LE CARRÉ, John.

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington

The Secret Pilgrim. Uncorrected proof copy, presentation copy, inscribed by the author to a friend and valued critic on the dedication page: "and for Kit with just the same, & love too, this smudgy proof copy, from David alias John le Carré". Within the novel, Le Carré describes the recipient's home as "a splendid Cornish castle near Saltash" (p. 258).Kathleen Wedgwood "Kit" Coryton (1916/17-2009) has annotated the relevant passage in pencil, identifying the castle as her very own Pentillie Castle, where she frequently hosted her friend le Carré. He routinely sent her proof copies of his works to gain her thoughts during the drafting stages. This proof was for the American edition, which was published earlier the same year as the British edition.Set in a spy training school, the work is "a summation of how futile and wasteful 40 years of cold war espionage really were. In the end, it was not spies but Mr Gorbachev and the ordinary people of Eastern Europe who laid Stalinism low" (Boyd).

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