Nine-Headed Dragon River. Zen Journals 1969-1982 by Matthiessen, Peter, 1927-2014

New York: Bantam, 1957. First Paperback Edition Bantam #A1578. Very Good/No Dust Jacket As Issued. Peter Matthiessen's first novel, "Race Rock," is written so well that one wishes that its characters were more worth writing about. There is an atmosphere of emotional tension and impending catastrophe in these somewhat florid pages which is highly effective. [NTTimes] Pictorial wraps; The bindings are tight and square. Text clean, light even toning. Moderate shelf handling wear. Spine Crease. Bookstore stamp on the top edge.. Background Information: This is a novel about a long weekend in the lives of four peculiarly unattractive young people. The time is October 1952. The place is Shipman's Crossing, a New England fishing village which might be in Maine. The action is not confined to the present, but twists and turns through the protagonists' pasts in a series of wonderfully intricate flashbacks. The theme is the wasteland of "callow amorality" in which people are doomed to wander if they do… Read More