Little Known Second-State Jacket with Provenance
Night Shift
Publication: New York: Doubleday, 1977. First Edition.
Notes: A collection of King's early stories, most from Cavalier magazine. The stories in Night Shift have proven remarkably fertile ground for film adaptations, spawning at least six Hollywood productions including Children of the Corn, Cat's Eye, and most recently, The Boogeyman. This collection brought together King's magazine work, which had helped support his family before Carrie's success.
As a collection of short stories—which don't usually sell particularly well—the print run of this book was smaller than for King's novels of the period. Estimates typically put the first printing at 10 to 20 thousand. Sales exceeded Doubleday's expectations and they ran out of dust jackets so copies of various printings are found with price-clipped bookclub jackets.
Mystery novelist John D. MacDonald supplied the introduction.
xxiv, 336 pages.
Edition + Condition: First edition (stated; in the second state dust jacket). This copy, like all stated first editions, has the code S52 on page 336. The dust jacket is an example of the known but poorly documented second state dust jacket, which is a clipped book club jacket with the publisher's $8.95 price sticker at the upper right corner of the flap. Doubleday apparently ran out of jackets and repurposed book club jackets which lacked a printed price and ISBN by removing the "book club" text from the bottom of the flap and adding the sticker. A near fine copy in a near fine jacket. This is a complimentary copy, with a tipped on card and an ink stamp on the front pastedown. (James Strand's notes suggest the compliments card is from King's literary agency).
Provenance: Barry Levin to James Strand (1988, $750); stolen in August 2023; recovered by the FBI from a storage unit in Oregon City. Original evidence tag laid in; Strand estate bookplate on the front pastedown.
Item No: #365578
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