JOHN LE CARRÉ. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold. A novel. Coward-McCann Inc., New York 1963. The Book Club issue of the first American edition. 8vo. 256pp. Quarter black cloth with grey sides (the correct first edition binding is red backstrip cloth, not black). Publisher’s orange top edge stain, very slightly faded. A narrow trace of light toning to the free endpapers and a little light spotting to the fore edge. Retail price sticker to the tip of the front free endpaper (which I have not attempted to remove). A very good copy in the later state Book Club issue dust wrapper, repeating the original design, but with four quotes to the rear panel instead of three, no price printed to the head of the front flap, but the base of the flap clipped (where the original Book Club identifier should be found). Rear flap printed in black instead of black and red, and here omitting the imprint details. A very good copy of the Book Club issue of the first American edition – not in itself uncommon and particularly desirable, but this copy considerably enhanced by the presence of a title-specific bookplate signed by the author and pasted to the front free endpaper. The author’s third novel, winner of multiple awards including the 1963 Gold Dagger, the 1965 Edgar Award, and the 2005 ‘Dagger of Daggers’. £250
JOHN LE CARRÉ. The Looking-Glass War. A novel. Heinemann, London 1965. First edition. This copy signed by the author by way of a title-specific bookplate pasted to the front free endpaper. 8vo. 245pp. Edges a little spotting, and with just a trace of further spotting to several preliminary leaves and to very occasional margins. A very good copy in good dust wrapper, the publisher’s red spine panel colouring badly faded as is invariably the case, and with a little chafing and surface loss to the spine ends and corner tips, and half a centimetre of loss from the head of the rear panel. The author’s fourth novel, again including his spymaster George Smiley, although here only in a peripheral role. £300
JOHN LE CARRÉ. The Naïve and Sentimental Lover. A novel. Hodder & Stoughton, London 1971. First edition. This copy signed by the author by way of a title-specific bookplate pasted to the front free endpaper. 8vo. 416pp. Publisher's purple top-edge stain, which is just a little faded in places. Backstrip ends gently bruised. Some spotting to the fore edge, and a touch more to four or five preliminary leaves, and to the lower margins of a dozen text leaves. A very good copy in virtually fine dust wrapper. The author's sixth novel, and only his second not to feature spymaster George Smiley. £250
JOHN LE CARRÉ. The Little Drummer Girl. A novel. Hodder & Stoughton, London 1983. First edition. This copy signed by the author by way of a title-specific bookplate pasted to the front free endpaper. 8vo. 430pp. Some discolouration and rippling to the cloth at the rear board. Edges, endpapers and several preliminary and concluding leaves spotted. A tiny bump to the tip of one corner, and a minor readership slant to the binding. A good copy in lightly creased dust wrapper, lightly faded at the spine panel. A respectable coy of the author’s third non-Smiley standalone espionage novel. £150
JOHN LE CARRÉ. The Secret Pilgrim. A novel. Hodder & Stoughton, London 1991. First edition. This copy signed by the author by way of a title-specific bookplate pasted to the front free endpaper. 8vo. 335pp. A touch of light spotting to the top- and fore edge, and a tiny dealer plate to the base of the front pastedown. A virtually fine copy in virtually fine dust wrapper. Publisher’s folded promotional press release laid-in. A novel with a printed dedication to Alex Guinness, set within the frame narrative of a series of lectures by George Smiley. £195
JOHN LE CARRÉ. Our Game. Hodder & Stoughton, London 1995. The correct first edition, issued for export only and, airports aside, not available for sale in the UK. This copy signed by the author by way of a title-specific bookplate pasted to the title page. 8vo. 347pp. Map-illustrated endpapers. Ribbon place marker. Edges and endpapers spotted. A very good copy in the correct first state dust wrapper showing three silhouetted figures, and fine bar a tiny hint of creasing to the head of the spine panel. le Carré loathed the dust wrapper design and it was replaced for the general UK issue of this book. Publisher’s complements slip laid-in, alongside a fax (remember those?) from the publisher briefly outlining the difference between the two states. Uncommon thus. £325
JOHN LE CARRÉ. Our Game. Hodder & Stoughton, London 1995. First edition, with the complete number line. 8vo. 347pp. Half a dozen tiny pinpricks of spotting to the top edge, and a hint of toning to the leaf margins. Binding cracked and opened at the terminal leaf, hence only a good copy in the second state dust wrapper, very slightly faded at the spine panel. le Carré loathed the dust wrapper design and it was replaced for the general UK issue of this book, with the original version reserved for export and UK airport use only. The subsequently produced UK editions all contain a number line starting with ‘2’, but in this copy the ‘1’ is present, confirming it as one of the original first state examples, albeit now housed in a second state dust wrapper (the design showing a single silhouetted figure against a red and white background). £55
JOHN LE CARRÉ. The Tailor of Panama. A novel. Hodder & Stoughton, London 1996. First edition. This copy signed by the author on the title page. 8vo. 410pp. Cloth-backed boards. A tiny trace of toning to the top- and fore edge. A virtually fine copy in fine dust wrapper. A super copy of the author’s espionage thriller, in-part inspired by Graham Greene’s Our Man in Havana. £150
JOHN LE CARRÉ. Single & Single. A novel. Hodder & Stoughton, London 1999. First edition. This copy signed by the author by way of a title-specific bookplate pasted to the title page. 8vo. 336pp. Top- and fore edge fractionally spotted. A virtually fine copy in virtually fine dust wrapper. £55
JOHN LE CARRÉ. Absolute Friends. A novel. Hodder & Stoughton, London 2003. First edition. This copy signed by the author by way of a title-specific bookplate pasted to the title page. 8vo. 383pp. Top edge lightly spotted, and with half a dozen further pinpricks of spotting to the fore edge. A light horizontal crease to the rear free endpaper. Very good indeed in dust wrapper, with some fading to the publisher’s spine panel colouring. A very good copy of this standalone espionage novel. £75
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