Raymond Carver / CATHEDRAL Signed 1st Edition 1983

Description: CATHEDRAL Author: Carver, Raymond Title: CATHEDRAL Publication: Alfred A. Knopf, 1983 Edition: First Edition Description: Hardcover with Dust Jacket. 12mo, gray paper over board backed in gray cloth with silver gilt stamped lettering. Some very trivial toning to extremities, else FINE in FINE DJ, both exceedingly clean and fresh. SIGNED by Carver on the FFEP in green pen and inscribed 'For Stathis and Ralph, with my regards -- Raymond Carver / May 1988 / L.A.' Signed with the same green pen by Tess Gallagher on the dedication page beneath her printed name. Cathedral is Raymond Carver's finest work, the pinnacle of his artistry. The collection was runner up for the Pulitzer Prize and recipient of the O Henry Award for 'A Small, Good Thing,' a longer story about a baker who does a terrible thing and finds redemption in sharing his rolls with those he has sinned against. Sacramental themes continue through the book--notably in the eponymous story, 'Cathedral'--as Carver tracks a migration of the holy into surprising spaces of vulnerability and communion between people in the disenchanted landscape known as 'The 80's.' Having come through the purgative furnace of Gordon Lish's unrelenting red pen, Ray had found a more lyrical and vivid, though still focused and unadorned, voice beyond the legalistic minimalism of his earlier work. Cathedral was a fairly unique event in publishing at the time, a third collection of short stories, second with Knopf, at a time when short stories were regarded as merely a springboard to the mandatory moneymaker novel. Following three hospitalizations in nine months, Ray quit alcohol for good in 1977 and began a relationship with Tess Gallagher, a fellow writer and actual graduate of the Iowa Writer's Workshop (Ray lied about completing his MFA, though he was foundationally mentored there by John Gardner, to whom he dedicates Cathedral alongside Tess). In these 'gravy' years out beyond the alcoholism that nearly killed him, Ray was sheltered by Tess and inspired and disciplined by the companionship of a fellow writer at the top of her game. Ray found a 'Second Life' with Tess in Port Angeles, While she admits she may have been bluffing when she swore she'd leave him if he ever drank again, it's hard not to see the beauty of their story keeping him sober, and alive. Tess, daughter and companion of several alcoholic men throughout her life, wrote of him: 'There was a way in which all the failed alcoholics in my life were symbolically delivered by Ray's success. He was drying out for all of them.' For his part, Ray was clear that he owed his success and survival to the 'unearned gift' of life with Tess. Ray and Tess inscribed this to Stathis Orphanos and Ralph Sylvester in L.A., where they had been publishing fine-press limited editions of short stories since the mid-Seventies. Dated May 1988, a month before marrying, three before Ray's death in August. [Carol Sklenicka, Raymond Carver: A Writer's Life]. FINE / FINE. Seller ID: 503916 Subject: Fine and Rare Arches Bookhouse is a brick & mortar bookshop in North Portland, Oregon. We carry good books of all kinds with an emphasis on scholarly humanities books. We are open for browsing Monday-Saturday, 10–5:00. Terms All orders ship within two business days, packaged professionally with care. We offer combined shipping on multiple orders. All items are guaranteed to be as described or they may be returned within 30 days of receipt for a full refund.This listing was created by Bibliopolis.

Price: 1200 USD

Location: Portland, Oregon

End Time: 2024-12-28T19:39:09.000Z

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