NY: Ace Books, 1953. First edition of William Burroughs' first book, written under the pseudonym 'William Lee'. Bound tête-bêche in wrappers with Maurice Helbrant's "Narcotic Agent". Publisher's note by Carl Solomon (not credited). Ace Books was owned by Carl Solomon's uncle, A.A. Wyn, a connection made by Allen Ginsberg who was acting as Burroughs's agent at the time. The publication of Nelson Algren's novel "The Man With The Golden Arm" in 1949 inspired a trend for books about junkies, many of them mass-market paperbacks sold in newsagents rather than bookshops, and with commercial success in mind Wyn agreed..... More about Junkie

London: New English Library, 1969. Wrps. New front cover art depicts junkie's arm with hypo. SIGNED and inscribed by the author on the title page: "For Allen De Loach William Burroughs". A nice association as De Loach published Burroughs in his magazine Intrepid. Spine slightly faded, with a little flaking to spine edges; pages lightly browned, o/w a tight, Very Good plus copy. More about Junkie

London: Tandem, 1966. First p/b edition. Front cover art depicts a mainline shot with blood. Faint reading creases to spine; page edges slightly tanned; wrappers rubbed and lightly creased, o/w a tight, Very Good copy. More about Dead Fingers Talk

NY: Berkley Publishing Corp., 1958. First thus (originally published in 1904 as "Fumée d'opium"). Wrps. Translation by Samuel Putnam. Preface by Pierre Louys. Cover art by Robert Maguire features an erotic depiction of a naked blonde woman amidst the swirling smoke of an opium pipe. Farrère's classic collection of opium tales: "The world of BLACK OPIUM is a forbidden world where human bodies find themselves possessed and driven by desires which consume them in the flames of hot-blooded ecstasy... Here is a world of torture and torment, filled with the fantastically erotic shapes of the living nightmares of..... More about Black Opium

NY: Dell, 1941. First edition in book form (the story first appeared in Detective Fiction Weekly), published as Dell Book 11, priced at .10c. (and originally sold in vending machines). Wrps., unpaginated. Classic pulp cover art by Bill Fleming. "A cheap and evil girl sets a hopped-up killer against a city". Cheap paper browned, with water stains to lower right corners and two short tears to second leaf; surface creasing and associated rubbing to upper wrapper; o/w a Good copy of this noir classic. More about Marihuana

London: Pan (1961), second printing of the first UK p/b edition (1963). Front cover art depicts redhead with hands on hips, exposed midriff and side-zipped blue-green slacks against jazz combo background. Alexis Lykiard's ownership label to first leaf. Page edges slightly tanned, with corner dampstain to first few leaves; wrappers slightly rubbed and lightly creased; o/w Very Good with a tight, square spine. More about On The Road

London: Panther, 1962. First UK p/b edition. Front cover blurb: "An unashamed look at their weird lives... their wild loves... in a jazz-haunted, desire-tormented world". Cover art depicts barefoot redhead dancing to sax; back cover shows still from the movie. Faint reading creases to spine, o/w a tight, Very Good plus copy. More about The Subterraneans

London: Panther, 1960. First UK edition. Wrps. Front cover art depicts Maggie as a brunette in long black stockings. Page edges slightly tanned, o/w a tight, Near Fine copy. More about Maggie Cassidy

NY: Ace Books, 1954. First p/b edition (D-398), second issue (with .35c cover price). Cover art by Bernard Barton. "There's this Jane sitting on a park bench just waiting for someone to come along. She's got no home, no wedding ring, and this here baby in her arms. So, strictly for kicks… Mark Gillis latches on to this babe... Anyway, that's the beginning of that wild, mixed-up week-end" (blurb). Slight creasing to top right corner of upper wrapper; pages slightly tanned; o/w a tight, Very Good plus copy. More about Why I Am So Beat

NY: Original Novels, Inc., [February] 1952. First edition (digest-size p/b original). Classic cover art by Robert Schultz depicting blonde, hypo, etc. "Here is the revealing, shocking story of a thrill-seeking and wealthy young girl who, because of a driving desire to find love, falls into the abyss of shame… Willing to steal from her family, to pawn her jewels, to sell out to any man to keep herself supplied with the precious 'junk' pretty Connie Emerson… runs through the gamut of life at its sordid worst!" (blurb). Some light wear and rubbing to spine; scuff marks..... More about Beyond Desire

NY: Pyramid Books, 1954. First p/b edition. Classic cover art by Julian Paul. A confessional account of heroin, morphine, cocaine, marijuana, and opium use in New York City: "Here is a true, uncensored account of a growing social problem - the story of one man's struggle to return from the pit of depravity" (back cover blurb). Tiny loss to head of spine panel; slight rubbing to spine edges and shallow crease to upper wrapper, o/w a tight, Very Good plus to Near Fine copy. More about I Was a Drug Addict