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THE BRIDGE OF SAN LUIS REY - INSCRIBED TO HENRY LUCE
by Wilder, Thornton
- Used
- Hardcover
- Signed
- first
- Condition
- See description
- Seller
-
Stephenson, Virginia, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Albert & Charles Boni, 1927. First Edition. Wilder's second and best-known novel, centered around the inter-related histories of five people who plunge to their deaths in 18th century Peru, when an Inca rope bridge breaks. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1928, ranked as No.37 on The Modern Library's 100 Best Novels list, and basis for four film adaptations between 1929-2004. An excellent association copy, inscribed by Wilder to Henry Luce, whom he first met as a classmate at Yale. The men had a close but complicated lifelong friendship. Wilder introduced Luce to his first wife, Lila Ross Hotz, while they all attended Yale; Henry and Lila married in 1923, and had two children together. It was Amos Parker Wilder - a journalist, diplomat, and Thornton's father - who pulled Luce aside during his senior year and told him: "Harry, don't. Don't go into journalism. It will turn you into a cynic. It will turn your wine into vinegar. You will lose your soul" (Morrow, Lance. "Lost Souls: Reflections on the White House Correspondents' Dinner, by way of Henry Luce." May 1, 2018). Goldstone & Anderson B.i.2. First Printing. Octavo (21cm); powder grey cloth, with titling and pictorial elements stamped in black and hunter green on spine and front cover; lime green topstain; map endpapers; dustjacket; [14],15-235,[3]pp, with frontispiece and nine illustrations by Amy Drevenstedt. This copy belonged to American magazine magnate Henry Robinson Luce (1898-1967), with his ink ownership signature on the preliminary blank, and a March 24, 1928 inscription from Wilder to he and his wife, Lila, on the title page: "For Lila and Harry / With all my best / Thornt." Light wear to extremities, some softening to spine ends, spine gently sunned, with a 3/4" split to cloth at lower front joint, and some mild dust-soil to cloth; Very Good+. In a supplied dustjacket, unclipped (priced $2.50)gently spine-sunned and lightly dust-soiled, with some modest external wear, several tiny nicks and tears, a few shallow losses to spine ends, and a stain at upper rear panel; Very Good or better. Housed in a custom folding case.
Synopsis
The Bridge of San Luis Rey is American author Thornton Wilder's second novel, first published in 1927 to worldwide acclaim. It tells the story of several interrelated people who die in the collapse of an Inca rope-fiber suspension bridge in Peru, and the events that lead up to their being on the bridge. A friar who has witnessed the tragic accident then goes about inquiring into the lives of the victims, seeking some sort of cosmic answer to the question of why each had to die.
Read More: Identifying first editions of THE BRIDGE OF SAN LUIS REY - INSCRIBED TO HENRY LUCE
Reviews
On Oct 5 2010, Sergerca said:
We all have a worldview (don't we?) that influences just about everything we encounter. Literature is no exception. Perhaps that is why I thought the main point of Thornton Wilder's outstanding The Bridge of San Luis Rey was so obvious.In many of the reviews I've read, many have stated that Wilder leaves the main conclusion up to the reader. I must disagree. The final line, so quoted by many of the reviewers, makes it all very clear to me. "All those impulses of love return to the love that made them." Perhaps, had Wilder capitalized the second "love" more would have drawn the same conclusion as I. That love is, of course, the love of the Father. This short book is rooted in Christian realism -- summed up in that final page. Life and God's ways as they pertain to life, are a mystery to the believer. Seemingly saintly people die far too early in inexplicable circumstances-- a bridge that has lasted for centuries one day breaks under the weight of an old woman, a cripple, an old man, a young girl, and a young man. But the "why" is not for us to know. We all must live in the comfort that it is His will that reigns, not ours, and that the love which sustained us in this life will see us to the next. Perhaps Brother Juniper found his answer. I know I recognized mine.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Captain Ahab's Rare Books
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 5025
- Title
- THE BRIDGE OF SAN LUIS REY - INSCRIBED TO HENRY LUCE
- Author
- Wilder, Thornton
- Book Condition
- Used
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First Edition
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Publisher
- Albert & Charles Boni
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 1927
Terms of Sale
Captain Ahab's Rare Books
30 day return guarantee, with full refund including original shipping costs for up to 30 days after delivery if an item arrives misdescribed or damaged.
About the Seller
Captain Ahab's Rare Books
Biblio member since 2010
Stephenson, Virginia
About Captain Ahab's Rare Books
Founded in 2010, Captain Ahab's Rare Books specializes in first editions of literature, genre fiction, film-related books and ephemera, zines, manuscript and archival material.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
- Good+
- A term used to denote a condition a slight grade better than Good.
- Sunned
- Damage done to a book cover or dust jacket caused by exposure to direct sunlight. Very strong fluorescent light can cause slight...
- 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...
- Association Copy
- An association copy is a copy of a book which has been signed and inscribed by the author for a personal friend, colleague, or...
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- 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...
- 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....
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