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Rare & Unusual List 2026

A sampling of books available at our sale

All Honorable Men
By James Stewart Martin
Little Brown and Company, 1950
First Edition
It is the story of men on both sides of the Atlantic who successfully thwarted plans to dismantle the Nazi cartel system. The author was the Chief of the Decartelization Branch of Military Government, created by President Roosevelt. This title has been assigned a place on the Forbidden Bookshelf, a short list of American books once “vanished” by state and business entities. These books are being reprinted but this is a rare original.

Apache Land
By Charles Poston
A.L. Bancroft & Co.,1878
It contains Poston’s epic poem and lithographs of Tucson and vicinity which are among the most interesting early depictions of this part of the Arizona Territory. He is called the Father of Arizona due to his efforts for creation of the Arizona Territory.

The Art of Surgery: In Which is laid down Such a general IDEA of the same, as is founded upon REASON, confirm’d by PRACTICE, and farther illustrated with many singular and rare Cases MEDICO-CHIRURGICAL. In two volumes.
By Daniel Turner
C. Rivington, London, 1729
Third Edition

The Bluejacket’s Manual 1902, Reprinted 1978
United States Navy, 1978
Gilt lettering and design on cover. Created by Lt. Ridley McLean in 1902 to introduce new sailors to the Navy and serve as a reference for all enlisted personnel.

The Canon of Judo: Classic Teachings on Principles and Techniques
By Kyuzo Mifune, Kodokan 10th Dan
Kodansha, USA, 2004
Mifune (1883-1965) began Judo as a junior middle-school student and in 1945 was awarded the rank of 10 th dan. He was known as the “God of Judo.”

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
By Roald Dahl
Alfred A. Knopf, 1964
First American Edition, first issue with six-line colophon, dust jacket with no ISBN

Earthly Discourse
By Charles Erskine Scott Wood
The Vanguard Press, 1937
Contains an interesting signed message from the author to Eleanor Roosevelt. It begins with “My dear Mrs. Roosevelt, I offer you this book with some misgiving. It was written for the ignorant: Congress – Boards of Education – and the like…” Dated Feb. 20, 1940. Likely from Mrs. Roosevelt’s library. The author was a writer, lawyer, and supporter of radical causes.

The Fit Racehorse II
By Tom Ivers
Equine Research Publications, 1994
A must for owners and trainers, contains illustrations. It is an incredible resource for horse trainers/owners. Includes training and conditioning programs, racehorse physiology, nutrition, and more.

Ghost Riders of the Mogollon
By Ivan Lee Kuykendall
Naylor Company, Antonio, 1954
Rare book. It was suppressed due to a threatened lawsuit. Very few copies were released. The book deals with the Pleasant Valley War and apparently someone from one of the families took offence.

Green Grow the Lilacs
By Lynn Riggs
Samuel French, London
First edition, second printing. Inscribed and dated New York, Oct. 2, 1944.
The author was of Cherokee descent and the first Native American to have success as a playwright. This play became the hit Broadway musical Oklahoma.

Hermetica: The Ancient Greek and Latin Writings which contain Religious or Philosophic Teachings ascribed to Hermes Trismegistus. Four volumes.
Oxford at the Clarendon Press, 1924, 1925, 1926 & 1936.
Edited with English translation and notes by Walter Scott.

Hitler’s Last Soldier in America
By Georg Gaertner
Stein and Day, New York
This book is for collectors of military history. It covers topics like cultural heritage and military life during WWII. A true story of a German soldier who escaped a prisoner-of-war camp in New Mexico in 1945.

A Journal of the Plague Year
By Daniel De Foe
Thomas Tegg and Son, 1835
“Being observations or memorials, of the most remarkable occurrences, as well public as private, which happened in London during the last great visitation in 1665.” Four black and white illustrations.

Oathbringer
By Brandon Sanderson
Tor Books 2017
This is the third book in the epic fantasy series, The Stormlight Archive. It is signed and numbered. This copy has a second dust jacket with the notation, “Too long to Proofread – Anonymous Intern”

On Beyond Zebra!
By Dr. Suess
Random House, 1955
One of the notorious 6 Seuss titles discontinued and then banned. It is an early printing with the correct 10 titles listed inside and on dust jacket.

Parrots in Captivity Three-volume set
By William Thomas Greene
George Bell and Sons, 1884, 1884, 1887
Total of 81 stunning colored plates by Benjamin Fawcett drawn by A. F. Lyndon.

The Plains
By Gerald Murnane
Norstrilia Press, 1982
First Edition, signed by the author
A classic novel about a young filmmaker who travels to the interior to study the culture of landowning families but becomes immersed in their world. It Is regarded as a masterpiece of Australian literature.

Up From Slavery: An Autobiography
By Booker T. Washington
Doubleday, Page and Company, 1901
First edition, first printing, second issue with “Author of ‘The Future of the American Negro’” printed under the author’s name.

Where the Red Fern Grows
By Wilson Rawls
Doubleday & Company, 1961
This is the classic children’s novel about a boy and his two dogs in the Ozark Mountains during the Depression. It is a story of determination, love and loyalty. Signed by the author, personalized and dated 11/6/73.

The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis
By José Saramago
Harcourt Brace and Company, 1991
First edition. Boldly signed and dated by the author 29-7-99. The author is a recipient of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Literature.