ERSKINE CALDWELL - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 05/14/1982 - HFSID 319998

ERSKINE CALDWELL
The author sends a typed letter to a possible publisher of his manuscript, A Year of Living
Typed Letter Signed: "Erskine Caldwell," 1p, 7x10½. Scottsdale, Arizona, 14 May 1982. On personal letterhead. To "Vearl Moody" In full: "I am sending you a copy of the current Georgia Review which contains a chapter form the book I've been working on for some time with the working title of A Year of Living. I plan to have the manuscript finished by September next and I now expect it to contain 12 chapters and to be about 200 pages in length. This information is being sent to you in the event you and/or you associates are still interested in the possibility of publishing this book in a limited first edition of 500 or 1000 or whatever number of copies. Whether the entire printing would be autographed is something to be determined later. Anyway, your edition would be the authentic first edition and any trade edition would be secondary. And so on. All this, of course, is a matter that would be handled by my literary agent in cooperation with you. If you have further interest in all this, I would like to know at your convenience and will look forward to your decision. Please note that I will be away from home and mail from July 25 to September 10. Best wishes." In 1941, Erskine Caldwell (1903-1987) traveled to Russia through China with his then-wife, photographer Margaret Bourke-White, and the couple was present on July 22, 1941, when the first German bombs exploded over Moscow. In 1942, Caldwell, who had sent dispatches to CBS Radio as a war correspondent, published "Moscow Under Fire", an essay, and All Night Long, A Novel of Guerilla Warfare in Russia based on his experiences there. The writer of 25 novels, 150 short stories and 12 non-fiction books, Erskine Caldwell (1903-1987) is best known for his depictions of poverty stricken blacks and whites in the South. His 1932 novel Tobacco Road (1932) became a long-running Broadway play and God's Little Acre (1933) sold over 14 million copies; both were made into feature films. In all, the prolific author sold some 80 million copies of his works in 43 languages! Normal mailing folds. Fine condition.