[Albany Cycle, comprising] Legs; Billy Phelan's Greatest Game; [and] Ironweed by KENNEDY, William - 1983

New York: Coward, McCann & Geoghegan / Viking Press [from 1975], 1983. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. Three First Printings, all in highly collectible condition. 8vo; 317, [1]; [12], 282; [12], 227, [1]pp. Legs (Coward, McCann & Geoghegan, 1975): Publisher's cream paper-covered boards, black cloth spine stamped in gold, decorative end papers; illustrated dust jacket priced $8.95. Fine and apparently unread with one bumped tip; about Fine jacket (spine panel very lightly rubbed and creased). Billy Phelan (Viking Press, 1978): Publisher's grey cloth, spine stamped in silver; illustrated dust jacket priced $9.95. Fine and unread, very tightly bound; better than Near Fine jacket (spine panel lightly rubbed, back panel with several creases and short closed tears). Ironweed (Viking Press, 1983): First State, with "perceivced" for perceived on page 205, line 22; First Issue jacket with blurb from Saul Bellow (Kennedy's mentor) on front panel and no author's photo. Publisher's grey cloth spine lettered in silver, black paper-covered boards; illustrated dust jacket priced $14.75. Fine and unread, marred only by faint dust-spotting to fore- and top edges; Fine, bright, unfaded jacket. Modern Library 100, 92. The Albany Cycle's crowning achievement, following Legs and Billy Phelan's Greatest Game, is Ironweed, awarded both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction and generally acknowledged as Kennedy's masterpiece. "Inevitable comparisons to James Joyce and his delineations of his native Dublin abound in discussions of Kennedy's work, and the American author's selective use of stream of consciousness and stylistic experimentation enhance the comparisons." (Literary Encyclopedia) N. B. With few exceptions (always identified), we only stock books in exceptional condition, with dust jackets carefully preserved in archival, removable mylar sleeves. All orders are packaged with care and posted promptly. Satisfaction guaranteed. (Fine Editions Ltd is a member of the Independent Online Booksellers Association, and we subscribe to its codes of ethics.).