Topperoff, Sam – Sugar Ray Leonard, And Other Noble Warriors

Description

Topperoff, Sam ‘Sugar Ray Leonard, And Other Noble Warriors’ 1987 1st ed. 212 pages. True First Edition, First Printing. INSCRIBED by author: “11 Dec. 86 Please like this book, if possible. Respectfully Sam Toperoff Huntington, NY”. On that same page in the opposite corner is another inscription that reads: “Christmas 1986. We thought your good p___ might enjoy this book ____ so ___” VG in VG mylar protected non-price clipped dust jacket.

Book Description with Dynamic Ephemera:
This specific copy of Sugar Ray Leonard and Other Noble Warriors is an exceptional artifact of the book’s publication history. It contains a fascinating temporal paradox common in the publishing industry: it was officially cataloged by McGraw-Hill for a 1987 release, yet it was printed, distributed to the author, and gifted in December of 1986.
• The Author’s Inscription: Positioned on the frontispiece, Toperoff’s handwritten note—”Please like this book, if possible.”—carries a charmingly modest, vulnerable tone for an academic and literary critic. The location notation of Huntington, NY links directly to his Long Island roots during his tenure as an English professor at nearby Hofstra University.
• The Gift Inscription: The secondary, partial holiday inscription on the opposite corner of the page (“Christmas 1986…”) anchors the book into a distinct social history, showing it was immediate “holiday stock” used as a gift right as the first print run left the R.R. Donnelley plant.

Edition and Printing Identification:
The number line on this copy indicates that it is a true First Edition, First Printing.
• The Printing: Because the sequence begins with the number “1” (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9), it confirms that this book belongs to the very first run of sheets fed through the presses.
• The Chronology: The trailing digits “8 7 6” designate the production year track (1986). This aligns perfectly with the author’s inscription date of December 11, 1986, demonstrating that this copy was signed right at the time of the book’s initial winter launch, just before its wider 1987 copyright cataloging.