STEINBECK. THE GRAPES OF WRATH, 1939, PRESENTATION COPY INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR TO DARRYL ZANUCK (1 VOL.)

8vo (203 x 137mm.), FIRST EDITION, PRESENTATION COPY INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR ("For Darryl Zannuck | with thanks for a fine | picture | John Steinbeck | 1939 Los Gatos") on the front endpaper, original decorated grey linen cloth, dust-jacket, collector's blue cloth chemise and quarter blue morocco slipcase, slight discoloration to cloth and front endpapers near gutter margin, slight browning and discoloration to jacket with a few small closed tears and repairs

Goldstone & Payne A12.a

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, when appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A SUPERB ASSOCIATION OF STEINBECK'S MAJOR NOVEL, INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR TO THE PRODUCER OF THE CINEMATIC ADAPTATION, PROBABLY THE FINEST FILM VERSION OF ANY OF STEINECK'S NOVELS. The inscription refers, of course, to Zanuck's film version of this novel (directed by John Ford), which Steinbeck first saw at Twentieth-Century Fox on 15 December 1939. In a letter to his sister from the time he wrote approvingly  that "Zanuck has more than kept his word. He has a hard, straight picture in which the actors are submerged so completely that it looks and feels like a documentary film and certainly has a hard, thruthful ring. No punches were pulled ? in fact, with descriptive matter removed, it is a harsher thing than the book, by far." The Grapes of Wrath was one of the first 25 films selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 1989, for its cultural, historical and aesthetic significance.