Midnight Books

Chevrolet Engineering Center, 1956. First Edition. Softcover. Very Good. First edition, first printing of 1957 Chevrolet Features: Passenger Car Engineering Achievements, a confidential, internal training manual distributed to GM dealerships and salesmen only. First printing issue points: "October 1956" statement at bottom of title page, steel ring binding and handwritten copy #204 issued to Dale Crosby, likely a mid-century car salesman. Many reprints exist but none have these definitive features. Contents include high quality illustrations of all passenger models, including the holy grail of car collectors - the Bel Air Model 2454 Sport Coupe (and equivalent convertible), the most sought after model of the infamous Tri-Five mid-century Chevys. Also includes a three-page section devoted to the 1957 Corvette with specifications as well as a separate, large illustration of the Corvette Model 2934 in the front Styling section. Notable contents include detailed illustrations of the revolutionary 283 …Read more

Cambridge University Press, 2003. First Edition. Hardcover. Like New/Flawless. 7x3x10. Near definitive, monumental Cambridge University history of Western Textiles. Two-volume set complete in slipcase. First edition with "First published 2003" statement to copyright page, per Cambridge University practice of designating first editions. Dozens of color and black-and-white plates throughout. Extensive index. Volume I: 1-714 numbered pages. 10" x 7". Volume II: 715-1191 numbered pages. 10" x 7". Both copies tight and immaculate with crisp extremities. Dust jackets flawless. Slipcase bound in dark green cloth, also flawless. Unmarked front to back. A gorgeous set apparently never used. Review: "Essential in the everyday lives of all societies for providing protection and warmth, textiles also fulfill social, cultural, military, legal, and symbolic functions and have played a key role in the economic activity of societies from ancient times. This magnificent two-volume study br…Read more

Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1972. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. 8x6x1. Collectible first edition, second printing of David Wolf's biography of NBA legend Connie Hawkins. Inscribed and signed on front free endpaper by both Connie Hawkins and sportswriter/author David Wolf to Tony Adler. Tony Adler played and important role in the complex web of investigators, lawyers, and New York City sports characters who defined Hawkins' early career and subsequent legal battle against the NBA. Acclaimed as one of the best sports books ever written. Ranked #3 on Sports Illustrated's Top 100 Sports Books of All Time. From SI's review: "This book is about a professional basketball player, Connie Hawkins, but it is also about American athletics. The hope and despair of the ghetto schoolyard, the cutthroat college recruiting, the camaraderie and dissension in the locker room, the gambling scandals, the blacklists, the legal battles - Hawkins has been through them all. For eight years, the…Read more

Sportivny Press, 1988. Softcover. Very Good. 0x0x0. Revised, enlarged and final edition of legendary Soviet sport scientist, weightlifting researcher, and national coach Robert A. Roman's groundbreaking technical masterpiece, The Training of the weightlifter. Roman, globally recognized as one of the chief architects of the Soviet weightlifting system during its golden era of Olympics dominance, based his teaching on near mythical, scientifically based methods used by Russian and Ukrainian weightlifters. He pioneered the following: BIOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS (Intense scientific research into barbell trajectory, identifying the most rational, mathematically efficient flight paths for Olympic lifting); VOLUME AND INTENSITY GUIDELINES (mathematical mapping of balancing total training volume with varying intensity zones over yearly planning cycles - macrocycles, mesocycles, and microcycles); HEIGHT TO WEIGHT OPTIMIZATION (calculating the ideal body weight-to-height ratios for elite Master of Sport International Class or…Read more

Privately Printed by Morlock Printing, 1983. Hardcover. Very Good. Massive, detailed history of Roscoe, South Dakota, Edmunds County, 1883-1983. Small agricultural community (2020 census: 269). North-Central South Dakota. Primarily German settlers from Russia, now surrounded by many communal Hutterite farming colonies. Histories of businesses, churches, farmsteads, schools, hundreds of family histories and much more. Densely illustrated with historical photos. Aerial photo to front endpapers, detailed plat map to back endpapers. Exceptionally scarce in commerce and located only in a small number in libraries. Genealogy resource. 350 pages. 11 1/4" x 8 3/4". Tight, immaculate copy. Extremities crisp. Near flawless. Unmarked front to back. Photographs of or additional information about this item are available on request. All inquiries answered promptly.

Privately Printed by Isaac Goldman Co., for "The Members of the Company, 1919. Hardcover. Very Good. Collectible first edition, first printing of Company F: 114th Infantry's history of its participation in WWI, most notably in the horrific Battle of Verdun, which cost the lives of hundreds of thousands of soldiers along with many others wounded for life or missing in action and never found. Company F, as part of the 114th Infantry Regiment, was within the 29th "Blue and Gray" Division of the American Expeditionary Forces. The company was primarily composed of National Guard soldiers from New Jersey. The regiment arrived in France in June 1918 and initially served in the Alsace sector for defensive training, then sent plunging into trench warfare. Most notably, Company F and the 114th Infantry participated with particular intensity in the final major Allied offensive of the war, the Battle of Verdun. The regiment suffered heavy casualties from mustard gas and artillery fire, and survivors …Read more

Privately Printed by Friesens Corp, 2005. Hardcover. Very Good. Massive, detailed history of Colonsay, Saskatchewan, Canada, Rural Municipality #342: Milestones and Memories. Vol. 2 with focus on hundreds of Colonsay family histories. Also includes much local historical content, many photos and several fold-out maps. Genealogy resource. Scarce. 630 pp. 11 1/4" x 8 1/2". Tight, immaculate copy. Extremities crisp. Unmarked front to back. Photographs of or additional information about this item are available on request. All inquiries answered promptly.

Minnewaukan History Book Committee, 1983. Hardcover. Like New. 0x0x0. Massive, detailed history of Minnewaukan, North Dakota, Benson County. Coverage includes area townships and countryside. Township histories: Aurora, Eldon, Graham's Island, Lallie, McClellan, North Oberon, Riggin and West Bay. Includes hundreds of photo-illustrated family histories, also histories of businesses, churches, schools and much more. Densely illustrated with thousands of historical photographs and maps. "Minnewaukan," a name derived from the Dakota Sioux phrase "Miniwakan," translated "Bad Spirit Water," refers to the high salinity of its major water feature, Devils Lake. Minnewaukan's history is riddled with flooding events from the lake that destroyed much farmland and structures, and today the town ranks among the most sparsely populated county seats the United States, hovering just above 200 residents. Indexed. Limited printing. 776 numbered pages plus front matter and photo-pictorial e…Read more

Julian Messner, Inc, 1948. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. Collectible first edition, first printing of Cateau deLeeuw's (writing as Jessica Lyon) debut romance novel, Betty Loring, Illustrator, part of the Messner "Romances for Young Moderns" series focused on young women seeking careers during the Great Depression. Bound in green cloth variant (no known priority with occasional red cloth variants appearing in commerce). Per Messner's practice of indicating first editions during this period, no additional printings stated on copyright page. Includes scarce dust jacket with $2.50 price to top of front flap, eight publisher's titles to back panel with this title listed first, and front panel and frontis portraits by prominent illustrator Louise Altson. In text illustrations by author. Cateau deLeeuw was best known for her "career romances" published in the 1940's and 1950's, and Betty Loring proved to be her most popular, a story of a woman's efforts…Read more

Privately Printed, 2003. Softcover. Like New. Massive, detailed history of Grand Detour, Illinois, Ogle County. Histories of businesses, churches, schools, families and much more. Densely illustrated with dozens of historical photographs (some portraits), period ads and maps. Notably, Grand Detour was home to John Deere, who invented the first commercially successful steel plow in 1837. His original house and shop have been designated a U.S. National Historic Landmark. As a child, legendary actor and Citizen Kane director Orson Welles spent his summers at his father's hotel in Grand Detour and described it thus in his biography, This Is Orson Welles: "It really was a marvelous little corner in time, a kind of forgotten place. A childhood there was like a childhood back in the 1870s. No electric light, horse-drawn buggies" a completely anachronistic, old-fashioned, early-Tarkington, rural kind of life, with a country store that had above it a ballroom with an old dance floor with springs in it, so that folks w…Read more

Privately Printed, Collated and Assembled by Author, 1965. First Edition. Softcover. Very Good. Detailed history of Centre County, Pennsylvania written by local historian. First edition, first printing. Illustrated with maps. Privately printed and published by author J. Marvin Lee, also signed by Lee on title page in pencil. Notably, Lee printed, collated and assembled 100 copies of this book himself, reportedly taking 8 hours to print and 35 hours to assemble and apply thumb tabs to the text block fore edges for each chapter. See attached images for table of contents and reprints of 4 Centre Daily Times articles with descriptions, reviews and photos pertaining to Lee's life and the book. Centre County is now home to Penn State University and its sports teams, the Nittany Lions, near Nittany Mountain in central Pennsylvania, once a target for loggers but saved by dissenters. Exceptionally hard to find local history. No copies of the first (handmade) edition located in WorldCat library database or availa…Read more

General Mills, Inc, 1950. First Edition. Hardcover. Like New/Good. 10x8x0. Collectible first edition, ninth printing of General Mills' landmark cookbook, Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book. "FIRST EDITION" with "Ninth Printing" and 1950 date so stated on title page. General Mills, Inc. and McGraw-Hill Book Co., Inc. co-publishers. A masterpiece compilation of mid-century, Golden Age recipes. 3-ring binder format. Complete as issued. Collation: [1-3] 4-462. Bound in red linen with white tole decorations to front, back and spine panels. Includes scarce dust jacket with $4.95 price intact, protected with archival Brodart sleeve, also originally issued transparent book mark. 248 x 161 mm. Tight, immaculate copy. Extremities crisp. Unmarked front to back. Exceptionally vivid board cloth. Internals bright and fresh. Finger tabs flawless. Priced dust jacket with minimal chipping to extremities. An astonishingly presentable copy of perhaps the 20th century's most important cookbook, now 75 years old. THIS is the cookb…Read more

Center for Northwest Anthropology, Washington State University, 1983. Softcover. Very Good. Massive, 2-volume study of the Cultural Resources of the Rocky Reach of the Columbia River. Volume I and II topics include: Environmental Setting, Ethnohistory 1811-1855, The Native Peoples, Historical Overview, Previous Archaeological Investigations of the Area, Survey Procedures and Site Descriptions, Historic Sites in the Rocky Beach Reservoir, Site Testing Methodology, Subsurface Survey, Description of Sites Tested, Lithic Analysis, Implications of Faunal Remains for Prehistoric Settlement and Subsistence Along the Rocky Beach Reservoir, Fluvial Processes and Prehistoric Settlement Patterns Along the Rocky Beach of the Columbia River, Significance of Archaeological Sites and Management Recommendations and three appendices (Cultural Debris, Description of Chipped Stone Artifacts and Modified Coarse-Grained River Cobbles). Scarce. Volume I: 364 pp. 10 3/4" x 8 1/4". 20 tables. 20 illustrations, some fold-out. Volume …Read more

Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, 1932. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. First edition, first printing of celebrated stunt flyer Dick Grace's The Lost Squadron. Subtitle: With Illustrations From the Radio Picture Starring Richard Dix With a Cast of a Thousand. Published on March 29, 1932. Note: Though often dismissed as a reprint publisher, Grosset & Dunlap owned the copyright to this story, having purchased first rights from author Grace after it was originally serialized in seven parts by Liberty Magazine in 1931, thus its first edition state as well being a Photoplay edition. Rights were transferred back to Grace on March 31, 1932. Illustrated with photographs of seven of the principal stars in the movie with short bios on the recto and verso of the frontis and includes an additional eight, full-page photographic plates bound throughout the text. Includes original dust jacket with a large list of then current Grosset & Dunlap titles printed on the verso. Grace himself appeared in the movie versio…Read more

Tic-Tac-Toe Publishers, 1959. First Edition. Softcover. Very Good. Scarce mid-century pin-up magazine, TIC-TAC-TOE. Vol. 1, No. 1. First and only issue distributed by obscure Moline, Illinois publisher Tic-Tac-Toe Publishers. Notably, this issue includes numerous photos, all rare, by then celebrated pin-up photographer Ron Vogel on special assignment. Vogel photos appear on pp. 6-9, pp. 26-39 and pp. 52-54. Dixie Hardacker cover photo and 3-page photo spread. Contents also include 4-page Tilda Hellen photo spread from her "Virgin and Devil" dance, several Vogel photo spreads with full color centerfold illustration (signed by unknown artist), cartoons, short stories and non-fiction articles, one a 5-page photo-illustrated article on Baltic Sea helmet divers "fishing" for WWII unexploded munitions and two, a 6-page photo-illustrated article on capturing the rare Great One-Horned Indian Rhino along the Assan Trunk Road between Gauhati and Dibrugarh. Lots of lovely ladies and unusually diver…Read more

Scribner & Co, 1878. Hardcover. Very Good. Massive, bound compilation of May-October 1878 Scribner's Magazine. Topic articles include Archery, Camps & Tramps (Ktaadn), Bird Architecture, New York City Post Office, The Police of New York, Santa Cruz, New England Farm Life, South African Diamonds, Telephony (Edison), Hunting the Mule Deer in Colorado, Glimpses of Western Farm Life, Cotton, Leo Marimus (The Sea King), Coney Island ("All Ashore!"), Rockaway Beach (The Coming Storm) and many more. Hundreds of high quality engravings 912 pp. 9 3/4" x 7 1/4". Tight, unmarked copy with minimal shelf wear. Lightly tanned internals. Library label and stamps to both endpapers. Otherwise, no additional library indications. An exceptional copy of a major 19th century publication known for its high quality content and stunning engravings. Photographs of or additional information about this item are available on request. All inquiries answered promptly.

Madison Square Press, 2001. Hardcover. Like New/Very Good. 11x9x1. Celebrated portrait artist John Howard Sanden's compilation of 60 of his selected best portraits of notable people. Includes his history of the premier coup portrait technique with 11 samples and an appendix of his creative and technical procedure. Inscribed and signed on front free endpaper by Sanden to Larry L. Prince. Also includes (laid-in) a typewritten letter hand signed by Sanden in blue ink to Genuine Parts Co. Chairman and CEO of NAPA fame Larry L. Prince, thanking him for the material Prince sent him (presumably to help with Prince's upcoming portrait), a small copy of the finished portrait, two Sanden business cards and several pieces of Sanden ephemera. 159 pp. 12" x 9 1/4". Tight, immaculate copy. Extremities crisp. Unmarked front to back. Dust jacket flawless in archival Brodart sleeve. A beautiful copy of an important collection of Sanden material. Photographs of or additional information about this item are …Read more

McFarland & Co., Inc., Publishers, 2001. Hardcover. Like New. 11x8x1. Massive compilation of US counties with origins of county names and histories. All states included except Alaska, which has no comparable governing divisions - that is, 49 in all. A genealogical treasure house. Extraordinarily detailed 30-page index with thousands of entries and 4-page bibliography. First and only printing. Scarce. Partial review from The National Library Association: "Pursuing a private interest for more than 20 years, Beatty researched historical association archives and university library resources around the U.S., gathering details on the origins of the names of counties in 48 states and the names of parishes in Louisiana. (The fiftieth state, Alaska, which does not have corresponding governing divisions, was omitted.) His dedication has resulted not only in the documentation of the name origins but also the accumulation of an abundance of historical, geographical, and societal information reflecting the development and…Read more

Richard N. Westcott, 1971. First Edition. Softcover. Very Good. Volume I, No.1 (and only) issue of Richard N. Westcott's Inside Basketball, a newspaper format publication that, despite ambitious intentions, published only one issue. Former Delaware daily Times sports writer Richard Westcott intended to issue a weekly (35 issues annually) report of everything basketball - NBA, ABA, college, high school and more - recruiting the best writers he could find and offering original, uncensored coverage of the sport. Unfortunately, funds to support it never materialized, and things shut down almost before they opened. Of special importance in this issue, however, is its coverage of Philadelphia's legendary Baker League, a summer professional league founded by Sonny Hill in 1960 and featuring some of basketball's greatest stars and wannabes looking to improve their games or get in playing shape preceding the start of the regular season, among them Wilt Chamberlain, Earl Monroe, Charles Barkley, Maurice C…Read more

Little, Brown and Co, 1990. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. 13x2x18. Collectible first edition, first printing of Ansel Adams' The American Wilderness. "First Edition" so stated on copyright page. Massive, magnificent compilation of photos featuring many stunning views of National Parks and much more. 99 duotone photographs. Bound in blue-gray cloth with coated, heavy stock dust jacket. William A. Turnage introduction. Editor, Andrea G. Stillman. 146 numbered pages. 16" x 13". Tight, unmarked copy with minimal shelf wear. Dust jacket near flawless with slight wrinkling to head and tail of spine panel. A beautiful copy of an important photography collectible. Photographs of or additional information about this item are available on request. All inquiries answered promptly. Heavy book. US sales only.

Herbert Stubenrauch Verlagsbuchhandlung, 1927. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good. Massive compilation of primarily color plates of porcelain designs created by the German State Porcelain Manufactory, post WWI, each printed on heavy coated stock and protected with glassine interleaves. Text in German. First edition. 49 introductory pages and 56 plates. Bound in blue cloth with gilt lettering, ruling and decorative elements. Top edge gilt. A publishing masterpiece. Includes laid in publisher's broadside. Tight, unmarked copy with light shelf wear, moderate wrinkling to head and tail of spine panel and a smattering of spotting to fore edge of text block. A presentable copy of a gorgeous, early-century collectible. 14 3/4" x 11 5/8". Very large, heavy book. US sales only. Photographs of or additional information about this item are available on request. All inquiries answered promptly.

Army and Navy Publishing Co, 1944. Hardcover. Very Good. Original 1944 regimental yearbook featuring the storied 242D (Rainbow) Infantry Regiment, 42 Infantry Division, which played pivotal roles in WWII. Notably, this yearbook includes celebrated Medal of Honor recipient Vito R. Bertoldo, the basis of episode 5 (of 8) in the much lauded 2018 Netflix documentary production "Medal of Honor." Originally classified as 4f and ineligible of service, Bertoldo persisted in his desire to serve and ultimately landed in the Rainbow Division, where he was assigned as a cook with Company A, 1st Battalion, 242nd Infantry Regiment, 42nd Infantry Division. On January 1945 near Hatten, France, Bertoldo accomplished a feat of heroism few have ever equaled. His Medal of Honor Citation reads: "He fought with extreme gallantry while guarding 2 command posts against the assault of powerful infantry and armored forces which had overrun the battalion's main line of resistance. On the close approach of enemy soldiers, he left the pr…Read more

Privately Printed, 1989. Hardcover. Good. Massive compilation of Bald Knob High School history, The Knob Knocker, Franklin, Kentucky, 1924-1958, published on the occasion of its 50th anniversary in 1989 of now long closed high school, consolidated in 1958 with several other schools into Franklin High School. Includes hundreds of pages of biographies and photos of students, faculty and more over a span of 34 years. In many cases detailed questionnaires were completed by former students and supplied with later in life histories. Deceased students documented when known. Also includes many group photos as well as an index of names and a brief history of the town (at mid-century, the leading strawberry producer in the world). Due to budget restrictions and a lack of equipment the final result was issued in photocopied sheets printed on both sides to be inserted into 3-ring binders. Number of copies printed is unknown but likely minimal. At the time of this posting no copies were located in commerce or the WorldC…Read more

National Travel Club, 1935. Hardcover. Very Good/Good. Noted Danish explorer, anthropologist and travel writer Henning Haslund-Christensen's detailed, photo-illustrated account of his travels and exploits in the remote land of Mongolia, 1927-1930. Limited, special edition produced by the National Travel Club in New York. Includes 57 photos and a two-page map showing the route of the author in Inner and Outer Mongolia. Haslund-Christensen's narrative captures both the exotic and spiritual mysteries of Mongolia's people and culture at the post-revolutionary dawn of the USSR. See attached images for table of contents and list of illustrations. Upgraded binding in dark-blue, coated cloth with NTC (National Travel Club) logo stamped in gilt to front panel and gilt lettering to spine panel. Includes Kent Crane illustrated dust jacket in archival Brodart sleeve. 28 page index. 357 pp. 9 1/2" x 6 1/2". CONDITION: Tight, unmarked copy with crisp corners, slight wrinkling to head of spine panel …Read more