8vo. Original black cloth; dust jacket. Provenance: Paul Bartel (1938-2000), American actor, writer, and director (presentation inscription on title page).

FIRST EDITION. INSCRIBED BY ROTH TO PAUL BARTEL. Philip Roth began writing Portnoy's Complaint in 1967 but due to writer's block was unable to complete it for over a year. Upon publication it was met with a firestorm of criticism for its frank sexual nature and for its portrait of Jewish identity. This led to a ban of the book as a "prohibited import" throughout Australia which was circumvented by Penguin Books printing their own copies and storing them in fleets of moving trucks. Following a court challenge it was removed from the Australian federal banned list in 1971, a momentous victory as this effectively ended the Australian importation ban forever.