Black Boy

New York: Harper and Brothers, (1945). The scarce first Book Club edition. This is a very good copy. The dust wrapper has some light creasing throughout and some separation at the spine tips, typical of this fragile wartime production. The rear flap carries an advertisement for war bonds, written by the author, rumoured to be the only time this text was printed. The boards are sharp and the publisher's decorative gilt is slightly rubbed at the spine. The text blocks are free from foxing. The author has signed on the front fly leaf, to Robin McKown, "sincerely yours, Richard Wright". McKown was an American writer of young adult literature, who also wrote various significant historical biographies, notably of Benjamin Franklin, Marie Curie and Thomas Paine. During the Second World War, she worked to provide aid for widows and orphans of men taken by the conflict. This is a fine presentation copy in very good (or better) condition.

A memoir detailing Wright's upbringing. He describes his youth in the South: Mississippi, Arkansas and Tennessee, and his eventual move to Chicago, where he establishes his writing career and becomes involved with the Communist Party. 'Black Boy' gained high acclaim in the United States because of Wright's honest and profound depiction of racism in America. While the book gained significant recognition, much of the reception throughout and after the publication process was highly controversial.