[Books into Film] Goodbye to Berlin [Sally Bowles] by ISHERWOOD, Christopher (1904-1986) - 1939

London: Hogarth Press, 1939. First Edition. Hardcover. Near Fine. First Impression of these "Brilliant sketches of a society in decay" (Orwell). 8vo: 317,[1]pp. Publisher's coarsely woven oatmeal-colored cloth, spine stamped crimson with matching top-stain. Near Fine, cloth and edges dust-soiled, lettering slightly faded, but pages clean, tight and bright. According to Woolmer (451), only 3350 copies were printed. Connolly 86. A series of six loosely interconnected character sketches that unfold against the backdrop of the doomed Weimar Republic. Despite Isherwood's disclaimer, Goodbye to Berlin is firmly rooted in his biography; all the principle characters were inspired by people he had known. Isherwood originally envisioned a sweeping Tolstoyan novel combining the characters from Goodbye to Berlin and Mr. Norris Changes Trains (in fact, both novels are often packaged as The Berlin Stories and both were later adapted for stage and film, most memorably in the Tony Award-winning musical Cabaret [1966] and the film of the same name [1972], for which Liza Minnelli won an Academy Award. "Written in the shadow of the Second World War, [Goodbye to Berlin] offers a valedictory portrait of the demimonde of Berlin, commemorating the 'decadent' bars and nightclubs that were subsequently closed by the Nazis, and immortalizing the people—Jews and homosexuals—who were most at risk under the Third Reich." (Literary Encyclopedia) Note: With few exceptions (always identified), we only stock books in exceptional condition, carefully preserved in archival, removable polypropylene sleeves. All orders are packaged with care and posted promptly. Satisfaction guaranteed.