BABE RUTH'S OWN BOOK OF BASEBALL by George Herman Ruth G.P. Putnam's Sons, (Knickerbocker Press), New York/London, 1928 First Edition (so stated) 301 pp. ~ Dimensions: 5 & 1/2" x 8" AN INDISPENSABLE BASEBALL MEMOIR - SCARCE IN THIS CONDITION A handsome copy of the scarce stated first edition of Babe Ruth's autobiographical book of baseball strategy and tactics. The gilt titles and crossed bats decoration on the front board are bright and unrubbed. The spine is slightly rippled and sunned yet its titles are clearly legible. The royal blue cloth covers are clean and bright with just a bit of rubbing to the corner tips. The binding is very firm and tight with no endpaper gutter cracks or splits. All is intact and complete with all 31 photographs present. The interior is fresh and crisp though with a slight crease to the bottom inner edge of some pages. There are no tears or dogears, no previous owner's name, no bookplate, no writing or marking whatsoever. The rear affixed endpaper bears a tiny label from the original bookseller (J.W. Robinson Co. of Los Angeles) with the original price ($2.50) still attached. CONDITION: VERY GOOD PRICE: US$ 850.00

THE GREAT TAOS BANK ROBBERY AND OTHER INDIAN COUNTRY AFFAIRS by Tony Hillerman Flat-signed by the author on the half-title page University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, 1973 First State, First Printing, First Edition (so stated) 147 pp. ~ Dimensions: 5 & 1/8" x 8 & 3/8" A VERY RARE flat-signed first state of the first printing of the first edition A true first printing with the very scarce first state dust jacket bearing the single drawing of Shiprock (rather than two photos) on the rear panel In this extraordinary collection, Tony Hillerman presents the Southwest as only he can, choosing remarkable true tales from his personal archives of New Mexico lore. From the amusing title story of the holdup that didn't happen, to the riveting account of scientists tracking the Black Death through the arroyos, to the ironic account of how a black cowboy's common-sense intelligence destroyed the dogma of the Smithsonian Institution, master storyteller Tony Hillerman reveals the present and timeless past of one of America's most beautiful and haunting regions. VOLUME CONDITION: NEAR-FINE DUST JACKET CONDITION: VERY GOOD PRICE: US$ 200.00 SOLD!

TWO IN VAGABONDIA ~ An Interlude by Mary Lyle McClure and Mary Louise Sims Inscribed and signed by Mary Lyle McClure on the front free endpaper Illustrated with full-page photographic plates Meador Publishing Co., Boston, 1932 FIRST PRINTING, FIRST EDITION 198 pp. ~ Dimensions: 5 & 3/4" x 8 & 1/8" A scarce and sought-after travelogue/memoir - rarely found in this excellent condition, signed by Mary Lyle McClure, and with an unclipped dust jacket. The remarkable experiences of two American girls travelling through Germany in the first decade of the 20th century. Even more remarkable a century later is the experience of reading of a world now forever gone - of characters, institutions, buildings, and beliefs which the ravages of two World Wars would destroy. The charm and innocence of this book (and of its authors) has only been enhanced - heartbreakingly so - by history. VOLUME CONDITION: NEAR-FINE DUST JACKET CONDITION: VERY GOOD PRICE: US$ 350.00

VATHEK by William Beckford Illustrated by Mahlon Blaine The John Day Company, New York, 1928 First printing, First Edition thus 229 pp. ~ Dimensions: 6 & 1/4" x 9 & 1/2" VATHEK - A gothic feast of decadent luxury, grotesque evil, and arcane wisdom Written in 1782 by the legendary hedonist William Beckford, Vathek was the first Oriental-Gothic horror novel in English literature. It tells the story of Vathek, the debauched and pleasure-seeking ninth Caliph of the Abassides. Vathek is a classic tale of greed and lust for power containing magic, trickery, and betrayal all culminating in an age-old showdown between good and evil. William Beckford (1760-1844), the "Fool of Fonthill," was the son of a Lord Mayor of London, fluent in seven languages and schooled in philosophy and law. He is perhaps best remembered as the builder of the Gothic monstrosity Fonthill Abbey and also for his involvement in a number of sexual scandals around Europe. MAHLON BLAINE - The enigmatic fantasy artist who purposefully veiled his life in mystery Like Aubrey Beardsley, to whom he is sometimes compared, Mahlon Blaine gravitated to the edges of "respectable" literature. Blaine illustrated over eighty major books, winning the Grolier award for his artwork in Beckford's Vathek. CONDITION: NEAR-FINE PRICE: US$ 50.00 SOLD!

LOLA BLANCA Y AZULEJO DE PUEBLA Texto, fotografias y dibujos de Enrique A. Cervantes (Text, photographs, and drawings by Enrique A. Cervantes) IN TWO VOLUMES: Tomo Primero (Volume I): Pre-colonial to 16th century history, overview of techniques, makers' marks, ceramic composition, etc. Tomo Segundo (Volume II): 17th to 20th century history, architecture, design, techniques, etc. Privately printed in Spanish in a limited and numbered edition Mexico, 1939 ~ First edition, First printing Dos mil ejemplares numerados - 629 (2000 numbered copies - this copy is 629) Vol. I: 303 pp. + index and prelim. / Volume II: 332 pp. + index Dimensions of each volume: 8 & 5/8" x 11 & 1/4" Enrique A. Cervantes' work is the most comprehensive and detailed study of over four centuries of Mexican earthenware and ceramics ever written. Almost never found outside libraries and private collections, these volumes in the Walden Pond Rare Book Room are perhaps the last available copies in pristine condition and in their original glassine jackets as first issued. Hundreds of drawings and photographs of tile design, architectural exteriors and interiors, etc. Scores of full-page tipped-in plates - most in bright color - of statuary, ceramic vases, pitchers, plates and tiles. The ceramic ware examined by Cervantes is known in Mexico today as "talavera poblana", named after the colonial ceramic center of Puebla de los Angeles (commonly known as Puebla). CONDITION: FINE PRICE: US$ 400.00 SOLD!