When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
THE BRANCH WILL NOT BREAK
James Wright
First Edition, First Printing
Warmly Inscribed to Fellow Poet E. L. Mayo Prior to Publication
A remarkable association copy of one of the most important American poetry collections of the twentieth century.
Offered here is a first edition, first printing of James Wright\'s landmark The Branch Will Not Break, published in 1963 and widely recognized as the book that transformed Wright\'s poetic voice and helped redefine American lyric poetry in the postwar era.
Even more significantly, this copy bears a warm contemporary inscription from Wright to fellow poet E. L. Mayo, a respected American poet and literary contemporary whose work appeared in many of the same journals and circles that shaped mid-century American poetry.
The inscription reads:
\"For E. L. Mayo, with enduring admiration and gratitude. — Jim Wright, Des Moines, March 23, 1963.\"
The date is especially important, as it appears to precede the book\'s official publication by approximately two months, making this an early presentation copy given by Wright to a fellow poet within his personal literary circle.
Association copies of The Branch Will Not Break are exceedingly uncommon. Copies signed merely on the title page are scarce enough; copies personally inscribed to another published poet, with a warm and substantial inscription written before publication, are of an entirely different order of rarity.
Today The Branch Will Not Break is recognized as the pivotal volume in Wright\'s career. The collection includes some of his most celebrated poems and marks his movement toward the deeply influential style for which he is now remembered. The book occupies a central place in modern American poetry and remains a cornerstone of postwar literary collecting.
Condition
Very good overall.
Binding remains tight and sound. Interior pages are clean and bright. Front cover is particularly well preserved, while the rear cover shows minor age-related wear consistent with handling and storage. Inscription bold and fully legible.
Please review all photographs carefully, as they form part of the description.
Collector Appeal
This copy combines several qualities rarely found together:
First edition, first printing
James Wright\'s breakthrough collection
Contemporary inscription in the year of publication
Inscribed to fellow poet E. L. Mayo
Pre-publication presentation copy
Significant literary association
Exceptional provenance within twentieth-century American poetry
A highly desirable association copy of a landmark poetry collection, preserving a tangible connection between two working poets at a pivotal moment in American literary history.
