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CATCH-22
by Heller, Joseph
- Used
- Signed
- first
- Condition
- Near fine in near fine jacket.
- Seller
-
Silver Spring, Maryland, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Simon and Schuster, 1961. First printing. Near fine in near fine jacket.. Beautifully inscribed first edition of this dark satire on the patriotic narrative of American triumph in World War II, with a brief accompanying letter from Heller. A supreme example of black comedy in 20th-century war fiction, CATCH-22 emphasizes the existential disillusionment of soldiers witnessing their companion's deaths: graveyard humor taken to the same extremes as warfare. CATCH-22 has gone on to become a modern classic, familiar even to those who haven't read it through its influence on our linguistic culture: "Many consider the novel to be the definitive statement of the modern antiwar position. The phrase 'Catch-22', symbolizing the absurdity of all institutional logic, has become a permanent part of our language" (NYPL). A wonderful example in exceptional condition, exhibiting little of the usual fading to the red of the jacket, with a warm and revealing inscription. Rare thus. 8.25'' x 5.25''. Original full blue cloth, spine lettered in white. In original unclipped ($5.95) blue and red pictorial dust jacket designed by Paul Bacon, with author photo by Seymour Linden on rear panel. Red topstain, fore-edge machine deckle. 443, [1] pages. Inscribed by Heller on the front endpaper: "To Patrick, Christopher, / Celia, / + / Greg Ross. / It is a pleasure / indeed to inscribe / this first edition / of one of my / favorite novels -- still [underlined] / after 28 years. / Joseph Heller / Feb, 1990 / E. Hampton, N.Y." Brief ALS from Heller on his letterhead and with original mailing envelope also included to same recipients, agreeing to sign book. Touch of fading to spine of jacket, trace wear here and there - close inspection only. Book has bookplate to front pastedown. Some very faint wear to cloth. Else remarkably bright, clean, and sharp. Letter fine. Both book and letter housed in blue custom archival clamshell case, with display window for letter built-in to lid.
Synopsis
Catch-22 is Joseph Heller’s first novel and his most acclaimed work. Set during World War II, the novel uses a distinctive non-chronological third-person omniscient narration, mainly focusing on the life of Captain John Yossarian, a U.S. Army Air Forces B-25 bombardier. Occasionally, the narrator also shows us how other characters, such as the chaplain or Hungry Joe, experience the world around them. As the novel’s events are described from the different points of view through separate out-of-sequence storylines, the timeline of Catch-22 develops along with the plot. The novel's title refers to a plot device that is repeatedly invoked in the story. Catch-22 starts as a set of paradoxical requirements whereby airmen mentally unfit to fly did not have to, but could not actually be excused. By the end of the novel, the phrase is invoked as the explanation for many unreasonable restrictions. “Catch-22” has since entered the English language and can be understood as an unsolvable logic puzzle, a difficult situation from which there is no escape. Upon publication, the book was not a best seller in the United States. It was merely a cult favorite until the publication of the paperback edition in 1962, which set record sales — most likely benefitting from a national debate about the pointlessness of the Vietnam War. Catch-22 has since been ranked as one of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century by the Modern Library, one of the 20th century's top 100 novels by the Radcliffe Publishing Course, and one of the 100 greatest novels of all time by The Observer.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Type Punch Matrix
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 46717
- Title
- CATCH-22
- Author
- Heller, Joseph
- Book Condition
- Used - Near fine in near fine jacket.
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First printing
- Publisher
- Simon and Schuster
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 1961
- Keywords
- WWII,20th century,Post-WWII,1960s
Terms of Sale
Type Punch Matrix
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About the Seller
Type Punch Matrix
Biblio member since 2020
Silver Spring, Maryland
About Type Punch Matrix
Type Punch Matrix is a rare book firm founded by Rebecca Romney and Brian Cassidy. TPM is a member firm of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America and upholds their Code of Ethics.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Bookplate
- Highly sought after by some collectors, a book plate is an inscribed or decorative device that identifies the owner, or former...
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Inscribed
- When a book is described as being inscribed, it indicates that a short note written by the author or a previous owner has been...
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