THE SHELTERING SKY, LET IT COME DOWN, THE SPIDER'S HOUSE

New York City, NY: Library Of America, 2002. First Edition. First Printing.. Hardcover. Fine/No Dust Jacket, As Issued.. New York City, NY: Library Of America, 2002. Hardcover. Fine/None, As Issued. First Edition/First Printing. 950 pages. Retrospective collection of the author's masterpiece-novels. The First Slipcased Edition. Precedes and should not be confused with all other subsequent editions. Published in a small and limited first print run as a Slipcased Edition for distribution to libraries and LOA subscribers only. None of the copies was sold to the public. The Slipcased Edition has the same ISBN as the regular trade edition. The Slipcased Edition is now rare. An austerely elegant production: Regular-sized volume format. Text by Paul Bowles edited and annotated by Daniel Halpern. Cream hard board slipcase. Printed to the highest standards on acid-free paper, utilizing sewn binding, closely woven rayon cloth boards, satin bound-in ribbon marker, and a page layout that is both readable and elegant. The book is guaranteed to last for several generations of readers and collectors (despite frequent and regular use, the estimated life span of Library of America Editions is 1000 years; un-used, they will last forever). Without DJ, as issued. Re-presents Paul Bowles' "The Sheltering Sky", "Let It Come Down", and "The Spider's House". His three greatest novels. "Sui generis" in American literature, unsurpassed masterpieces even by him. While "The Sheltering Sky" is Bowles' iconic achievement, "Let It Come Down" and "The Spider's House" are his most complex works. "In a prose style of meticulous calm and stunning visual precision, Bowles tracks Port and Kit Moresby on a journey through the desert that culminates in death and madness" (Publisher's blurb on "The Sheltering Sky"). The great Italian director Bernardo Bertolucci adapted "The Sheltering Sky" into a great film in which Bowles himself appears, an oracular and indelible presence. Were it not for their exquisite, lapidary writing, Paul Bowles' creepy, "crawls-under-your-skin" novels would be unbearable in their evocation of existential terror for even the most jaded reader. An absolute "must-have" title for Paul Bowles collectors. These titles are great books. The First Slipcased Edition was distributed to libraries and LOA subscribers only. None of the copies was sold to the public. This is one of few copies of the First Library of America Slipcased Edition/First Printing available online and is in especially fine condition: Clean, crisp, and bright. It comes with a pristine copy, laid-in, of the Publisher's Promotional Material. Please note: Should NOT be confused with the regular trade edition. A rare copy thus. One of the greatest writer/composer/artists of the 20th century. A fine copy. (SEE ALSO OTHER LIBRARY OF AMERICA TITLES IN OUR CATALOG). ISBN 1931082197.