- First Edition
- Signed
- Used
Seller: Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA), McMinnville, OR, U.S.A.Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA)
AbeBooks seller since March 21, 2000
Condition: Used
£ 753.75
Quantity: 1 available
Add to basketItem description from seller
218 x 140 mm. (8 5/8 x 5 1/2"). x, 113, [1] pp., [1] leaf. Publisher's navy blue buckram, front cover gilt with the author's initials, spine lettered in gilt. In original dust jacket. SIGNED AND INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR on the front free endpaper: "The night is covered with signs. / for Paul Kresh, / who fought and bled for Akiba,/ and more besides - with long affection/ Muriel./ May 1968." Sam Huber, "Muriel Rukeyser, Mother of Everyone," Paris Review, 2018. Dust jacket spine with mild sunning, extremities very slightly worn; internally pristine. With a warm personal inscription from the author to an important advocate of her work, this is an excellent copy of one of Muriel Rukeyser's most influential collections. Poet, writer, and political activist Rukeyser (1913-80) composed "The Speed of Darkness" at a time of personal and political upheaval. She had suffered a stroke four years previously, and was adjusting to her life afterward while serving as president of PEN America (an organization promoting freedom of expression and human rights through literature), campaigning for feminist causes, and protesting against the Vietnam War. Divided into five sections ("Clues," "Games," "The Outer Banks," "Lives," and "The Speed of Darkness"), the present group of poems has given us some of Rukeyser's most-quoted lines, such as the verse from the title work: "The Universe is made of stories, not of atoms." While growing out of the political situation in which they are written, many of these poems have evergreen resonance: Sam Huber wrote in "The Paris Review" in 2018 about the resurgence of popularity of "Poem," first published in the present collection: "In moments of desperation, a favorite poem has resurfaced lately, sometimes on Twitter and sometimes in memory. . . 'Poem' has become a vehicle for anti-Trump sentiment, an equivocal fate for any artifact but one Rukeyser would not likely have chafed against. . . the vitality of her art depends on its responsiveness to the world it enters." The present copy contains a lengthy inscription by the author to a person of great importance in her career. Author, critic, and editor Paul Kresh (1919-97) was Rukeyser's longtime friend and an advocate for her writing as well as a person known for recording poets--including our author--reading their own works. The poem "Akiba," which appears in this collection, is a reflection on the life of Rabbi Akiba (also Akiva), the first-century scholar and sage. The poem was first published by Kresh in "American Judaism" magazine, of which he was editor, and was later included in his 1967 anthology "American Judaism Reader" before its inclusion in the present volume. Our copy was later part of the library of Belgian-American poet, translator, and editor Laure-Anne Bosselaar (b. 1943) and her husband Kurt Brown (1944-2013), also a prolific poet and editor of anthologies, as well as the founder and first director of the Aspen Writer's Conference. The present work is not difficult to locate for sale, but we could not find in present dealer listings or in RBH any signed copy (let alone to a significant inscribee).…
Seller Inventory # ST20338-090
Bibliographic details
- Title
- THE SPEED OF DARKNESS
- Author
- RUKEYSER, MURIEL
- Publisher
- Random House, New York
- Publication year
- 1968
- Dust jacket
- Dust Jacket Included
- Signed
- Signed by Author(s)
- Edition
- FIRST EDITION.
- Seller catalogs
- Modern First Editions, Poetry, Women - Authors and Artists
Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA)
McMinnville, OR, U.S.A.
Shipping rates within U.S.A.
| Item | 2 to 7 business days | 2 to 4 business days |
|---|---|---|
| First item | £ 7.41 | £ 11.11 |
Payment methods
- Bank Wire Transfer
- Check
- Money Order
Specialty
Early Printing, Bindings, English Literature, Illuminated Manuscripts, Rare Books, Fine Illustrated Books, American Literature, Press Books, IncunablesAssociation member
Seller's business information
Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA)
OR, U.S.A.
Terms of sale
Payment: We accept checks, money orders, Visa, Master Card, American Express and wire transfers. If you are a first time customer, we wait for payment to be received before sending out your order.
Shipping: Shipping and insurance are extra. We usually ship USPS Priority, but other options available to the client including FedEx, or UPS.
Returns: Your satisfaction is unconditionally guaranteed. If you buy an item from us and discover that you are not satisfied with it, you may return it within 10 days of receipt for a refund, so long as the item has not been damaged.
Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books
2205 NW Nut Tree Lane
PO Box 504
McMinnville, OR 97128
Email: info@pirages.com
Ph: 800-962-6666 or 503-472-0476
Fax: 503-472-5029
Tax ID No. 93-1163989
Employees: Cokie Anderson, Michal Alkoff, David Clark, Tammy Opheim
Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books is a sole proprietorship.
Right of withdrawal
If you are a consumer you can withdraw from the contract in accordance with the following. Consumer means any natural person who is acting for purposes which are outside his trade, business, craft or profession.
Information regarding the right of withdrawal
Statutory right to withdraw
You have the right to withdraw from this contract within 14 days without giving any reason.
The withdrawal period will expire after 14 days from the day on which you acquire, or a third party other than the carrier and indicated by you acquires, physical possession of the last good or the last lot or piece.
To exercise the right of withdrawal, electronically fill in and submit a clear statement on our website, under "My Purchases" in "My Account". We will communicate to you an acknowledgement of receipt of such a withdrawal on a durable medium (e.g. by e-mail) without delay.
To meet the withdrawal deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your communication concerning your exercise of the right of withdrawal before the withdrawal period has expired.
Effects of withdrawal
If you withdraw from this contract, we will reimburse to you all payments received from you, including the costs of delivery (except for the supplementary costs arising if you chose a type of delivery other than the least expensive type of standard delivery offered by us).
We may make a deduction from the reimbursement for loss in value of any goods supplied, if the loss is the result of unnecessary handling by you.
We will make the reimbursement without undue delay, and not later than 14 days after the day on which we are informed about your decision to withdraw from this contract.
We will make the reimbursement using the same means of payment as you used for the initial transaction, unless you have expressly agreed otherwise; in any event, you will not incur any fees as a result of such reimbursement.
We may withhold reimbursement until we have received the goods back, or you have supplied evidence of having sent back the goods, whichever is the earliest.
You shall send back the goods or hand them over to Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA), McMinnville, Oregon, U.S.A., without undue delay and in any event not later than 14 days from the day on which you communicate your withdrawal from this contract to us. The deadline is met if you send back the goods before the period of 14 days has expired. You will have to bear the direct cost of returning the goods. You are only liable for any diminished value of the goods resulting from the handling other than what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods.
Exceptions to the right of withdrawal
The right of withdrawal does not apply to:
- The delivery of newspapers, journals or magazines with the exception of subscription contracts; and
- The supply of digital content which is not supplied on a tangible medium (e.g. on a CD or DVD) if you accepted when you placed your order that we could start to deliver it, and that you could not withdraw once delivery had started.
Shipping terms
Shipping costs are based on books weighing 2.2 LB, or 1 KG. If your book order is heavy or oversized, we may contact you to let you know extra shipping is required.