Fishes, Birds and Sons of Men [INSCRIBED TO HIS MOTHER - WITH HER NOTES]

(Southern Literature) FORD, Jesse Hill

Boston: Atlantic - Little, Brown & Co., 1967. First Edition, First Printing. Hardcover. 5 3/4 X 8 Inches. 272 PP. Very Good / Very Good. Item #8909

AN INCREDIBLE ASSOCIATION COPY FROM THIS TORMENTED SON OF MONTGOMERY BELL AND VANDY. Signed and inscribed to "Cille" (Ford's mother Lucille) by author on first page.

"Love to Cille from a devoted son who cannot -- nay -- will not tell his age. For my dear mother, these glimpses from eleven years of story-writing. You knew many of them before they were written. Now they are I hope you will enjoy them again fro time to time. Love always - Jersey"

FORD'S MOTHER WROTE HER REPLY ON THE FOLLOWING PAGE:

"Jersey, this is a wonderful book from my favorite author. I can't tell you how I love these stories. You're right so many of them bring fond memories. The Cow, The Trout, The Rabbit, The Cave, How the mountains are, and the Savage Sound. I shudder at the thought of what might have happened to the author in To the Open Water. That is the second time your life has been spared - I truly believe, to give to the world the great American novel. October 10, 1976."

ADDITIONALLY SIGNED BY FORD ON THE HALF TITLE-PAGE. Original review slip laid-in loose. Some scuffing and wear to boards as the author's mother obviously used this book... Light wear and rubbing to DJ edges and folds.

Jesse Hill Ford was a Southern writer whose life and work were marked by both literary promise and personal controversy. Born in Alabama in 1928, he emerged as a bold voice in American fiction during the 1960s, confronting the deep racial and social divisions of the modern South with unflinching honesty. He attended both Montgomery Bell Academy and Vanderbilt University in Nashville. His most famous novel, The Liberation of Lord Byron Jones, drew from real events and challenged readers with its complex portrayal of race, justice, and masculinity in a small Tennessee town. Ford’s own life mirrored the tensions he wrote about; a 1965 shooting incident involving a Black teenager near his home thrust him into the national spotlight, complicating his role as both social critic and Southern insider. Though his literary star dimmed in later years, Ford remains a compelling and conflicted figure whose work captures the turbulence of a changing America.

Price: $500.00