🎬 THE MAMBO KINGS PLAY SONGS OF LOVE - 1st/1st - FLAT-SIGNED!!!

Hijuelos, Oscar

Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, New York, 1989

ISBN 10: 0374201250

ISBN 13: 9780374201258

SEE ATTACHED PHOTOS FOR PRIMARY DESCRIPTION OF CONDITION

Hard Cover Condition: Very Good

Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine

First Edition, First Printing. Flat-Signed SIGNATURE - Octavo. Bright orange cloth covered boards and spine with shiny gilt lettering on the spine and two shiny gilt crown illustrations on the front board. Book has light bumping at the spine ends and some corners. White endpapers.

Binding is straight and tight. Pages are all clean, white, and crisp. Text block has mild dirt spots, faint remainder mark. 407 pages. (See photos)

Dust Jacket - has a trace of wear at the head of the spine, and light rubbing at the corners and some flap edges. Mild shelf wear visible on back jacket panel. Otherwise jacket is vibrant and crisp, with $18.95 price intact. (See photos)

Ships in well-padded box.

Why this book is important:

Mambo Kings won the 1990 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, being the first novel by a United States-born Hispanic to win the prize.

Mambo Kings was adapted into a 1992 motion picture, starring Armand Assante, Antonio Banderas, and Cathy Moriarty. Mambo Kings garnered Oscar, Golden Globe and Grammy nominations for its song "Beautiful Maria of My Soul".

More Photos upon request.

Please examine photos which are included as part of the description. If you have questions about an item for sale please ask before purchase, and request additional photos.

Book Grading* and description

FINE ~ Marginally less than perfect, and may designate a book that is still new, or a book that has been carefully read. The use of the term Fine (as compared to Near Fine or Very Good) often depends on when the book was published. A recent book should have no notable defects at all. But the dustjacket of a Fine older book may have a small closed tear, or be a little rubbed, even a bit worn at the edges. Such defects, if present, must be minor and should always be noted.

(Note also that a book may be new and unread, but it may have aged on the shelf to the point of being considered Near Fine or even Very Good. Similarly a unique 200-year-old book might be viewed as "Fine", while a recent book in the exact same condition could only be described as "Very Good".)

NEAR FINE ~ Somewhere between Very Good and Fine. The distinction is usually in the eye of the bookseller and involves minor defects (always described). Near Fine is generally meant to inform the customer that the condition is excellent but "not quite Fine".

VERY GOOD ~ A used book that shows shelfwear and visible signs of having been read. Its dustjacket may be rubbed, chipped, or even missing small pieces, but it should generally be clean and bright, depending on how old it is. The book should always be clean and tight, and the overall appearance should be of a desirable copy. A very old book may show some foxing. The description of a Very Good book ought to include all notable flaws.

GOOD ~ Good describes the average used and worn book that has all pages or leaves present. A Good book may be cocked, have loose joints, and be missing a dustjacket. But it must be complete, clean, and worth keeping. Its value will be a fraction of a Fine copy, unless it is very scarce.

*Grading definitions from Vermont Antiquarian Booksellers Association.

As a seller, I describe most collectible books as either in Near Fine or Very Good condition. I have never described even books in pristine condition as “Fine”.

UNREAD ~ Sometimes I add a note that a book is “unread”. A book which is in very good condition with notable defects can also be unread-in fact this is common. “Unread” does not mean free of defects, but means just not read, and it’s hallmark is that the front board of the book does not flop open perpendicular to the text block when the book is placed flat on its spine. The boards retain some stiffness at the hinges and tend to cling to the text block. Unread does not mean never opened. An unread book is more desirable than one with boards that flop open when unsupported, and so “Unread” should be noted in a description if present.