Description
For sale: a rare and exceptional, first hardcover edition, early printing of The Naked and the Dead by Norman Mailer. First Edition unstated, 1948 Rinehart. Presumed Second Printing without the Rinehart colophon and no subsequent printing on the copyright page.
The book exterior is in Near Fine condition with strong, black boards with a strong sheen and a few smudges. The title ink is strong on a convex spine, light foxing on the top page block, tight binding, mild spine tilt, rolled spine ends, mild edge wear, and rubbed corners. The interior of the book is in Near Fine condition without any marks, inscriptions, or other signs of ownership. The end papers and the interior pages are clean and lightly toned.
The mismatched dust jacket is in Very Good condition with moderate surface wear, heavy edge wear, chips and a rubbed spine with title clearly visible. Third issue jacket, with $4.00 and Fourth Large Printing on front flap. Looks great in a new Brodart archival wrap.
Hailed as one of the finest novels to come out of the Second World War, The Naked and the Dead received unprecedented critical acclaim upon its publication and has since enjoyed a long and well-deserved tenure in the American canon. Written in gritty, journalistic detail, the story follows a platoon of Marines who are stationed on the Japanese-held island of Anopopei. Composed in 1948 with the wisdom of a man twice Mailer’s age and the raw courage of the young man he was, The Naked and the Dead is representative of the best in twentieth-century American writing.
Ships promptly with s
