The Naked Lunch
Paris: Olympia Press, 1959. 1st Edition. 12mo, publisher’s green paper wraps printed in black and white.
First edition of William Burroughs's Beat classic. "Junk is the ideal product...the ultimate merchandise. No sales talk necessary. The client will crawl through a sewer and beg to buy.... The junk merchant does not sell his product to the consumer, he sells the consumer to his product." Published by Maurice Girodias's Olympia Press, famous for first publishing Nabokov's Lolita, among other scandalous classics. Initially banned in the US on the grounds of obscenity, the novel wouldn't be published there until 1962. Issued as number 76 in the Olympia's Traveller's Companion series. First issue with green-printed border to title page and price of 1500 francs printed to lower wrap. Lacking original dust jacket. Minor toning and edgewear to wraps, faint dampstaining to first blank, light soiling to edges of textblock. Very good. Item #12506
$450.00