THE TENANTS

New York: Farrar Straus and Giroux, 1971. Hardcover. Near Fine/Very Good. The sixth of the highly-respected Malamud's eight novels contains nearly all of the tensions and terrors of city social relationships in its 230 pages. Two writers, one black, one white, both living in the same abandoned tenement the landlord wants to demolish in order to construct the apartment building of his dreams. Racial hatred is complicated and enflamed by the presence of the black writer's white girl friend, a Jewish off-Broadway actress in analysis. Malamud does not allow an easy ending to the conflict. First printing, first edition (as stated, with 1971 date). About 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 inches, 230 pages in orange cloth-covered boards with gold lettering on spine. Top edge of text stained black. yellow pastedowns. Dustjacket's front panel shows black window frame against dark grey building with aging, ragged grey curtains behind the window glass. Malamud's name in yellow, title in organge. Back panel contains b & w photo of Malmud seated on a porch. Other than touch of soiling to text edges, text and boards are complete, clean and unmarked. Spine ends lighlty bumped, o/w no bumping, scratching or other edge or surface wear. Not remaindered, not ex-library. There are two identical first edition dustjackets on this book, neither price-clipped. The inner jacket shows a narrow line of age-tanning along upper, inside edge and small creases on the corners of the front flap. The outer jacket shows identical creases on the front flap, a long vertical crease on the back flap but almost none of the age-tanned edge. A collectable copy. Malamud, who was also known as a prolific short story writer, and probably best remembered for his 1952 baseball novel, "The Natural," easily holds his own with America's other great 20th century novelists such as Roth and Bellow.