A LONG WAY DOWN

New York City, NY: Riverhead Books/Penguin Group, 2005. First Edition. First Printing.. Hardcover. Fine/Fine Dust Jacket.. New York City, NY: Riverhead Books/Penguin Group, 2005. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. First Edition/First Printing. 333 pages. The author's fourth novel. Now considered a contemporary classic. The first appearance of the title in the United States. Precedes and should not be confused with all other subsequent editions. Published in a small and limited first print run as a hardcover original only. The First Edition is now scarce. Presents Nick Hornby's "A Long Way Down". His darkest and in many ways, wisest novel. "In four distinct and riveting first-person voices, Nick Hornby tells a story of four individuals confronting the limits of choice, circumstance, and their own mortality. This is a tale of connections made and missed, punishing regrets, and the grace of second chances. Intense, hilarious, provocative, and moving, a novel about suicide that is, surprisingly, full of life" (Publisher's blurb). Nick Hornby's pulse on contemporary life is infallible, his humane-ness authentic, and both are especially evident in the suicidal reflections of his characters. Here is Martin: "Nearly every single time, the coroner says the same thing: 'He took his own life while the balance of his mind was disturbed'. And then you read the story about the poor bastard: His wife was sleeping with his best friend, he'd lost his job, his daughter had been killed in a road accident some months before. Hello, Mr. Coroner? I'm sorry, but there's no disturbed mental balance here, my friend. I'd say he got it just right" (Nick Hornby). An absolute "must-have" title for Nick Hornby collectors. This copy is very boldly and beautifully signed in black pen-marker on the title page by Nick Hornby. It is signed directly on the page itself, not on a tipped-in page. This title is a contemporary classic. This is one of few such signed copies of the First Hardcover Edition/First Printing (American) still available online and is in especially fine condition: Clean, crisp, and bright. Please note: Copies available online have serious flaws, are subsequent printings, or are remainder-marked. This is surely an accessible and lovely alternative. A scarce signed copy thus. Winner of the E. M. Forster Award from the Academy of Arts and Letters. One of the finest British writers of our time. A fine copy. (SEE ALSO OTHER NICK HORNBY TITLES IN OUR CATALOG). ISBN 1573223026.