The Sunset Limited, Advance Reading Copy of the First English and First Hardcover Edition
Picador, London, 2010
Advance reading copy of the first English edition. “First published in Great Britain 2010” on the copyright page, with the full numberline (1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2). Softcover, 15 x 10.5 cm, 142 numbered pages. Publisher’s black-and-white wrappers, lettered in white and black, with no designer credited. The back cover notes “07/05/2010” as the publication date of the first edition.
CONDITION: Fine.
The text reproduces exactly that of the trade first edition, though in smaller dimensions.
COLLECTING TOPICS: I am aware of only four copies of this proof having appeared on the market. I purchased my first copy, back in 2010, from a small bookseller in England who was unable to provide strong provenance. I bought a second copy in 2011 from the same seller, Caroline Howells, for £10, and in 2013 I consigned it to Heritage, which included it in a lot of McCarthy books and sold it.
In the meantime, another copy was listed at $250 in Ken Lopez’s catalog no. 154 (December 2010). It was described as an “uncorrected proof” and sold quickly. Unfortunately, Ken’s archives contained no photographs of the item, and he did not recall its exact appearance.
Finally, in 2023, Mark Warner—an Australian book dealer who had previously handled scarce McCarthy material—offered me a copy for $330 and provided photographs and provenance. It was likely produced in only a handful of copies for promotional purposes. A very scarce find.
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