STEINBECK, John - WOOD, Charles Erskine Scott.

£1,400 · Offered by Peter Harrington

Earthly Discourse. First edition, first printing. Inscribed by the author "To John & Carol Steinbeck in sorrow for their un-social thought and behavior, 'The Cats', Los Gatos California, November 11 1938". He has also autographed the frontispiece. Wood (1852-1944) was a writer, lawyer, and prominent supporter of radical causes, and Earthly Discourse is a collection of satirical stories in this vein. Wood was friendly with many activists and writers, including John Steinbeck, whose Of Mice and Men was published the year before this book was inscribed. "The Cats" was the name of Wood's house: the name of the town means "the cats" in Spanish.

Found via Rare Books Intel, a search across rare-book dealers, auction houses and marketplaces worldwide.