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Naipaul, V. S : The Masque Of Africa: Glimpses Of African Belief

Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2010

ISBN 0307270734

First Edition / First Printing. Fine in Fine Dust Jacket. 241 pages. Book-length account on subject. V. S. Naipaul's last book. The first appearance of the title in the United States. Precedes and should not be confused with all other subsequent editions. Published in a small and limited first print run as a hardcover original only. The First Edition is now scarce. Presents V. S. Naipaul's "The Masque of Africa: Glimpses of African Belief". His continuing exploration of the nature of faith, what it is, how it enables and impedes material - and spiritual - progress at the same time. As such, it is best seen in the context of his tough-minded series of books on India and "Among The Believers: An Islamic Journey" (1981), his scathingly negative appraisal of Islam. Seeing Islam (which he revisits in the book) as an unmitigated disaster, Naipaul presciently anticipated (by more than twenty years) the recent rise of ruthless, militant Islamic fundamentalism. But he also predicted its eventual defeat (by an increasingly belligerent West, by its own sectarian enemies, and by its increasingly crazed self-identity). "Naipaul gets it. He is dry, often irked, sometimes enraged. He is also patient (not a trait often associated with him), engaged, funny, self-reflective, and thoughtful. A book for outsiders, for those who may never visit Africa or may know it only superficially. But it is also a book in which Africans themselves may find something to learn. Naipaul is a difficult, imperfect narrator who does not care to be liked, but he is an honest one and doesn't dissemble. Somehow, by the end of it all, and despite his best efforts, I have grown to like him" (Aminatta Forna). "Plot is for those who already know the world; narrative is for those who want to discover it. This is what I would ask of the writer: How much of the modern world does his work contain?" (V. S. Naipaul). "The greatest writer of English prose" (London Observer). Bar none. Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul died on August 11, 2018 at the age of 85. An absolute "must-have" title for V. S. Naipaul collectors. This copy is very prominently and neatly signed in black pen-marker on the title page by V. S. Naipaul. It is signed directly on the page itself, not on a tipped-in page. This title is a contemporary classic. This is one of few such signed copies of the First Hardcover Edition/First Printing still available online and is in especially fine condition: Clean, crisp, and bright, a pristine beauty. Please note: Authentic signed Naipauls are rare. He has always been an elusive and reluctant signer. Most signed copies of his books are of the Limited Editions (on a tipped-in page). Signed copies of the regular First Editions (on the title page) are actually much more scarce than the former. A rare signed copy thus. Winner of the Booker Prize in 1971 for "In A Free State". Winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2001. One of the greatest writers of our time. A fine collectible copy. (SEE ALSO OTHER V. S. NAIPAUL TITLES IN OUR CATALOG). ISBN 0307270734.

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