In His Own Write & A Spaniard in the Works: Writings and Drawings by John Lennon.

John Lennon.

ISBN 10: 0451163923 / ISBN 13: 9780451163929

Published by New American Library: Signet Books, New York, NY, 1988

About this Item

Near Fine in Wraps: shows only the most minute indications of use: just a hint of wear to the front corner tips; the faintest crease at the backstrip; the expected light tanning to the text pages, due to aging; the binding is square and secure; the text is clean. Free of creases to the panels. Free of creased or dog-eared pages in the text. Free of any underlining, hi-lighting or marginalia or marks in the text. Free of ownership names, dates, addresses, notations, inscriptions, stamps, or labels. A handsome, nearly-new copy, structurally sound and tightly bound, showing a couple of unobtrusive imperfections. Bright and Clean. Corners Sharp. Very close to 'As New'. NOT a Remainder, Book-Club, or Ex-Library. 12mo. (7 x 4.25 x 0.5 inches). 175 pages. Language: English. Weight: 3.7 ounces. First Edition Thus (1967), Tenth Printing. Mass Market Paperback. Commemorating what would have been John Lennon's 70th birthday, this reissue of his two forays into writing circa 1964 and '65 are a great way to celebrate the genius and memory of one of history's most celebrated men of the 20th century. Having both books in one edition is a definite plus (I still have an original 'In His Own Write' since I was a kid, but somewhere lost the second volume), and revisiting his writings that would later become the template for lyrics to such psychedelic classics as 'I Am The Walrus', 'Strawberry Fiends Forever', 'All You Need Is Love', 'Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite', 'Happiness Is A Warm Gun', 'Come Together' and other songs is a treat above all. Think Lewis Carroll as a rocker on acid in the 60's and you'll have a feel for these works. It's alternately witty, daft, funny, sarcastic, prosaic, confusing, oblique and brilliant. The drawings are a lark as well. If you didn't grow up with the Beatles, you probably won't find much pleasure in these pages, but if you did, it's like returning to OZ to see the Wizard. Long Live Lennon. First Edition Thus (1967), Tenth Printing. Seller Inventory # 55238

Bibliographic Details

Title: In His Own Write & A Spaniard in the Works: ...

Publisher: New American Library: Signet Books, New York, NY

Publication Date: 1988

Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Edition: 1st Edition

About this title

Synopsis:

"In His Own Write" and "A Spaniard in the Works" are of a piece, but different. The first is loose and off the cuff, while the latter features longer, more ambitious writings and wordplay in the vein of Edward Lear. Like Lear, Lennon relies on nonsense as a strategy and composes doggerel and silly stories, although he also can be quite pointed. For example, the poem "Our Dad" — which begins, "It wasn't long before old dad / Was cumbersome — a drag. / He seemed to get the message and / Began to pack his bag" — seems to speak directly to his own father, who ran off when Lennon was a boy, only to reemerge in the wake of the Beatles' rise. The drawings, meanwhile, are reminiscent of James Thurber, with their rounded figures and exaggerated sense of irony. In one, a group of men hold a brightly lit dog aloft like a lantern; in another, a blind beggar stands next to a man who wears a sign that reads, "I can see quite clearly."