Shapero Rare Books to Sell Personal Library of Ruth Fainlight and Alan Sillitoe

The library of American-born poet Ruth Fainlight and her late husband the writer Alan Sillitoe features 185 inscribed books from authors including Robert Graves, Yehuda Amichai, and Margaret Atwood.

The couple met in their early twenties in a bookshop in Nottingham but also lived in France, London, and Mallorca in Spain where they became close to Robert Graves, Ruth's mentor.

Many of the books in their library were signed to both Ruth and Alan by a wide variety of authors , as well as Sillitoe's retained copies of his own works, often annotated by him. These books form the main focus of the catalogue covering the collection for sale through Shapero Rare Books.

Highlights include:

• two inscribed first editions by Ted Hughes, The Hawk in the Rain ("To Ruth + Alan / The new boat / finds the old rocks / from Ted") and Lupercal ("To Ruth + Alan / The mind reigns / the mind slaves / the mind pastures geese / from / Ted")
• a first edition of Sillitoe's short story collection featuring his award-winning title The Loneliness of the Long-distance Runner, inscribed by the author and with personal corrections
• a first edition of Sillitoe’s first novel Saturday night and Sunday Morning inscribed :To my parents-in-law, / with love and respect, / from Alan / Alan Sillitoe" - the recipients were Fanny and Leslie Fainlight, Ruth Fainlight's parents
• one of only 50 copies inscribed by both the author and artist, an association copy of Somme inscribed by Alan in black ink alongside his poem and signed beneath "For Ruth with Love from Alan", with illustrator Ralph Steadman adding "To Ruth who suffered so much / that we might continue / Love / Ralph Steadman"
• one of 50 copies of the first edition of Driss Ben Hamed Charhadi's A Life Full of Holes translated by Paul Bowles which belonged to Bowles and was given to Alan Sillitoe with an inscription a few months after publications with Bowles also penning Sillitoe's name in Arabic
• artist Tracey Emin's first book, Six Turkish Tales, with two original paintings in form of greeting cards and an autographed letter to Ruth and Alan in which Emin thanks the couple for a lovely evening and hopes to see them soon
• one of 60 copies of Joyce Carol Oates's Season of Peril with an original drawing and inscribed by the author to Ruth "FOR RUTH FAINLIGHT - / WITH ADMIRATION FOR / YOUR WORK, AND / WARM REGARDS - / JOYCE CAROL / OATES / 5/9/78"