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Welcome to our web site, and thank you for visiting Allington Antiquarian Books, LLC. We maintain a large inventory of used and rare books, most of which are in Fine or Near Fine condition, many of which are signed or inscribed by the author, and a number of which are scarce or rare.  We focus on Victorian Literature, Modern Literature, Uncommon Books, Mysteries, Crime, Autobiography, Poets and Poetry, African-American and Black authors, topics, and history, and Ephemera of various sorts (such as photographs, letters, broadsides, and the like). Authors represented include, but are not limited to: Anthony Trollope, Robert Louis Stevenson, Joseph Conrad, G. A. Henty, Rudyard Kipling, Stephen Crane, J. M. Barrie, Jack London, Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, Harper Lee, Willa Cather, John Steinbeck, Patrick Hamilton, Agatha Christie, Julie Smith, Nevada Barr, Dick Francis, Lawrence Block, Mary Oliver, John Ashbery, Robert Graves, Robert Bridges, John Barth, David Foster Wallace, Kurt Vonnegut, Peter Carey, John Updike, John Cheever, E. L. Doctorow, John Le Carre, Tom Clancy, Margaret Atwood, Fay Weldon, Larry McMurtry, David Mamet, Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Terry McMillan, and many others.

We are a Member of, and adhere to the high ethical standards of, the Independent Online Booksellers Association.

Currently, we do not maintain an open shop, and we conduct all of our transactions by internet, email, and personal contact.  Feel free to call us at any time at (336) 414-0435 or to email us at allingtonbooks@gmail.com with any questions or comments.  We look forward to serving you.

Featured Items

A Near Fine copy of the first American edition, first printing in the Publisher's original cloth (modest edge wear, small light spot to front board, quite mildly askew), an unusually nice, Superior, copy of this important Trollope novel. While an integral part of Trollope's famed Barchester series of novels (being the 4th novel in that series), Framley Parsonage is an important work of Victorian fiction in its own right. Although he had had some limited (and we do mean limited) success with certain of his earlier novels, with Framley Parsonage Trollope had indeed "arrived" as a novelist. His most successful novel to date had been Dr. Thorne. Because of Dr. Thorne's success, Trollope's next novel was likely to be expectantly received by the reading public. Trollope, while working on an Irish tale called Castle Richmond, wrote to William Thackeray proposing himself for publication in the Cornhill Magazine, which was to begin publication in January, 1860 with Thackeray as editor. Thackeray wrote kindly and enthusiastically to Trollope about his proposal, and Smith, Elder (the publisher) wrote separately in late October, 1859 proposing to pay Trollope 1,000 Pounds (for Trollope an astonishing sum and much more than he had received for any of his previous works) for a three volume tale on condition that the first installment be in their hands no later than December 12th. Trollope proposed Castle Richmond, his novel then in progress, but Smith, Elder rejected it and insisted that Trollope instead provide a novel with an English setting and a clerical theme. This demand led Trollope to write Framley Parsonage, a thoroughly English novel, and the short time allotted forced him to place Framley Parsonage near Barchester and to fall back on his old friends, the Proudies and the archdeacon, the fictional world where Trollope had first developed his charm and genius. Castle Richmond, then accepted by Chapman and Hall, was published as Framley Parsonage ran in the Cornhill, the two works thus available to the public at the same time. Castle Richmond at first sold well on the strength of Dr. Thorne. However, once read and talked about, its sales flagged. (It was not one of Trollope's better efforts.) However, the reading public were talking excitedly of Framley Parsonage, anxiously awaiting each installment while praising Thackeray for having "discovered" Trollope, a great new novelist. Thackeray's procrastination kept him from writing the opening novel for the Cornhill and caused him to ask it of Trollope. Had Smith, Elder accepted Castle Richmond for serialization in the Cornhill, both Trollope and the Cornhill both likely would have suffered great damage to their nascent reputations. Instead, Thackeray's failure, coupled with Smith, Elder's insistence on an English clerical novel, sparked Trollope's true genius, helped the Cornhill to succeed as a publication, and brought Trollope to great fame. As noted above, the copy offered here is the first American edition of this important Trollope Novel. Most copies seen are quite worn and faded. Here, however, we offer a Superior copy of the book with remarkably little wear. The frontispiece's tissue guard remains rather clean and white and in remarkably better condition than typically seen. Altogether the copy offered here is the best we have seen in over 30 years; a Superior copy of one of Trollope's most important works. Framley Parsonage
Trollope, Anthony
New York: Harper & Brothers, 1861. A Near Fine copy of the first American edition, first printing in the Publisher's original cloth (modest edge wear, small.. more
Price: $450.00
A Fine copy (spine tail gently pushed), in a Fine dust jacket, SIGNED BY ANDREA BARRETT on the title page. The fourth novel from this highly-acclaimed author about a larkish adventure that grows a bit complicated. This is a Fine copy with a touch of light toning at the jacket's flap edges, but in an overall bright dust jacket without the general toning that often plagues copies of this title. A Fine copy, SIGNED BY ANDREA BARRETT. The Forms of Water [Signed]
Barrett, Andrea
New York: Pocket Books, 1993. A Fine copy (spine tail gently pushed), in a Fine dust jacket, SIGNED BY ANDREA BARRETT on the title page... more
Price: $65.00
An essentially Near Fine copy of the first edition, first printing (some fold lines to the early pages -- a production flaw, light rubbing at spine extremities, small spot at top of spine, light bump to top edge of rear board) in a Fine dust jacket (tiny closed tear and tiny rub at top of spine) with the spine lettering more vibrant than often found; Alice Walker's third, and most elusive, book of poems. A Near Fine copy. Scarce. Good Night Willie Lee I'll See You in the Morning
Walker, Alice
New York: The Dial Press, 1979. An essentially Near Fine copy of the first edition, first printing (some fold lines to the early pages -- a.. more
Price: $225.00
A Fine, unread, copy of the first edition, first printing (quite light pushing at the spine ends), in a Near Fine dust jacket (tiny rub and spot to the lower spine panel, slight surface wrinkle to front panel), SIGNED BY T. C. BOYLE on the title page: a collection of 13 short stories gathered here for the first time. Published simultaneously in both paperback and hardcover, with hardcover copies being by far the scarcer of the two. Signed copies, whether in paperback or hardcover are remarkably scarce, and signed hardcover copies, as offered here, are exceedingly difficult to find. A Fine copy, SIGNED BY T. C. BOYLE. SCARCE. The Human Fly and Other Stories [Signed]
Boyle, T. C.
New York: Viking, 2005. A Fine, unread, copy of the first edition, first printing (quite light pushing at the spine ends), in a Near.. more
Price: $125.00
A Fine, RARE, copy of the first edition, first printing in the Publisher's original cloth (slightly askew -- no dust jacket), SIGNED BY WOLFGANG VON GRONAU on the front free endpaper in German; Count Gronau's book about how he learned to fly airplanes. [In English, the inscription translates to: "Herrn Stark, Shanghai with best greetings, W. von Gronau, Tokyo, 1941."] Born into a Prussian family of noble lineage, Count Gronau was a renowned German aviation pioneer, aviation theorist, and author, and in 1932, Count Gronau and his copilot were the first to circumvent the globe by air traveling from west to east. The flight involved numerous inevitable stops, one of which included a visit to Herbert Hoover, the then-President of the United States. During World War II, Gronau served as a Lieutenant Colonel and pilot in the Luftwaffe and then was promoted to the rank of Major General and served as the Lufftwaffe's Attaché with the German Embassy in Tokyo where he was to determine the strength and abilities of the Japanese Air Force and Navy. Though loyal to his native Germany, Gronau held strong antifascist sentiments and never joined the Nazi Party. He was imprisoned by the Japanese near the War's end and, upon Japan's defeat, was interned by American forces until 1947 when he was allowed to return to Germany. Copies of this book, whether or not signed, are rare to the market, signed copies of any Gronau's works, especially trade editions, are elusive indeed, and signed copies of the book offered here are RARE INDEED. A Fine copy, INSCRIBED, SIGNED, DATED, AND PLACED BY WOLFGANG VON GRONAU. RARE. Wie ich fliegen lernte [Signed] [How I Learned to Fly]
Gronau, Wolfgang Von
Leipzig: Verlag von Phillipp Reclam jun., 1935. A Fine, RARE, copy of the first edition, first printing in the Publisher's original cloth (slightly askew -- no dust.. more
Price: $325.00
A Fine copy of the first edition, first printing, in a Fine dust jacket, SIGNED BY JOHN DUFRESNE on the half-title. A well-received collection of 13 short stories, John Dufresne's debut book. Signed copies are not common, and signed copies in a condition as nice as this one are more uncommon still. A Fine copy, SIGNED BY JOHN DUFRESNE. The Way That Water Enters Stoned [Signed]
Dufresne, John
New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1991. A Fine copy of the first edition, first printing, in a Fine dust jacket, SIGNED BY JOHN DUFRESNE on the.. more
Price: $125.00
A Very Good + copy of the First American edition (some small foxing spots to the boards, foxing to top of page block) in a Very Good + dust jacket (mild toning and modest edge wear, small red stain on inside of rear panel with some light associated wrinkling -- a nicer dust jacket than often is found on either the US or UK First). A (then) new Jeeves novel, published in Celebration of P. G. Wodehouse's 90th birthday. A funny tale about a book kept at a club to which Jeeves belongs. All members of the Club are required to contribute everything about the fellow for whom he works for the benefit of other Butlers who may, in the future, seek employment from the gentleman described. While many entries are short, Jeeves' entries on Bertie Wooster run to 18 pages. Bertie fears that the tales will fall into the wrong hands, and then, of course, it does. The novel was simultaneously published in Great Britain as "Much Obliged, Jeeves". A nice copy of a delightful Jeeves novel. Jeeves & The Tie That Binds
Wodehouse, P. G.
New York: Simon and Schuster, 1971. A Very Good + copy of the First American edition (some small foxing spots to the boards, foxing to top.. more
Price: $65.00
A Near Fine copy of the third edition rebound in later full leather with marbled page block edges (spine title a bit blurred from improper stamping, some intrusion of marbling into the page margins -- not affecting text, and small tear with loss to margin of pp 37/38 -- not affecting text); first published in 1657, and one of three works upon which Twisden's fame is based, the volume presents an account of the increase of Papal powers over England from the time of the Saxons through the Reformation and argues that it was the Church of England, and not that of Rome, which held true to the Christian Faith. An important book, and widely read, the argument presented places Twisden [sometimes seen as "Twysden"] within the tradition of earlier apologists for the Church of England such as Richard Hooker and Thomas Fuller. This copy belonged to American Naval officer and actor Douglas Fairbanks whose bookplate resides on the front pastedown. A nice copy of a scarce work with a nice Provenance. An Historical Vindication of the Church of England as it Stands Separated from the Roman and was Reformed
Twisden [Twysden], Sir Roger: Knight and Baronet
London: Printed for Robert Pawlet, 1675. A Near Fine copy of the third edition rebound in later full leather with marbled page block edges (spine title.. more
Price: $350.00
A Fine copy of the First Edition, first printing, in a Fine dust jacket, SIGNED BY JOYCE CAROL OATES on the title page. The sixth collection of plays from this highly-regarded and productive author. A Fine copy, SIGNED BY JOYCE CAROL OATES. The Perfectionist and Other Plays [Signed]
Oates, Joyce Carol
New York: Ecco Press, 1995. A Fine copy of the First Edition, first printing, in a Fine dust jacket, SIGNED BY JOYCE CAROL OATES on.. more
Price: $50.00
A Very Good + Autograph Letter Signed from the popular, influential, and controversial Congregationalist Preacher Henry Ward Beecher. Henry Ward Beecher (1813 & 1887) was a highly popular, and highly controversial preacher, author, editor, and lecturer, an ardent and outspoken abolitionist, proponent of women's suffrage, supporter of Darwin's Theory of Evolution, and an advocate of temperance. Not only did Beecher speak against slavery, he took action against it by, for example, raising funds to purchase guns for those opposing slavery in Kansas and Nebraska, which rifles became known as "Beecher's Bibles". Beecher drew crowds of thousands to his weekly sermons and to his lecture tours and Abraham Lincoln said of Beecher that no one in history had "so productive a mind". After attending one of Beecher's sermons, Mark Twain described the preacher as "sawing his arms in the air, howling sarcasms this way and that, discharging rockets of poetry and exploding mines of eloquence, halting now and then to stamp his foot three times in succession to emphasize a point." The letter offered here, dated "Aug 4 '73" and sent from Peekskill, New York (Beecher's home) to a fly trap manufacturer, occupies both sides of a single sheet of paper (measuring approximately 6" x 5") with a single horizontal fold for mailing. (The fold has cause a split across the letter very neatly taped across the letter's recto.) In the letter, Beecher writes: "Gentlemen / Have you any agency / for your fly traps in New York / City? - Why do you not / advertise them? - Say in / the Christian Union? // The one you sent me for / trial has done unexpectedly / well, and I would like / to get others. One in each / living room, in summer / would[?] go far to keep down / this nuisance [illegible]. // I find, for their effective working / that a [illegible] allowance of [illegible] / strong [illegible] , and water so / as to give out a smell, is / very useful." Beecher then signs the letter "Truly yours / Henry Ward Beecher". An excellent Henry Ward Beecher letter, dealing with a concern of daily life, offering advice on the use of fly traps, cleverly endorsing the product's performance and seeking a new advertiser for the Christian Union, one of the leading religious newspapers of the day, edited, of course, by Henry Ward Beecher. Letters from this important and influential Preacher are quite uncommon the market. An excellent AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED BY HENRY WARD BEECHER. QUITE SCARCE. Autograph Letter Signed [Author of Norwood or A Tale of Village Life in New England; Seven Lectures to Young Men; Evolution and Religion; Life of Jesus the Christ; and Yale Lectures on Preaching, etc...]
Beecher, Henry Ward
Peekskill, NY: Henry Ward Beecher, 1973. A Very Good + Autograph Letter Signed from the popular, influential, and controversial Congregationalist Preacher Henry Ward Beecher. Henry Ward.. more
Price: $1,200.00

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