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Very good cover.

Very good cover.

These volumes bring together for the first time all of Zora Neale Hurston's best works in one authoritative set.

First Edition (1934. ) Hardcover lacking dust jacket. 8vo with 316 pages. The book is in poor condition with shelf wear and some wear to most edges. Water damage to covers and spine. Some toning due to age. Interior is clean and tight. Two previous owner's signatures on front paste down and front free endpaper. Pictures available upon request. "Zora Neale Hurston's first novel, originally published in 1934, tells the story of John Buddy Pearson, a living exultation of a young man who loves too many women for his own good...Zora Neale Hurston's portrayal of her world of men, women, and love is unforgettable in its vividness. Her people, and their triumphs and tragedies, will remain in the memory of the reader forever...One of the 20th century's greatest authors, and a woman who truly understands her characters' motivations." Brown-Green spine/Brown text. #034256.

First edition of the author's first book. Octavo, bound in full morocco by the Harcourt Bindery, gilt titles to the spine, gilt ruled to the front and rear panels, raised bands, inner dentelles, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. In near fine condition, name to the title page. With an introduction by Fanny Hurst. Rare and desirable. Praised by Carl Sandburg as "a bold and beautiful book, many a page priceless and unforgettable." Written in only three to four months in 1934, Jonah's Gourd Vine is the first novel published by acclaimed anthropologist, writer, and Harlem Renaissance personality Zora Neale Hurston. The book, based loosely on her parents' lives, explores the life and consciousness of John Pearson and his relationship with his wife Lucy Potts and other women in the town. Pearson was depicted as a minister in a small black Florida town, Eatonville, which in reality was Hurston's hometown. In Hurston's work one hears and feels the authentic voice, power, and sensibilities of people and places. In this novel, she used events from her childhood and the sermons she heard as a preacher's daughter to give structure and texture to this novel.

First edition. Introduction by Fannie Hurst. Relatively discreet ex-library copy with public library stamp on title page overstamped "Withdrawn, " light evidence of pocket removed, hinges professionally strengthened with cloth, the usual sunning to the sensitive green cloth, still about very good lacking the rare dust jacket. This is W. E. B. DuBois's copy with his rubberstamped ownership facsimile signature. The author's rare first book, a novel about a big, lovable Alabama preacher with a strong appetite for extramarital affection. A terrific association.