A rare numbered limited edition uncorrected proof copy of the final novel from multi-award winning Canadian author and writer Carol Shields (1935 - 2003).    This novel was shortlisted for the 2002 Booker Prize, which was the second time she was shortlisted.  Her most famous novel, 1993's 'The Stone Diaries' which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, also featured on the Booker Prize shortlist that year.




'Unless : A Novel ' an uncorrected proof released by Fourth Estate of London ahead of the original planned publication date of Myay 2002, 1st edition, medium modern hardback, [viii] + 214 pages.





A stamp to the title page confirms this copy is number 73 from the limited run of only 200 uncorrected proof copies.


Internally in very fine unread condition, no inscriptions or markings, the book has a green ribbon page marker.


Externally in near fine condition, squarely and tightly bound, light storage wear at spine ends and corners, both boards have a slight curve.  No dustjacket as issued.





** A rare limited edition hardback uncorrected proof.  No other copies listed worldwide on Ebay or ABEBooks at present  **






The dazzling novel from Carol Shields, author of ‘The Stone Diaries’, winner of the Pulitzer Prize, and ‘Larry’s Party’, winner of the Orange Prize.




All her life, it seems to Reta Winters, she has enjoyed the useful monotony of happiness.  She has a loving husband, three bright daughters and supportive friends, and is experiencing growing success as a writer and translator.  Then her eldest daughter suddenly withdraws from the world, abandoning university, family and loving boyfriend to sit on a street corner, uncommunicative but for a sign around her neck bearing one word, ‘Goodness’.



The anguish of her loss leads Reta into a desperate search for the causes of her daughter's retreat.  No obvious explanation appears to fit.  As Reta casts her net ever wider her enquiry turns into an unflinching, often very funny examination of our society and the reasons a young woman might conclude it has no place for her.



Warmth, passion and wisdom come together in this journey through the life of an unforgettable woman.  Shields’ remarkably supple prose yields insights and images of transcendent beauty and acuity from the stuff of small-town life.  At once the discomfiting, ultimately consoling story of one family’s loss and a searing portrait of life at the dawn of the 21st-century, ‘Unless’ is a dazzling and daring novel from the undisputed master of extraordinary fictions about so-called ‘ordinary’ lives.










Estimated non-UK postage costs by signed for airmail delivery - Europe £12, Japan/Canada £16, Aus/NZ £19, US £21.   Additional books can always be added to a combined order for an additional postage cost based on extra 0.25kg bands of weight, with an extra postage cost per extra 0.25kg of £1.20 for Europe / £2.00 everywhere else - please contact if any questions.
 

 
Multiple items - Please review my other listings to see if there are any other items which are of interest to you.  I will be pleased to provide a suitable invoice for combined postage cost for 2 or more items.  If you have won an item and intend to bid on any other items which end on different days, I would be grateful if you would drop me a message.

Postage – All of my books are triple wrapped for delivery to maximise their safety - firstly in bubble wrap protection, secondly in either a padded envelope or a cardboard box, and finally in thick parcel paper.
 
For UK mainland - all items above a fairly modest value I will send via either signed for Royal Mail and/or courier options whichever is the best, this being largely dependent on the weight of the object. 
 
I am more than happy to post overseas on the basis that all items will be posted by Airmail with a signature required on delivery.  If you are overseas, please feel free to enquire about postage charges ahead of registering a bid if you are unsure of the cost I may have outlined above, where costs may be prohibitive depending upon where you are in the world and the weight of the item, many thanks.
 
 
Feedback – I will be delighted to provide feedback for a winning bidder once they have done so first to ensure that the item has arrived safely.  In the event a winning bidder has any queries around a product following receipt, I would be pleased to deal with any queries via my business e-mail address or the Ebay message function in an effort to resolve matters ahead of any mutual feedback being provided, thanks.
 
 
Many thanks for looking at my items and good luck with any bids you make. 

 
I will be regularly listing items for sale, please save me as one of your favourite sellers for the future, thanks.