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Appointment in Samarra
by O'HARA, John
- Used
- good
- Hardcover
- Signed
- first
- Condition
- Good
- Seller
-
Gloucester City, New Jersey, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1934. Hardcover. Good. First edition. Errata slip tipped-in. A good copy with the paper over the front hinge slightly repaired, and some of the usual smudging or light stains on the glazed front board, a sound good or a little better copy lacking the dustwrapper. Ownership signature of Anthony Soma ("A. Soma") on front pastedown. Soma was the proprietor of a speakeasy in downtown Manhattan during the Depression (and the father-in-law of John Houston, who married Soma's daughter Enrecca and thus was also the grandfather of Angelica Houston). O'Hara, no stranger to speakeasies, has Inscribed the book on the front fly: "To Tony Soma. John O'Hara. Sept. 10, 1934." O'Hara's famous first book, realistically detailing the three-day disintegration of Julian English in O'Hara's invented city of Gibbsville, Pennsylvania.
Synopsis
At the ripe age of twenty-eight, John O’Hara completed Appointment in Samarra, his first novel, in less than four months. At a similarly quick pace, the events of the book take place in a span of just three days. In this brief time, Appointment in Samarra tells of the increasingly impulsive and self-destructive acts that lead to the main character’s suicide. Julian English, once a high-ranking member of the community of Gibbsville, angers and alienates those close to him, resulting in the rapid decline of his social status. Specific explanations for Julian’s behavior are unclear in the text, though personal insecurities along with his alcoholism undoubtedly play a role. The small-town prejudices of Gibbsville (O’Hara’s fictionalized version of his hometown, Pottsville, Pennsylvania) greatly affect Julian’s demise as well. Omniscient narration works to expose these prejudices via the inner thoughts of various people in the town. The title, Appointment in Samarra, is a reference to W. Somerset Maugham's 1933 retelling of an old story in his play, Sheppey. In the story, which appears as an epigraph for the novel, Death speaks of meeting a merchant in Samarra, informing the reader from the beginning of the novel’s fatal ending. In his foreword to the 1952 reprint, O'Hara says that the working title for the novel was The Infernal Grove. It was not until fellow writer Dorothy Parker showed him the story in Maugham's play that he got the idea for the title Appointment in Samarra. Modern Library ranked Appointment in Samarra 22nd on its list of the “100 Best” English-language novels of the 20th century.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Between the Covers- Rare Books, Inc. ABAA
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 403645
- Title
- Appointment in Samarra
- Author
- O'HARA, John
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Good
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Publisher
- Harcourt, Brace and Company
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 1934
- Keywords
- FirstBook, AssociationCopy, AmerLit20thCent
Terms of Sale
Between the Covers- Rare Books, Inc. ABAA
All books are first editions unless otherwise noted. All books are returnable within ten days if returned in the same condition as sent. We accept VISA, MASTERCARD, AMERICAN EXPRESS, DISCOVER, PAYPAL, checks and money orders. New Jersey residents please add 6.625% sales tax. All items guaranteed, all items subject to prior sale. Members ABAA, ILAB. Shipping is $4.50 for Media Mail, $10.00 for Priority Mail or UPS Ground. Tracking is provided for every order. Alternate shipping available by request. Shipping costs are based on books weighing 2.2 LB, or 1 KG. If your book order is heavy or oversized, we may contact you to let you know extra shipping is required.
About the Seller
Between the Covers- Rare Books, Inc. ABAA
Biblio member since 2005
Gloucester City, New Jersey
About Between the Covers- Rare Books, Inc. ABAA
Between the Covers-Rare Books, Inc., founded in 1985, specializes in first editions of 20th Century American and English fiction. Our inventory of over 75,000 first editions includes: African-American literature & history, Mysteries, Detective Fiction, Drama, Books into Film and Sports books. We routinely issue extensively illustrated color catalogs, available by subscription. We are members of the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America (ABAA)and the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB). Tom Congalton, founder of Between the Covers-Rare Books, Inc., actively promotes the ethics and standards of these professional organizations and served as President of the ABAA from 2000 to 2002.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Dustwrapper
- Also known as book jacket, dust cover, or dust wrapper, a dust jacket is a protective and decorative cover for a book that is...
- Hinge
- The portion of the book closest to the spine that allows the book to be opened and closed.
- Errata
- Errata: aka Errata Slip A piece of paper either laid in to the book correcting errors found in the printed text after being...
- 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...
- 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...
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