The Way Some People Live

New York: Random House, (1943).

Price: $7,500.00

Hardcover. First edition. Fine in very near fine dustwrapper with a tiny nick near the base of the spine and a faint spot on the spine, but an especially bright and fine example. Signed by the author and dated in 1976. Cheever's uncommon first book, a collection of short fiction that he never allowed to be reprinted. Only three of the stories have ever been subsequently printed, in an obscure paperback published in the 1960s. Consequently Cheever was loathe to sign copies, and this is one of only a very few. Combined with the especially nice condition, this may be the best copy we've seen.

Item #318499

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Item #318499 The Way Some People Live. John CHEEVER.
The Way Some People Live
The Way Some People Live
The Way Some People Live

John Cheever
birth name: John Cheever
born: 5/27/1912
died: 6/18/1982
nationality: USA

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Biography

American short-story writer and novelist whose work described, often through fantasy and ironic comedy, the life, manners, and morals of middle-class, suburban America. He is noted for his clear and elegant prose and his careful fashioning of incidents and anecdotes.more

Collecting tips:

Cheever is a wonderful short story writer, and his Wapshot novels are excellent, but he seems to have fallen out of favor of late (which by the way, isn't necessarily a bad thing if you are looking to collect an author's books). He was apparently not enamored of his first book, a collection of stories The Way Some People Live (1943) and he didn't allow it to be reprinted -- conveniently, at that time, anyway, no one wanted to reprint it. Printed in relatively small numbers during wartime, pretty much insured that fine copies would not grow on trees, and they don't. Cheever's family objected to some elements of the planned publication of The Uncollected Stories of John Cheever 1930-1981 and publication was suppressed. The uncorrected proof was the only complete version that saw the light of day, and commands a premium.

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