STEINBECK, John

Tortilla Flat

New York: Covici Friede, 1935. Item #06581

Steinbeck’s Breakthrough - The Rare Wrappered Issue
A Likely Advance Issue, One of Approximately 500 Copies

STEINBECK, John. Tortilla Flat. Illustrated by Ruth Gannett. New York: Covici Friede, [1935].

First edition, wrappered issue of the author’s first commercially successful novel.

Octavo (7 1/2 x 5 1/4 inches; 191 x 133 mm.). [i–iv], v–vi, [vii–viii], 9–316, [1], [3, blank] pp.

Publisher’s original sewn pictorial wrappers printed in blue. Spine darkened, with a tiny chip at the foot and a short (1 1/2 inch) split at the top of the front joint. Preserved in the (likely original) glassine wrapper.

A very good, well-preserved example of this fragile and elusive issue. Chemised in a blue cloth folder and housed in a quarter dark blue morocco slipcase, spine with five raised bands, ruled and lettered in gilt in compartments.

The rare wrappered issue of Tortilla Flat, produced in a small limitation - generally estimated at approximately 500 copies - at the time of first publication.

Though bibliographers Goldstone and Payne note that there is no conclusive evidence that this issue precedes the standard cloth binding, it has long been regarded in the trade as an advance or trial issue, likely intended for early distribution, review, or promotional purposes.

Fragile by nature and seldom encountered in presentable condition, copies retaining their original glassine are particularly scarce. This issue marks the turning point in Steinbeck’s career: Tortilla Flat established both his reputation and his distinctive narrative voice, paving the way for In Dubious Battle (1936) and The Grapes of Wrath (1939).

A desirable and increasingly difficult Steinbeck issue, especially in unrestored condition.

Price: $4,000.00