"EVINCES SOME OF THE FOUNDATIONAL THEMES OF SOUTHERN LITERATURE": FIRST EDITION OF STONEMASON, INSCRIBED BY CORMAC MCCARTHY

MCCARTHY, Cormac. The Stonemason. A Play in Five Acts. Hopewell, NJ: Ecco, (1994). Octavo, original half black cloth, original dust jacket. $2450.

First trade edition, issued along with a signed limited edition, of McCarthy's first published play, inscribed on the half title, "For Bill Clark, All the best, Cormac McCarthy."

Stonemason "tells of the close bond between a young black construction worker, Ben Telfair, and his stonemason grandfather… 'Stacking up stone is the oldest trade there is,' said McCarthy in 1992… 'It's older than anything, older than fire'" (Hage, Cormac McCarthy, 14). "The play evinces some of the foundational themes of southern literature… The social and cultural subtext of Stonemason therefore ensures that it can be read alongside works such as The Orchard Keeper and Suttree where the mythical and philosophical struggles of the protagonists are paralleled by narratives that document rapidly changing southern socioeconomic and cultural landscapes" (Walsh, "History Done Swallow You Up," Appalachian Heritage). Stonemason was staged in Houston in 2001 following an earlier unproduced attempt in Washington D.C. in 1992. "First Edition" stated on copyright page with no further editions or printings; published along with a signed limited edition, no priority established.

Fine condition.