New York: Harcourt, Brace and World, (1966). Uncorrected Proof. 8vo. 435 pp. Soft yellow paper wraps, with publisher’s date, review by William Jovanovich to front panel. Mild handling, rubbing and shelf wear to wraps. Light spine toning, some faint smudges, wrinkling from handling. Interior clean and unmarked.

Wraps: Very Good

Text: Very Good

“A Smuggler's Bible is Joseph McElroy's first novel. David Brooke—who talks of himself in a split-personality manner—narrates a framing tale that consists of him "smuggling" his essence into eight autobiographical manuscripts, although their connection with Brooke is not always clear. Brooke seems to deteriorate, while his fictions become more real. In ordinary English, a "smuggler's bible" refers to a book with a cutout in the body of the pages, suitable for hiding small items when the covers are closed. McElroy explicitly acknowledged the influence of William Gaddis The Recognitions in an interview, and also in his "Neural Neighborhoods" essay, where McElroy states he was already well into his own novel when he read the Gaddis novel.”