Search Results: Texas from Downtown Brown Books, ABAA

[Washington, DC]: (n.p.), 1842. First Edition. Ephemera. Fine. The House of Representatives prints a petition to the US Congress by the state of Kentucky to make known any information about the detention of members of the Texan-Santa Fe expedition. "It appears from authentic information that citizens of the United States, with passports from their government, duly authenticated, in going from Texas to Santa Fe, with legitimate and peaceful intentions, offering no resistance, have been arrested by a military force of Mexicans, a portion put to death in the most perfidious manner, whilst others in manacles were... driven as beasts rather than human beings from the place of their capture to the City of Mexico." This resolution exaggerates the case, but it shows how blurred the lines were between the US and the Republic of Texas, which organized the venture in an attempt to control trading routes (in Mexican territory) to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The government later reported that they were aware of only… Read More

San Antonio: Wings Press, 2008. First Edition. Pamphlet. Fine. 40 pages. Illustrated from photographs. The author was professor emeritus at Trinity University. Published in an edition of 300 signed and numbered copies. With handmade paper wrappers, incorporating mesquite leaves, and a protective envelope. First edition (first printing). Fine in wrappers. Near fine envelope.

San Marcos, TX: Hays County Historical Commission, 1986. First Edition. Hardcover. Near fine/Near fine. xix, 645 pages. Illustrated from black-and-white photographs by Cindy McCoy. First edition (first printing). A near fine copy in a near fine dust jacket. Signed by six authors and the dedicatee.

[Washington, DC]: (n.p.), 1842. First Edition. Ephemera. Very good. An appeal to the federal government to attend to the military defense of Florida. The author, Charles Fenton Mercer, was a former member of Congress who left his post for financial reasons and took a job at a bank in Florida, where he was working when he wrote this plea. Prior to moving to Florida, he was active in the effort to settle free Blacks in Liberia. Soon after this, he left for Texas, where he founded the Mercer Colony. "Statement submitted by the Chairman of the Committee on Naval Affairs to the House of Representatives... May 12, 1842." 7 pages (a single sheet, folded to make 8 pages, including a final blank). 27th Congress, 2d Session. House of Representatives Doc. No. 224. A bit foxed, but otherwise fine; never sewn or bound, entirely as issued.

San Marcos, TX: Hays County Historical Commission, 1977. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine. [xiv], 228, [29] pages. 8-1/2 by 11 inches. First edition. A fine hardcover copy; no dust jacket (as issued). Signed by the compiler on the title page.

College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2008. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. By the founding director of the Center for Texas Music History at Texas State University in San Marcos. This is the uncommon hardcover issue. The book was published in paperback at the same time. 304 pages. Illustrated with black-and-white photographs. First edition (first printing, hardcover issue). A fine copy in a fine dust jacket. Inscribed by the author, "Tom, Thanks for your interest in Texas music history. Hope you enjoy the book! Gary. 4-22-08.

Austin, TX: Encino Press, 1968. Second Printing. Hardcover. Good/Good. McMurtry's first collection of essays, covering Texas history, Texas writers, cowboys, and as a coda to The Last Picture Show, sex in Archer City, Texas. At the time, McMurtry was best known as the writer whose first book Horseman, Pass By had been made into the movie, Hud. This first edition of In a Narrow Grave was very badly copyedited and dozens of errors made it through to the printed page, the most notorious typo was "skycrapers" on p. 105, line 12. The errors, inexplicably overlooked in the proofs, were glaringly obvious in the published book. The book was quickly withdrawn from distribution and a new, corrected version printed. This is the corrected version, technically the second printing (although some optimistic booksellers like to call it the second issue). The sheets from this printing were also used for a signed, limited edition of 250 copies. xviii, 177, [1] pages. Corrected second printing after a supressed… Read More

Austin, TX: Encino Press, 1968. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. McMurtry's first collection of essays, covering Texas history, Texas writers, cowboys, and as a coda to The Last Picture Show, sex in Archer City, Texas. At the time, McMurtry was best known as the writer whose first book Horseman, Pass By had been made into the movie, Hud. This first edition of In a Narrow Grave was very badly copyedited and dozens of errors made it through to the printed page, the most notorious typo was "skycrapers" on p. 105 (your humble cataloguer notes that the common scatalogical pronunciation of this neologism is sky-crappers, even though standard English would render it "sky-crepe-ers"). Other errors include "in in" on page 56, line 2 and the line beginning "Mr." in the second paragraph on page 134 repeated.. The errors, inexplicably overlooked in the proofs, were glaringly obvious in the published book. The book was quickly withdrawn from distribution and a new, corrected version printed. The corrected… Read More

Austin, TX: Encino Press, 1968. First Edition. Hardcover. Near fine/Very good. A rare copy of the first edition of this legendary literary rarity, the first printing of Larry McMurtry's first book of essays. The book is well-known among book collectors as the "skycrapers" printing, because of that typo on line 12 of page 105. This copy has page 105 (specifically the sheet with pages 105 to 108) in BOTH issues, with skyscrapers spelled correctly and incorrectly. However, this copy does not have the other errors, like "in in" on page 56, line 2; or the line beginning "Mr. Brammer" duplicated in paragraph two of page 134. A year after the publication of this book, Deborah Detering Pannill, a University of Texas at Austin student, wrote a thorough term paper on Encino Press and interviewed the publisher, Bill Wittliff. After the errors in McMurtry's book were discovered, "at first Wittliff thought he could salvage some of those printed but finally they decided to destroy the edition and reprint it."… Read More

Austin, TX: Encino Press, 1968. Second Printing. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. McMurtry's first collection of essays, covering Texas history, Texas writers, cowboys, and as a coda to The Last Picture Show, sex in Archer City, Texas. At the time, McMurtry was best known as the writer whose first book Horseman, Pass By had been made into the movie, Hud. This first edition of In a Narrow Grave was very badly copyedited and dozens of errors made it through to the printed page, the most notorious typo was "skycrapers" on p. 105, line 12. The errors, inexplicably overlooked in the proofs, were glaringly obvious in the published book. The book was quickly withdrawn from distribution and a new, corrected version printed. This is the corrected version, technically the second printing. The sheets from this printer were also used for a signed, limited edition of 250 copies. Corrected second printing after a suppressed first edition (no indication of printing on the title page and skyscrapers spelled… Read More

San Antonio, TX: Wings Press, 2006. First Edition. Trade Paperback. Fine. A collection of poems, most written in the late 1970s and 1980s. Texas Chicano poet. 83 pages. First edition (first printing). A fine copy in wrappers (paperback). Signed by the author.

Torino [Turin], 1881. First Edition. Very good. 1) Il Texas e la colonizzazione italiana della sua costa [cover title: Il Texas: La ferrovia Nuova York-Texas-Messicano; la colonizzazione italiana della costa de Texas]. Torino: Tipografia Roux e Favale, 1881. 56 pages, 6-3/8 by 9-1/2 inches; with a large folding map of the coastline of Texas with the proposed rail route printed in red; 2) Il Texas: La sua nuova ferrovia e la colonizzazione italiana della costa. Torino: Tipografia Roux e Favale, 1881. 8 pages, plus self wrappers, 4-9/16 by 6-7/8 inches; 3) New-York-Texas and Mexican Railway: Impresa italiana J. Telfener... [small broadside, 6-1/2 by 9-1/2 inches]. Milano: Stab. Tip. F. Pagnoni, 1881. In 1880, the Italian Count Joseph Telfener with French and American investors formed the New York-Texas and Mexican Railway Company, a venture intending to complete the missing links needed to connect New York to Mexico City by rail. The project began along the Gulf Coast of Texas because of the… Read More

New York: Harper & Row, 1962. First Edition. Hardcover. Near fine/Very good. McMurtry's second novel. Filmed by Sidney Lumet as Lovin' Molly in 1974. The book came out while the hit movie Hud was still in the theaters, so the book got a lot more attention than most second novels are accorded. But the book was controversial in McMurtry's native north Texas. The nearest big city to McMurtry's hometown of Archer City was Wichita Falls. The paper there wrote (Sept. 22, 1963), "The book editor won't be running a review of Leaving Cheyenne for every reviewer to whom the book was offered (men at that, not a Mrs. Grundy in the lot) has backed away from it after a hasty reading. For again the author relies heavily upon four-letter words and sexual intimacies to carry his story along. Mr. McMurtry is letting his youth show, for the young man has talent (though the new book is not well-written)..." First edition (stated). A near fine copy with a bit of spotting to the unbleached cloth. The jacket is the… Read More

Austin: LoneStarCon 2, 1997. First Edition. Trade paperback. Near fine. The program and schedule of activities for the second Texas science fiction convention, with Neal Barrett Jr. as the "Master of Toasts." 156 pages. 8-1/2 by 11 inches. First edition. A very near fine copy in wrappers (paperback). This was Barrett's copy, with his name placard and marked-up schedule laid in. It is inscribed at Barrett's bio, "Tom, missed your happy self. Neal Barrett Jr.

Austin: LoneStarCon 2, 1997. First Edition. Trade paperback. Near fine. The program and schedule of activities for the second Texas science fiction convention, with Neal Barrett Jr. as the "Master of Toasts." 156 pages. 8-1/2 by 11 inches. First edition. A very near fine copy in wrappers (paperback). Inscribed by Barrett on the first page, "For Les, love Neal Barrett Jr.

Mountain Home, TX: Y-O Press, 1980. First Edition. Hardcover. Near fine/Very good. 192 pages. 8-1/2 by 11-1/4 inches. Illustrated by Joe Beeler. A history of the YO Ranch. Profusely illustrated. The author is best known for his mystery and science fiction novels. First edition (first printing). Near fine in a very good dust jacket that has a chip missing from the top of the spine and evidence of an old dampstain. Inscribed by Barrett on the title page.

Mountain Home, TX: Y-O Press, 1980. First Edition. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. An exceptional copy of this classic of modern Texas books. Long Days is an anecdotal and oral history of the YO Ranch, which was started near Kerrville by Charles Shreiner in 1880. The book is profusely illustrated with halftone photographs and drawings. The author is best known for his mystery and science fiction novels. 192 pages. 8-1/2 by 11-1/4 inches. Drawings by Joe Beeler. First edition (first printing). This is a very good copy in a very good dust jacket, chipped in places along the edges. What makes this an exceptional copy is that it is inscribed, often at length, by many of the people associated with the ranch, including four of the Schreiners (Charles III--who inscribed the book three times; Charles IV; Gus; and Walter Schreiner). The book is inscribed to Sharon (Fancy) and Joe Marino of Bills Bar B Que, a popular BBQ joint in Kerrville, who apparently collected signatures over several years. In addition… Read More

Northampton, MA: Kitchen Sink Press, 1998. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine. A graphic novel based on an incident in Texas history. Issued simultaneously in trade paperback and 300 hardcovers, signed by Jackson on a tipped-in label. 153 pages. Black-and-white illustrations throughout. First edition (first printing). A fine hardcover copy in illustrated boards (no jacket, as issued). This is no. 43 of 300 signed and numbered by Jackson at the front.

Austin: Texas Monthly Press, 1988. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. 185 pages. A collection of essays. First edition (first printing). Fine in a fine dust jacket. Inscribed by the author, "For Tom & Meredith, best wishes from your pal, Steve Harrigan. July 25, '89.

Austin: Texas Monthly Press, 1988. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. A collection of essays. 185 pages. First edition (first printing with a line of letters beginning with A). Fine in a fine dust jacket. Inscribed by the author, "For Lynn and Gene, it was a pleasure meeting you at Plum Creek, Steve Harrigan. Nov. 10, '94.