Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas, The – Gertrude Stein
Maira Kalman (illustator)
NF/NF

For sale: a Rare and Exceptional first edition, first printing hardcover copy of The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas by Gertrude Stein. First Edition described. 1933 Harcourt Brace. Reprint Edition unstated, 2020 Penguin Press. First Printing with full number line, 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2.

The book is in Near Fine  condition with clean, bright boards with a few marks, strong title gilt on a straight spine,  clean page blocks, tight binding, no spine tilt, lightly rolled spine ends, moderate to heavy edge wear, and one heavily bumped corner. The interior of the book is also in Near Fine condition with the ghost of an erased price on the half-title page. No other marks, inscriptions, or other signs of ownership inside. The end papers and the interior pages are clean and bright, making it an excellent addition to any collection.

The dust jacket is in Near Fine condition with the price on the front flap, and mild surface and edge wear.

An illustrated edition of Gertrude Stein’s most well-known work, The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas, bursting with the bright, sophisticated, and fanciful images of artist Maira Kalman

Considered one of the richest and most irreverent biographies in history, The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas was written by Gertrude Stein in the style and voice of her life partner, Alice B. Toklas. Published in 1933 and narrated by Alice, this autobiography begins with her initial move to France in 1907, the day after which she meets Gertrude, sparking a relationship that lasts for nearly four decades. Recounting the vibrant and literary life the two make for themselves among the Parisian avant-garde, Alice opens the doors to the prominent salons they held in their home at rue de Fleurus, hosting fellow expatriate American writers such as Ernest Hemingway, T. S. Eliot, and Ezra Pound as well as artists Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, and Man Ray, and speaks of the twilight of the Paris belle epoque.

In this edition, the wildly talented Maira Kalman brings this glittering Parisian world to life, and celebrates Stein and Toklas in vivid color. Her whimsical and inimitable illustrations complement the wit and humor of Stein’s narrative, and elevate the exciting intrigues of these famous women and their friends. Inviting readers to experience this book in a completely new way, the illustrated edition of The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas will prompt a contemporary reading of this cherished and singular classic.

Ships promptly in a corrugated mailer with book wrapped in both craft paper and multiple layers of bubble wrap.