The Man Who Loved Children

New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1965. Very Good/Very Good. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1965. Second American Edition. Octavo. 527 pp. Illustrated dust jacket with $5.95 price intact. White cloth stamped in brown and blue; dark topstain. Dust jacket shows a few brief chips and tears with some creasing along edges, with some faint staining to surface. Boards lightly shelfworn with shallow staining along edges. Glue has let go internally between spine cloth and backing and front board opens a bit shakily, but binding is still holding soundly. Previous owner's bookplate to front pastedown with contemporary gift inscription facing, else interior unmarked.

Marxist Australian novelist Christina Stead's near-forgotten novel of familial torture, set in Washington, DC. Jarrell's introduction here brought the book its first wave of critical acclaim, and it was more recently brought back to the public eye after appearing on TIME's 100 Best English-Language Novels of 1923-2005 (sorry, Ulysses).