2.99 / £1.99 Umberto Eco FIVE MORAL PIECES New ACADEMIC Mint Sociology  Umberto Eco, Five Moral Pieces, Vintage, 2002. This item is new and unread. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in mint condition with no defects and no previous reading (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). This slim book covers a lot of territory in a little over a hundred pages. Its five essays address everything from warfare to faith to the media, and Umberto Eco insists that they are all linked: ‘Despite the variety of their themes, they are all ethical in nature, that is to say, they treat of what we ought to do, what we ought not to do, and what we must not do at any cost.’ Several of his views are provocative. In listing the characteristics of what he calls ‘Ur-Fascism’, for instance, Eco describes many of the beliefs held by modern-day conservatives. 111pp

£6.00 / £2.99 Noam Chomsky NEW MILITARY HUMANISM ACADEMIC Politics / International Studies Noam Chomsky, The New Military Humanism – Lessons From Kosovo, Pluto Press, 1999. This item is first published in the UK by Pluto Press [published date 1999]. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in excellent condition with no creasing, a nice bright, tight copy that doesn’t feel as if it’s been read, and with slight tanning of the page edges (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). The item is highly regarded, sought after in this edition and can sell for high figures. Analyzing the 1999 Nato bombing campaign over Kosovo, Noam Chomsky poses questions about the New Humanism, and whether it is guided by power interests or by humanitarian concern. He sets out to reveal a world where victims of human rights violations are either ‘worthy or unworthy’. 199pp + notes + index

£1.99 / £1.99 Eric Fromm THE ART OF LOVING 1985 ACADEMIC Ex Psychology  Eric Fromm, The Art of Loving, Mandala, 1985. This item is first published by Mandala [published date 1985]. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in very good + / excellent condition, a nice tight and bright copy with no creasing to the spine or apparent reading, a small crease to the top right and slight tanning to page edges (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). Since it was first published " The Art of Loving" has become a classic, inspiring thousands of people with its clarity and power. Erich Fromm, the renowned psychoanalyst, sees love as the ultimate need and desire of all human beings. In this book, he discusses every aspect of the subject: romantic love, the love of parents for children, brotherly love, erotic love, self-love and the love of God or the divine. He looks at the theory of love as it appears throughout the cultures of the world and at the practice, how we show or fail to show love to one another. Love is an art, which we need to develop and practice in order to find true commitment. We need to find it, individually and as a society as a whole. Erich Fromm is one of the major figures in the field of psychoanalysis. He devoted himself to consultant psychology and theoretical investigation for many years. He was the author of numerous books, including " Fear of Freedom" and "Psychoanalysis and Zen", before his death in 1980 109pp

SOLD Natalie Angier WOMAN Intimate Geography ACADEMIC vg+ Women’s Studies Natalie Angier, Woman – An Intimate Geography, Virago Press, 1999. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in very good + condition, a nice tight and bright copy with a slight crease to the spine and a couple of dog-eared pages, otherwise excellent (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). This Book Is a Celebration Of The Female Body, - Its Anatomy, Its Chemistry, Its Evolution And Its Laughter. It Is A Book That We Traditionally Associate With The Image Of A Woman, The Egg, The Breast, The Blood, The Almighty Clitoris - And Things We Don"t - Movement, Strength, Aggression And Fury. It Is A Book About Rapture, A Rapture Grounded Firmly In The Flesh, The Beauties Of The Body, Because The Female Body Deserves Dionysian Respect. A Highly Recommended Book. The Author Is A Winner Of The Pulitzer Prize 398pp inc references + index

£5.00 / £2.99 Lawrence Davis THEORY OF ACTION 1979 ACADEMIC vg Philosophy  Lawrence H Davis, Theory of Action, Prentice-Hall, 1979. This item is first edition 1979, as per print run (see image) and is part of Prentice-Hall Foundations of Philosophy Series. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in very good condition with nice bright pages and tight spine. The book is ex-Libris of University of Durham, and there is a stamp on the title page but no other library marks or stickers. There is also some student annotation in pencil, as well as a shopkeeper’s pencilled price of £9.55. The cover is bright, and there is some wear to edges esp to bottom (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). Hard to find and can sell for £40.00 +. For outline, see back of book image. 152pp inc further reading + index

£6.00 / £3.99 Alain De Botton STATUS ANXIETY 1st Ed 2004 ACADEMIC Ex/Ex Philosophy HB Alain De Botton, Status Anxiety, Hamish Hamilton, 2004. This item is first edition, first published [published date 2004] with a run line of 1. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in excellent condition – with an excellent dust-jacket - a tight bright copy with no marks, and some bumping to corners (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). The item can reach high figures in this status and condition. We all worry about what others think of us. We all long to succeed and fear failure. We all suffer to a greater or lesser degree, usually privately and with embarrassment from status anxiety. For the first time, Alain de Botton gives a name to this universal condition and sets out to investigate both its origins and possible solutions. He looks at history, philosophy, economics, art and politics and reveals the many ingenious ways that great minds have overcome their worries. The result is a book that is not only entertaining and thought-provoking but genuinely wise and helpful as well. 314 pp inc index + illustrations throughout

£3.50 / £2.50 Tompkins / Bird SECRET LIFE OF PLANTS 1991ACADEMIC vg+ Philosophy Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird, The Secret Life of Plants, Arkana, 1991. This item is the Arkana edition with the cover illustration by David Urmston. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in very good + condition with tight spine, bright pages with lightly tanned edges and some slight creasing to corners of cover but not to spine (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). The world of plants and its relation to mankind as revealed by the latest scientific discoveries. "Plenty of hard facts and astounding scientific and practical lore."-- "Newsweek" "Plenty of hard facts and astounding scientific and practical lore." "--Newsweek" "Once in a while you find a book that stuns you. Its scope leaves you breathless. This is such a book."--John White, "San Francisco Chronicle" "This fascinating book roams...over that marvelous no man's land of mystical glimmerings into the nature of science and life itself."--Henry Mitchell, "Washington Post Book World" 340pp inc bibliography + ads

£1.99 / £1.99 Otto Rank TRUTH AND REALITY Norton ACADEMIC Ex Psychology  Otto Rank, Truth and Reality, W.W. Norton, 1978. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in excellent condition -- a nice tight, bright copy which looks as new except for a small inscription on title page (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). Rank's development of will psychology led him to a philosophy of the psychological, outlined in Truth and Reality. Here he explores the psychological determinants of the relationship of inner world to outer reality. Anticipating one of the central findings of post-Freudian psychiatry, he argues that "truth" is irrelevant to the work of therapy. He contrasts the negative externalization of will, which leads to denial and guilt, with the creative power of will, tracing this conflict in both the individual and the history of human society. 97pp + list of published works

£1.99 / £1.99 Matthew Arnold CULTURE & ANARCHY ACADEMIC 1969 *vg* Sociology / literary crit Matthew Arnold, Culture & Anarchy, Cambridge University Press, 1969. This item is a Cambridge College ex-libris reprint, with all the library stamps, stickers still in place with the exception of the ones on the cover. The cover features the wonderful graphic design of Michael Harvey. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in very good condition with bright pages and reading creases to spine, lots of shelf rubbing, marks on the cover (as shown) (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). 'The men of culture are the true apostles of equality.' Matthew Arnold's famous series of essays, which were first published in book form under the title Culture and Anarchy in 1869, debate important questions about the nature of culture and society that are as relevant now as they have ever been. Arnold seeks to find out 'what culture really is, what good it can do, what is our own special need of it' in an age of rapid social change and increasing mechanization. He contrasts culture, 'the study of perfection', with anarchy, the mood of unrest and uncertainty that pervaded mid-Victorian England. How can individuals be educated, not indoctrinated, and what is the role of the state in disseminating 'sweetness and light'? 241pp + bibliography + notes

£2.50 / £1.99 Theodore Zeldin INTIMATE HISTORY HUMANITY ACADEMIC Ex Philosophy Theodore Zeldin, An Intimate History of Humanity, Minerva, 1995. This item is the paperback edition. From a private collection of academic books going to auction currently (for other academic titles, click on the window below), this book is in excelent condition with bright pages, tight, crease-free and unread spine (as new) with slight edge wear in places and tanning to page edges (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). The author of "The French", "Happiness" and "A History of French Passions" writes about the history of human feelings, habits, emotions and perceptions across time. From Vikings and Aztecs to contemporary hypochondriacs, from ancient Arab writings to American theories of business management, Zeldin looks at the dilemmas of ordinary life, exploring what makes us most human - the intimate experience of men and women through the ages. 488pp inc index RRP 9.99

Many more academic books available including social theory, sociology; gender studies; psychology and philosophy as well as visual culture and theory books in media studies; art; graphic design and fashion.

£2.99 / £1.99 Saul Bellow A THEFT Vintage Penguin 1989 Pb VG+ This item is an early Penguin [published date 1989, with a run 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3. This is a very good + copy, with bright cover artwork in an edition that features the cover design by Neil Stuart, illustration by Amy Hill. The pages have slightly tanned, but the text is large and bold on this collectable edition. There is very slight fade to spine, which is cease-free and tight. Very small crease to front (at bottom right, see image) and back (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). The item can be hard to find in early status and very good condition and is regarded highly. Many years ago, Ted gave Clara an emerald ring that she has cherished as a symbol of her passion for him. The ring is lost and after many years - eventually - discovered. A second time it disappears. As she attempts to recover the precious ring, Clara emerges as a genuine heroine, a woman of great depth and unsuspected capacities of wisdom and love. A Theft is witty and tender, and Bellow is as vivid and as sharp as ever. 

£2.99 / £1.99 Tracy Chevalier BURNING BRIGHT New Mint 2007 Ex This item is new, just published [published date 2007] with a run line 1. This is a mint copy, with one page slightly dog-eared at the top(accident in transport) and otherwise as new (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). The item is new and retails for £11.99. An historical novel set in London in 1792, where the Kellaways have moved from familiar rural Dorset to the tumult of a cramped, unforgiving city and against the backdrop of the increasingly bloody French Revolution. The youngest boy Jem and streetwise Londoner Maggie Butterfield form a surprising bond and their friendship takes a dramatic turn when they become entangled in the life of their neighbour, the printer, poet and radical, William Blake. He is a guiding spirit as Jem and Maggie navigate the unpredictable, exhilarating passage from innocence to experience, and their journey influences one of Blake’s most entrancing works. 

£0.99 / £1.99 David Hughes THE PORK BUTCHER / SOUVENIR Vintage VG+ This item is published by Penguin books in [published date] 1985. This is a very good + copy, with bright art cover -- being the film tie-on edition, filmed as Souvenir starring Christopher Plummer -- with some slight tanning to page ends, a crease-free and tight spine with however a horizontal midway mark (see image) and small creases to corners for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). This item is out-of-print. Ernst Kestner, a pork butcher in Lubeck, has guarded a secret so terrible that for 40 years he has been reliving it. Now, under the threat of death, he closes his shop and drives to France for the first time since the war, to confront those memories and settle accounts. ‘An unforgettable experience, a fable which touches many unexpected nerves’ Anthony Thwaite, The Observer.

SOLD Chuck Palahniuk FUGITIVES AND REFUGEES Vintage 2004 Ex This is an excellent copy, a nice tight, bright one, with no creases anywhere including to spine and which gives the impression of no reading at all (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). The item is getting hard to find, as Palahniuk fans belatedly turn to it to find more on the author. In the closest thing he may ever write to an autobiography, Chuck Palahniuk provides answers to all these questions and more as he takes you through the streets, sewers and local haunts of Portland, Oregon. According to Katherine Dunn, author of the cult classic "Geek Love", Portland is the home of America's 'fugitives and refugees.' Get to know these folks, the "most cracked of the crackpots,' as Palahniuk calls them, and come along with him on an adventure through the parts of Portland you might not otherwise actually believe actually exist. No other travel guide will give you this kind of access to "a little history, a little legend, and a lot of friendly sincere, fascinating people who maybe should've kept their mouths shut." Here are strange personal museums, wierd annual events and ghost stories. Tour the tunnels under downtown Portland. Visit swingers' sex clubs, gay and straight. See Frances Gabe's famous 1940's Self-cleaning house. Look into strange local customs like the I-Tit-a-Rod Race and the Santa rampage. Learn how to talk like a local in a quick vocabulary lesson. Get to know, I mean really get to know, the animals at the Portland Zoo. Oh, the list goes on and on.

SOLD Chuck Palahniuk FIGHT CLUB Vintage 2003 VG+  This is the edition with raised (embossed) artwork on the cover. This is a very good + copy, a tight copy but with a very feint crease to spine (hard to detect and does not diminish the artwork), slight creasing / rubbing to bottom. Nice bright artwork (for an explanation on the grading of this book, see below). Really attractive edition which, er, beats the competition into a pulp (poly-humour anyone?). Every weekend, in basements and parking lots across the country, young men with good white-collar jobs and absent fathers take off their shoes and shirts and fight each other barehanded for as long as they have to. Then they go back to those jobs with blackened eyes and loosened teeth and the sense that they can handle anything. Fight Club is the invention of Tyler Durden, projectionist, waiter and dark, anarchic genius. And it's only the beginning of his plans for revenge on a world where cancer support groups have the corner on human warmth.

Other:

Peter Høeg BORDERLINES Large Format Harvill '95 **Ex**

Saul Bellow A THEFT Vintage Penguin 1989 Pb *VG++*

Jean Genet THE THIEF'S JOURNAL Vintage Penguin Ed 71 Ex

Abdulrazak Gurnah BY THE SEA 1st pb edition 2002 *Ex*

Peter Ustinov THE FRONTIERS OF THE SEA Pan 1st 1966 VG+

Kate Grenville THE IDEA OF PERFECTION Orange Prize *Ex*

Alexander Solzhenitsyn IVAN DENISOVICH Vintage Ed 71 Ex

Tim Winton SHALLOWS Picador pb edition 1991 VG+

Elisabeth Hyde THE ABORTIONIST'S DAUGHTER **Ex**

Irvine Welsh MARABOU STORK NIGHTMARES **Ex**

Hanif Kureishi INTIMACY Faber 1999 **Ex**

David Hughes THE PORK BUTCHER / SOUVENIR Vintage *VG+*

Roddy Doyle A STAR CALLED HENRY *near Mint* **Ex**

Marina Lewycka SHORT HISTORY TRACTORS UKRAINIAN Nr Mint

Bella Pollen DAYDREAM GIRL **Ex**