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As I Lay Dying
by Faulkner, William
- Used
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- See description
- Seller
-
Deep River, Connecticut, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Jonathan Cape: Harrison Smith and by The First Edition Library, 1930. Facsimile First Edition Library Reprint. Fine in tan cloth covered boards with brown text on the spine and front board and with the top edge of the text block stained brown. A small octavo measuring 7 1/2" by 5". In a fine, facsimile, unclipped dust jacket with the "FEL" logo on the rear flap. Both the book and its dust jacket are contained within a fine slip case covered with light gray cloth with reproductions of the front and rear panels of the dust jacket on the panels of the slip case. 254 pages of text. This is the First Edition Library's exact (facsimile) reproduction of the first edition of the book to include all the issue points that were present in the original first printing.
Synopsis
William Faulkner claimed to have written As I Lay Dying, his fifth novel, in just six weeks — with very little revision — while working at power plant in 1929. While this sounds impressive in and of itself, also consider the fact that this novel has 15 different narrators throughout its 59 chapters and has consistently been recognized as one of the greatest works of the American literature. As I Lay Dying is the first book in which Faulkner introduces Yoknapatawpha County, a fictional rendition of his native Lafayette County, Mississippi, which became the setting for some of his best-known works. The author’s self-described “tour de force” follows the death of Addie Bundren and her family’s various notions regarding her burial requests and their journey to Jefferson, in the heart of the county, to fulfill them. Poverty, bad weather, injury, and pregnancy are just some of the hindrances faced along the way. Fittingly, the title of the novel comes from a line in Homer’s The Odyssey: “As I lay dying, the woman with the dog's eyes would not close my eyes as I descended into Hades.” Along with The Sound and the Fury, As I Lay Dying helped to secured Faulkner’s stance as a pioneer of the stream-of-consciousness technique, joining the ranks with James Joyce and Virginia Woolf. In vernacular that echoes Mark Twain, the characters of the novel are able to develop gradually through the perceptions of others. Though this requires readers to take an active part in constructing the story, it also allows for multiple, and sometimes, conflicting interpretations. Faulkner was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1949 for his novels prior to that date, which includes As I Lay Dying. The novel has also directly influenced a number of other critically acclaimed books, including Graham Swift’s Booker prize-winning novel Last Orders and Suzan-Lori Parks’ Getting Mother’s Body, an African-American retelling of the story. As I Lay Dying is ranked 35th on Modern Library’s “100 Best” English-language novels of the 20th century and 55th on The Guardian’s list of the 100 best novels. The Grammy-nominated metalcore band As I Lay Dying derived its name from this book as well. In 2014, writer/director James Franco released a film adaptation of the novel.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Town's End Books
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- TB32939
- Title
- As I Lay Dying
- Author
- Faulkner, William
- Book Condition
- Used
- Edition
- Facsimile First Edition Library Reprint
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Publisher
- Jonathan Cape: Harrison Smith and by The First Edition Library
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 1930
Terms of Sale
Town's End Books
30 day return guarantee, with full refund including shipping costs for up to 30 days after delivery if an item arrives misdescribed or damaged.
About the Seller
Town's End Books
Biblio member since 2009
Deep River, Connecticut
About Town's End Books
We purchase and sell only collectible first editions in a number of fields all focused on Americana. We are primarily mail order sellers; however, we are open by appointment and welcome visits from customers.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Reprint
- Any printing of a book which follows the original edition. By definition, a reprint is not a first edition.
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Text Block
- Most simply the inside pages of a book. More precisely, the block of paper formed by the cut and stacked pages of a book....
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
- Facsimile
- An exact copy of an original work. In books, it refers to a copy or reproduction, as accurate as possible, of an original...
- Slip Case
- A protective sleeve, often made of decorative cardboard or leather which houses a book. It is open on one end, so as to allow...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
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