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Greenberg, Michael : Beg, Borrow, Steal: A Writer's Life

Other Press LLC, New York City, NY, 2009

First Edition / First Printing. Fine in No Dust Jacket, As Issued. 222 pages. The author's memoir. Now considered a contemporary classic. Uncorrected Proof. Precedes and should not be confused with the regular trade edition. Published in a small and limited one-time-only print run as a softcover original only for the exclusive use of the publisher and author. Publisher's Materials laid-in. There is no ISBN. The Uncorrected Proof is now rare. Presents, in its earliest-state format, Michael Greenberg's "Beg, Borrow, Steal: A Writer's Life". One of the most unusual, honest, and hilariously authentic accounts of what it really means to be a writer in our (largely illiterate) time. Not for Greenberg the high-flown intellectual memoirs of the likes of Elias Canetti and Mary McCarthy nor the self-congratulatory "success stories" of bestselling authors who are best left unnamed. Instead, he "regales us with his wry and vivid take on the life of a writer of little means trying to practice his craft or simply stay alive. He finds himself doctoring doomed movie scripts, selling cosmetics from an ironing board in front of a women's department store, writing about golf, a game he has never played, and botching his debut as a waiter in a posh restaurant. Then, there are Greenberg's unexpected encounters: A Holocaust survivor who, on his deathbed, tries to leave Michael his fortune; a repentant Communist who confesses his sins; a man who becomes a woman; a Chilean filmmaker in search of his past; and rats who behave like humans and cease to live underground. Hilarious and bittersweet, Greenberg's stories invite us into a world where the familial, the literary, the tragic, and the mundane not only speak to one another, but deeply enjoy the exchange" (Publisher's blurb). An absolute "must-have" title for Michael Greenberg collectors. This copy of the Uncorrected Proof is very prominently, neatly, and beautifully signed in black ink-pen on the title page by Michael Greenberg. It is signed directly on the page itself, not on a tipped-in page. It comes with a pristine copy of the publisher's lovely Promotional Souvenir Card and Publisher's Slip. The latter states that due to unspecified "editorial considerations", the piece called "Afterlife" is NOT included in the final book version, thereby making the Uncorrected Proof quite special. This title is a contemporary classic. As far as we know, this is the only such signed copy (with Publisher's Materials) of the Uncorrected Proof available online and as very plainly produced, is in especially fine condition: Clean, crisp, and bright. Please note: Copies of the regular trade edition available online have serious flaws, are subsequent printings, or are remainder-marked. This is surely an accessible and lovely alternative. A rare signed copy thus. Michael Greenberg is regarded as one of the finest writers of our time by Janet Malcolm. A fine copy. (SEE ALSO JANET MALCOLM TITLES IN OUR CATALOG).

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