Search Results: Beat / Counterculture / Controversial from Singularity Rare & Fine

Davis, CA: Putah Creek Press, 1974. First Edition . String Tied Wraps. Near Fine. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Friedman, Diana. Davis, CA: Putah Creek Press, 1974. First Edition, number 57 of 175, signed by the author and the illustrator. Octavo, 4 pp. (one sheet folded), string tied brown wraps. Some lightening of the brown of the covers at the top and left margins, else fine. Poet W.H. Auden, who "Dazzled and dazzling all the ideas and forms" and who presumably lit the way for American verse to become thus liberated and free of spirit, is honored by this short Shapiro poem and graced by a Diana Friedman illustration, a stylized portrait of Auden. Signed by both author and illustrator Diana Friedman. A piece of American literary history. L-45n

Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2007. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. New/New. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2007. First Edition and First Printing. Octavo, pictorial jacket, 263 pp. New book in New jacket; immaculate and pristine, laid flat and sealed since acquisition. Native Belgian and scholar Tom Goyens lays out, through his detailed but entertaining study of German immigrant anarchists in New York City from 1880 to 1914, something most of us automatically tend to miss - or, at least, dismiss : that revolution and anarchy are human enterprises, undertaken by real people who want the same things all real people do. L69

Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2007. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. As New/As New. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2007. First Edition and First Printing. Signed, and inscribed without personalization, by author Tom Goyens on the half-title. See scan of that. Octavo, pictorial jacket, 263 pp. An As New book in an As New jacket; immaculate and pristine, laid flat and sealed since acquisition. Native Belgian and scholar Tom Goyens lays out, through his detailed but entertaining study of German immigrant anarchists in New York City from 1880 to 1914, something most of us automatically tend to miss - or, at least, dismiss : that revolution and anarchy are human enterprises, undertaken by real people who want the same things all real people do. L45n

Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Certain Days Collective, 2017. Soft cover. New. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. New; see scans and description. Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Certain Days Collective, 2017. The Certain Days: The 2017 Freedom for Political Prisoners Calendar. Quarto, illustrated top-staple-bound wraps, 42 pp. plus covers, which includes 2pp each for all months, as well as plenty of current and historical text and photographs. New; micro-touching at edges (see scans), but this is as new. An instrument for speaking out against the political imprisonment of some persons identified as having been thus treated by the members of the collective and supporters. Rather scarce for a new publication. See all scans. Ships in a new, study, protective box - not a bag. LPR28

Boston: Richard G. Badger, 1915. 1st Edition . Hardcover. Good Plus. 12mo - over 6¾ - 7¾" tall. Boston: Richard G. Badger, 1915. First Edition. Signed and inscribed, with some tongue-in-cheek it would appear, by author Scarlet on the flyleaf to journalist/social activist John Reed, with whom he was apparently friends. Yes, that's the John Reed of the Warren Beatty film "REDS", and the one known more famously in his own time for his activist history of the October 1917 Russian Revolution, "Ten Days That Shook the World", and his avid participation in Max Eastman's controversial socialist publication, The Masses. Maybe his association with...Patrick Scarlet?...is a clue to what they hey this book is all about. 12mo, red cloth boards with gilt imprinting, 133 pp. Good plus; a fairly serious spine abrasion (see scan) and a variety of soil and wear spots. Firmly bound, however. A completely baffling little book. An enigma wrapped in a ...etc. Ostensibly… Read More

Oakland, CA: Gimme Action, 2018. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Soft cover. New. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Liz Suburbia. New, and pristine. See scans and description. Oakland, CA: Gimme Action, 2018. A First Printing example of 'Thee Collected Cyanide Milkshake', the collected publication of all 8 issues of Liz Suburbia's unique 'Cyanide Milkshake' contemporary counter-culture comic book series through the publication date of this aggregation, that being November of 2018. Octavo, illustrated perfect-bound glossy wraps, 176 pp. New, and flawless. See all scans. Art, dialog and occasional text by Liz Suburbia. Interior art in black and white. Rather scarce example of a one-of-a-kind series, presumably to be continued by Suburbia. Ships in a new, sturdy, protective box, of course - not a bag. LT17

New York: Evergreen Review, 1962. First Edition . Wraps. Good. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Good, primarily due to clipped corner. See scans and description. New York: Evergreen Review, 1962. March-April, 1962 Issue. Octavo, 125 pp. + 3 pp. Illustrated perfect bound wraps. Corner clipped, thus Good, otherwise VG or better cover; contents Fine, include original attached subscription card at page 96. Notable issue which includes Donovan Bess' memorable feature article in which he starkly recounted Henry Miller's obscenity trial for Tropic of Cancer. Photo of Miller in the courtroom graces the cover of this classic issue. Further in are Gregory Corso's short play Standing on a Street Corner, with drawings by Corso as well, and early pieces by Robert Coover, Li Yu and a number of others. One of the Evergreen Review's most memorable issues. Ships in a new, sturdy, protective box - not a bag. L21

Chicago: Daily Workers Society, 1925. 1st Edition . Soft cover. Very Good. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. Chicago: Daily Workers Society, 1925. Political/Historical Ephemera; the rear cover, only, from the March, 1925 issue (Volume IV, No. 5) of the Workers Monthly magazine, published out of Chicago by the Daily Workers Society at that time. Quarto in size, Very Good in condition, small chips around the perimeter and a small light stain near one lower corner, which shows on both sides. Certainly frame-able, as an interesting political and historical wall piece. See scans. The inside of this rear cover bears the headline "Fight the Capitalist Prosecutors !" and seeks donations to the Labor Defense Council in Chicago, at that time engaged in defending (from deportation, by then) C.E. Ruthenberg and more than 30 other participants in the 1922 "Bridgman Convention" and its ensuing legal wranglings. The outside back cover advertises titles by The Little Red Library, a series… Read More

San Francisco: Silver Sprocket, 2021. Soft cover. New. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. New, and pristine. 'Good Boy! America's Best Selling Comics Magazine ! Read Comics or Go to Hell!' (Good Boy Magazine #1, Summer, 2021). San Francisco: Silver Sprocket, 2021. Small quarto (10" tall"), illustrated perfect-bound wraps, 126 pp. Flawless; collectible. Multiple authors/ artists, Edited by Michael Sweater& Benji Nate. Diverse comic strips, mostly in color. Another offbeat, imaginative semi-counterculture production of Silver Sprocket, a Haight Street-based contemporary art consortium. As a self-defined periodical - a magazine - edition and printing are not stated, but this can be safely assumed to be the equivalent of a 1st / 1st. Originality throughout. Ships in a sturdy box, of course. L81

New York: New Directions Publishing Corporation, 1960. Soft cover. Near Fine. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Near Fine. "HER", by Lawrence Ferlinghetti, signed and inscribed. New York: New Directions Publishing Corporation, 1960. Later printing. Octavo, illustrated wraps, 157 pp. Near Fine; scant signed of handling, never read. Close to Fine. Inscribed "for Gini - Ferlinghetti" on the title page. Per the rear blurb: "A surreal semi-autobiographical blackbook record of a semi-mad period of my life, in that mindless, timeless state most romantics pass through, confusing flesh Madonna with spiritual ones." Superior condition. Ships in stout protection, of course. L44

Chicago / New York: Playboy Press, 1976. First Edition . Cloth-backed Paper Boards. Near Fine/Very Good Minus. Octavo. Chicago: Playboy Press [distributed by Simon & Schuster, New York], 1976. First Edition, stated. Presentation copy, signed and inscribed by co-author Dana Benenson. Octavo, 309 pp. Cream boards with red cloth spine, pictorial dust jacket by Lawrence Ratzkin. Book itself is Near Fine condition, with no specific flaws to point out. Jacket is VG - lightly chipped at top, general rubbing elsewhere. Signed and inscribed by co-author Dana Benenson to Rich G_________, "my first and most successful benefactor!". The bio of Honey Bruce - a classic American femme fatale who overcame a tough youth in which she was first a convict, then Miami's hottest stripper, Honey draws a picture of a great man (legendary comedian Lenny Bruce) smitten by an instinctively magnetic woman who is - sort of - capable of loving him, but not to the extent he loves her. L-45n

New York: La Nouvelle Justine, 2002. No Binding. Good. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. unattributed. Good to Very Good condition. La Nouvelle Justine (New York City BDSM-Themed Restaurant) Menu, circa 2002. Octavo, heavy paper, four pages including outside covers, front cover illustrated, black and white. Folded twice, no other notable damage. See scans a short but sweet piece of ephemera from the apparently now permanently closed BDSM themed restaurant, La Nouvelle Justine, which was named for the De Sade book. Scarce now, to say the least. Genre collectible. Lsmph2

New York: The Liberator Publishing Company, 1919. First Edition . Single Issue Magazine. Good. Quarto. New York: The Liberator Publishing Company, 1919. First Edition of the February, 1919 issue. Quarto, 49 numbered pages. Covers and first adjacent pages loose; age-toned throughout. Good plus. Boardman Robinson cover, a portrait of Abraham Lincoln (an a propos Lincoln quote lies within as well); contributions by Stuart Davis, Max Eastman, Howard Brubaker, William Bross Lloyd, Upton Sinclair, Jean Sterling, Louis Untermeyer, Charles W. Wood, Lydia Gibson, Art Young, Inez Haynes Irwin, Jean Starr Untermeyer, Alexander Trachtenberg, and others. The Liberator was a famed - to a degree, even at the time - and seminal creation of Max Eastman and his sister Crystal Eastman intended to pick up the flag from The Masses, which had been shut down by the U.S. Government on the basis of postal regulations. A socialist publication like The Masses, The Liberator had, in addition to ideological commentary,… Read More

Colchester - Essex, UK: MU Publishing Ltd, 2020. Limited Edition . Soft cover. New. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. New and pristine. See scans and description. MÜ Magazine Iissue 1 / Winter 2020 - 2021 / First and Limited Edition (#212 of 500). Colchester - Essex, UK: MU Publishing Ltd, 2020. "An Occasional Journal of Art, Poetry, Music, Opinon, Discussion, Debate, and Dissent".Quarto, illustrated prefect-bound wraps, 66 pp. Jarvis Cocker; Big Joanie; Alan Moore; Mark Stewart; Vivien Goldman; Penny Rimbaud; Audry Grant; Tom Hodgkinson; Helaine Blumenfeld; Lynette Yiadom-Boakye; Craig Sams; Young Visionaries. Hard to find counterculture, in the numbered first 500, and highest condition. Ships in a stout new box, of course; not a bag. LT4

New York: The Masses Publishing Company, 1917. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Soft cover. Fair. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. Arthur B. Davies; K.R. Chamberlain; Boardman Robinson; Arthur Young; Maurice Sterne; Cornelia Barns . New York: The Masses Publishing Company, 1917. The April, 1917 issue (Volume IX, Number 6, whole number 70). Quarto, illustrated stapled wraps, 42 pp.; this is a scarce survivor of the smaller-format issues (i.e., no longer folio size) which were issued late in the life The Masses. 1917 was the last year of publication, and by the time of this issue, there were only months left. Just Fair, due to the absence of the front cover and the separation of the first page from the remaining textblock with rear cover - all of which is itself in Very Good condition, by any periodical standard. As the very inexpensively-produced budget-of-the-heart icon The Masses was, it no doubt deserves its own grading standard, but there is none such. Some small scale chipping on page 3 and rear… Read More

New York: The Masses Publishing Company, 1915. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Soft cover. Very Good. Folio - over 12 - 15" tall. Frank Walts, John Sloan, Art Young, Glenn O. Coleman, Stuart Davis, Cornelia Barns, Randall Davey, George Bellows, Maurice Becker, A. Londoner, Elias Goldberg, Eugene Higgins . New York: The Masses Publishing Company, 1915. The June, 1915 issue (Volume VI, Number 9, whole number 49). Large Folio, illustrated stapled wraps, 27 pp. Very Good by any periodical standard; as the very inexpensively-produced budget-of-the-heart icon The Masses was, this example is certainly better than very good, by its own standard. Light crease the vertical length of cover; small nicks at front cover perimeter; larger chip at rear cover, lower left; modest toning to the remarkably healthy contents. See scans. Certainly one of the most seminal socio-political American publications of the last 200 years, The Masses was a collection of ideological art, opinion and reporting - usually… Read More

Berkeley, CA: CelestialArts / Utopia Grokware, 1996. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Soft cover. Very Good. Berkeley, CA: CelestialArts / Utopia Grokware, 1996. First Edition and First Printing (see scan). Quarto, wraps, unpaginated. This interesting book was produced by lightly adhering the textblock into its illustrated wraps cover, which have blurbed and priced flaps like a dustjacket, but are of heavy stock, like a cover. Basically, displaying an uncertainty (perhaps intentional) regarding whether the cover was to be that, or a jacket. The adhesion tended to come loose, as it has in this case, such that the textblock sits within the jacket-like covers, unattached - which perhaps it should have in the first place. That plus a modest amount of peripheral wear to the covers/jacket keep this first printing copy out of what would otherwise be Near Fine condition. Contents are fine. A collection of "digital apparitions" - computer-produced psychedelic graphics by "prophetic rocker Todd… Read More

Berkeley, CA: Third Woman Press, 1987. 1st Edition . Soft cover. As New. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Berkeley, CA: Third Woman Press, 1990 (1987). Second printing of the true first 1987 edition. As New; pristine. Signed and inscribed by Cisneros on the dedication page to much-decorated poet M.L. Liebler, inscription in Spanish, in Detroit (Liebler's stompin' grounds), on July 12, 1990. Since this second printing was officially copyrighted in October of 1990, this copy was presumably, then, from an advance allotment of examples in her possession. Two culturally luminous poets/authors on that page. Her third title, after Bad Boys (1980) and The House on Mango Street (1984), the second a collection of short stories. This is a collection of trenchant poems. Octavo, wraps, 93 pp. As New. Sharp. L38n

no information: uncredited, 2017. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Soft cover. As New. Elephant Folio - over 15 - 23" tall. As New, with the inevitable small amount of age-toning. See scan and description. (address unstated) (publisher uncredited) (editor uncredited), 2017. The March, 2016 issue of the Patriot, a small, apparently upstate-New York based monthly newspaper, a right wing- extreme evangelical, religious-ideological platform. Headline bears an editor's error, "One in the Same" instead of "One and the Same". Newsprint, 18.5 " x 11.25", 16 pp. As New, with the standard mailing central fold, and a very light touch of the inevitable newsprint toning to the paper. Otherwise, flawless. Extreme, but essentially non-violent in tone.While the paper's commandeering of the name "Patriot" sounds awkward to many of us, it does remind us that anyone, anywhere, can find reason to see and define himself as a patriot, if sufficiently so motivated. Sobering… Read More

Paris: Henry Babou & Jack Kahane, 1929. 1st Edition . Hardcover. Very Good. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Paris: Henry Babou & Jack Kahane, 1929. First Paris Edition. [text in English; book was banned in Britain]. 217 pp., clothbacked textured paper boards. Very Good. Spine lightly soiled and has a mild lean, corners showing, previous owner's signature (see scans). A sturdy copy of the Paris first edition of James' banned-in-England and "obscene" book, a tale involving earnest social criticism whose banning and subsequent re-issue in Paris led to such public acclaim that the forming of the famous Obelisk Press was a direct result. L27