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A Clockwork Orange
by Burgess, Anthony
- Used
- near fine
- first
- Condition
- Near Fine/Very Good
- Seller
-
Portland, Oregon, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
London: William Heinemann Ltd, 1962. First Edition. Near Fine/Very Good. First edition, first printing. Bound in original first issue black cloth with spine lettered in gilt. Near Fine with foxing to top textblock edge, very faint staining to front endsheet at top edge near gutter, previous owner bookplate to front free endpaper and pages toned. In a Very Good first state dust jacket with wide flaps priced at 16s net; staining to jacket mostly visible from the blank verso, light toning and light wear. Presents well. Anthony Burgess' best-known novel, which was the basis of the 1971 Stanley Kubrick film.
Synopsis
Anthony Burgess wrote more than 40 novels, but A Clockwork Orange is certainly his most famous. The novel is set in a not-too-distant future English society, namely characterized by a subculture of extreme youth violence. Alex, the unapologetic teenaged protagonist, narrates his exploits and experiences with state authorities intent on reforming him. This narration — in a fictional slang called nadsat — is an experiment in language, combining elements of Russian and Cockney English. In fact, the title of the novel itself is taken from an old Cockney expression: “As queer as a clockwork orange.” The US edition of the novel was published without the final chapter, in which Alex grows up to renounce violence. Burgess strongly disapproved of the decision, arguing that it distorted the novel into a tale of unredeemable evil — far from the author’s original intention. Ironically, the US edition of A Clockwork Orange became a cult classic and was used by Stanley Kubrick for his 1971 film adaptation. A Clockwork Orange is ranked 65th on Modern Library’s “100 Best” English-language novels of the 20th century. It is also listed in TIME’s “100 Best Novels” (since 1923).
Reviews
On Dec 18 2015, a reader said:
One of the worst books ever! this is sick.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Burnside Rare Books, ABAA
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 140940169
- Title
- A Clockwork Orange
- Author
- Burgess, Anthony
- Book Condition
- Used - Near Fine
- Jacket Condition
- Very Good
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First Edition
- Publisher
- William Heinemann Ltd
- Place of Publication
- London
- Date Published
- 1962
- Keywords
- UK, first issue jacket, 16s
- Bookseller catalogs
- Literature;
Terms of Sale
Burnside Rare Books, ABAA
30 day return guarantee, with full refund including shipping costs for up to 30 days after delivery if an item arrives misdescribed or damaged.
About the Seller
Burnside Rare Books, ABAA
Biblio member since 2010
Portland, Oregon
About Burnside Rare Books, ABAA
Burnside Rare Books specializes in literary first editions and works of cultural and historic significance. We are located in Portland, Oregon and welcome visitors by appointment.
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...
- Gutter
- The inside margin of a book, connecting the pages to the joints near the binding.
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Flap(s)
- The portion of a book cover or cover jacket that folds into the book from front to back. The flap can contain biographical...
- 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...
- Verso
- The page bound on the left side of a book, opposite to the recto page.
- First State
- used in book collecting to refer to a book from the earliest run of a first edition, generally distinguished by a change in some...
- 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....
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
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