John STEINBECK. The Grapes of Wrath. NY: Viking, [April 1939]. 1st ed, 1st issue. + damaged dj

From the Dobo collection.

The first 36 lots in this sale are from the collection of Francis Dobo (1908-1998)

John STEINBECK (1902-1968). The Grapes of Wrath. New York: the Viking Press, [April 1939]. Octavo (8 x 5 3/8 inches; 203 x 136 mm). Pp. [i-vi; 1-]3-619[-622 blank]. Original beige cloth, blocked in brown, endpapers with a portion of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" printed in reddish-brown, top edge of the book-block stained light brown, dust-jacket with ‘first edition’ notice on front flap. (Very short split to head of spine; dust-jacket in three pieces, with small voids and quite heavy toning to backstrip).

First edition, first issue with "First Published in April 1939" on copyright page and first edition notice on front flap of dust jacket. “Perhaps The Grapes of Wrath is the greatest modern American novel, perhaps it is the greatest single creative work this country has ever produced” (front flap).

Francis Dobo: the “epitome of a 20th Century intellectual” Hungarian born Francis F. Dobo (1908-1998) was an important figure in the world of publishing, contemporary literature and photography for over half a century. He was lifelong friends with the renowned Hungarian masters of candid photography, Brassaï and André Kertész, first in Hungary and later in Paris in the 1930s. It was in Paris he encountered Henry Miller, Louis-Ferdinand Celine and Raymond Queneau: he corresponded and supported Miller from then on, and subsequently became Queneau’s U.S. agent.  Love of books and literature seems to have been a family trait: his uncle was Gabriel Wells (1861-1946), one of the two most important rare book dealers of his generation. The present selection includes a small number of books which belonged to Wells, with the rest being a cross section of the best of the contemporary literature which was such an important part of Francis’ life. William Faulkner, Ernest Hemingway, Arthur Koestler, Christopher Isherwood, Norman Mailer, Franz Kafka are all here !