1st, w bookplate signed by author, Toward the End of Time by John Updike (1997)

Description: Toward the End of Time by John Updike (signed bookplate) Alfred A. Knopf First Edition Description: Hardback book published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1997. The copyright page states 'First Edition' and there is no statement of additional printing, making this a first printing. Bookplate signed by the author without inscription or personalization laid in (not attached). There was also a Franklin Library Signed First Edition Society edition (see our other items for a copy). We have more books autographed by John Updike for sale, to see a list, click on the link below: Autographed John Updike items for sale Synopsis: Ben Turnbull, the hero of John Updike's eighteenth novel, is a sixty-six-year-old retired investment counselor living north of Boston in the year 2020. A recent war between the United States and China has thinned the population and brought social chaos. The dollar has been locally replaced by Massachusetts scrip; instead of taxes, one pays protection money to competing racketeers. Nevertheless, Ben's life, traced by his journal entries over the course of a year, retains many of its accustomed comforts, as supervised by his vibrant wife, Gloria. He plays golf; he pays visits to his five children and ten grandchildren. Something of a science buff, he finds his personal history caught up in the disjunctions and vagaries of the "many-worlds hypothesis derived from the indeterminacy of quantum theory. His identity branches into variants extending back through history and ahead in the evolution of the universe, as both it and his own mortal, nature-enshrouded existence move toward the end of time. JOHN UPDIKE IS "A STYLIST OF THE HIGHEST ORDER, capable of illuminating the sublime in the mundane, thereby elevating all of human experience." --Chicago Tribune Toward the End of Time "is the journal of a 66-year-old man, Ben Turnbull . . . [which] reveals not only the world but the wanderings of his wits. . . . So what if he jumps from a United States in the next century, disintegrating after a war with China, to ancient Egypt, or to virtual reality? So what if characters appear and disappear like phantoms in a dream? . . . Turnbull's journal is like Walden gone haywire. . . . If Ben's ruthlessness is evenhanded, so is his alarming intelligence; it falls on every scene, person, object, and thought in the book, giving it an eerie ambiance." --The New York Times Book Review "A BOOK AIMED NOT TO RESOLVE BUT TO AROUSE A READER'S WONDER . . . Vintage Updike: marital angst worked out against the chilly backdrop of privilege, rendered with a lyricism and insight and eye for detail reminiscent of the work of Jane Austen." --The Miami Herald "WONDERFUL RUSHES OF NEAR-MELVILLEAN PROSE . . . Toward the End of Time has a force that gets under your skin." --New York Review of Books Condition: Binding - fine, bottom of spine a little bumped, otherwise like new. Dust jacket - fine, new, not price clipped, in dust jacket protector. Our Business Policies: Use the Contact Seller link near the top of this listing to see our FAQs, which should answer most questions about our business and listing policies. We have moved the extensive text we used to have here to those FAQs. Shipping and Packing: General Information: We always ship in sturdy new boxes with premium heavy duty packing tape, bubblewrap and filler to keep the item(s) away from the sides of the box. The pictures below show the boxes that we use for shipping. A Note On Customs: When customs forms are required for a shipment, we fill them out honestly, stating that the contents are merchandise and giving the price you paid for the item (not including the shipping) as the value. Please do not ask us to do otherwise. Take any customs duty that you will have to pay into consideration before making your purchase. Please note that many countries have restrictions on the import of certain goods and sometimes on the maximum value that can be shipped to the country by various shipping methods. Priority Mail International insurance cannot be purchased for all countries and some limit the amount of insurance that can be purchased (default indemnity coverage seems to apply to all countries). Details on shipping conditions by country can be found on the United States Post Office web site.

Price: 60 USD

Location: Fresno, California

End Time: 2024-02-25T02:02:21.000Z

Shipping Cost: 6.05 USD