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Lot #562
Harper Lee

Harper Lee wonders if the end has come for To Kill a Mockingbird

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Description

Harper Lee wonders if the end has come for To Kill a Mockingbird

Rare ALS signed “Nelle,” one page both sides, 5.25 x 7.5, personal letterhead, September 22, 2008. Letter to Jonathan Risco. In full: “Thank you so much for the Leaves of Grass. It will probably be the last edition, because the news in NY Magazine of 22 September is not good. Looks like books are coming to an end. My agent can’t get M’bird placed anywhere as a reprint. My own publisher, one of the biggest houses, is going out of business! Guess this is the last of the wine.” In very fine condition. Accompanied by the original mailing envelope, addressed in Lee’s hand.

Lee was referring to the story in the September 22, 2008, issue of New York magazine that predicted the end of the printed word—at least in book form. “Looks like books are coming to an end. My agent can’t get M’bird placed anywhere as a reprint,” she laments. She was also dismayed by the dismissal of HarperCollins CEO Jane Friedman, leading Lee, and others in the industry, to envision her “My own publisher, one of the biggest houses, is going out of business! Guess this is the last of the wine.” The final chapter wasn’t yet written, however, as HarperCollins did not go out of business. In fact, in 2010, it published a 50th anniversary edition of Lee’s iconic To Kill a Mockingbird. Pre-certified PSA/DNA and RRAuction COA.

Auction Info

  • Auction Title:
  • Dates: #361 - Ended September 15, 2010





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