"MORALITY WHETTING ITS SCYTHE BEHIND EVERY LINE": FIRST EDITION OF MCCARTHY'S OUTER DARK

MCCARTHY, Cormac. Outer Dark. New York: Random House, (1968). Octavo, original half blue cloth, original dust jacket. $4200.

First edition, first printing, of McCarthy's second book, his "profound parable" of fate's dark workings.

"You can hear mortality whetting its scythe behind every line" (New York Times). Upon McCarthy's publication of his second novel, Time noted that the author had "developed into an exceptional talent" with this "profound parable that ultimately speaks to any society in any time." Life praised the novel as "a minor classic." McCarthy ultimately achieved not only critical but also popular acclaim nearly a quarter century after the publication of this early work, winning both the National Book Award and the Pulitzer in the 1990s.

Book with slight rubbing to spine, very faint toning to edges; dust jacket with a few tape repairs to verso. A near-fine copy.