All the Pretty Horses, uncorrected proof, third state.
Knopf, New York, 1992
Uncorrected proof of the first edition, third state. Softcover, 21 x 13.6, 297 numbered pages. Beige wrappers lettered in black on the spine and front cover. The front panel reads “Volume One of A Border Trilogy” but features the “A” corrected in “The” and a “4” added to the publication date of “MAY 1992”. Both corrections are made by hand in black ink (APG, 006d).
Signed in black ballpoint pen by McCarthy on the half title page.
CONDITION: very good to near fine.
PROVENANCE: From the Robert Proull collection. Purchased from him in 2010.
Issued between January and April 1992, in 750 copies (including all four states).
The date of publication is mentioned in the publisher’s editorial fact sheet (EP, B32, F14). The number of copies printed comes from a handwritten note by Dan Halpern on a letter from Howard Woolmer to him, dated January 17, 1994 (EP, B32, F12).
The license agreement between Random House and Ecco signed on November 30, 1983, and completed on January 9, 1984, stated an advance of $500, payable on the day of publication, and 7,5% royalties. (EP, B32, F14).
WRAPPER PROOF: the Ecco Press Archive includes a proof of the wrapper, later discarded, which features a blank back panel and a blue front cover background instead of purple (B32, F14).
RECIPIENT: the book is inscribed to Dale Walker, a writer and acquaintance of McCarthy from El Paso.
COLLECTING TOPICS: unsigned copies have become uncommon. In fact, they seem to be scarcer than those of The Orchard Keeper, Outer Dark, and Blood Meridian, published by The Ecco Press. As of January 2025, no copies were listed on line.
Rare Book Hub lists no copies at auction.
Signed or inscribed copies are decidedly scarce. Aside from this one, I remember only a signed copy offered by Captain Ahab’s Rare Books in 2017. It was listed at $1,500 and eventually sold for $1,200.
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