Something Happened. Signed by Joseph Heller. Signed Limited First Edition. Knopf. New York, 1974.

Joseph Heller was a celebrated American author who published some of the best humor and satire of the twentieth century. He is most widely remembered for his satirical novel Catch-22, a work full of characters, wit, and social critique. Yet his dedicated readers have also come to appreciate Something Happened. It was just his second novel–one long awaited, having been published over a decade after the success of Catch-22. Something Happened, however, is a very different work. It is a stream-of-consciousness narrative told from the perspective of Bob Slocum, an anxious businessman concealing a complicated inner life. Initial reviews were mixed. Critics found its departure from Catch-22’s conventions quite jarring. But critics and readers have returned to the work and recognized its singular genius. In turn, it has been named one of the most understudied great novels of the twentieth century. It showcases Heller’s range and talent as a literary artist.

This signed limited first edition, first printing is in fine condition. It is one of only 350 copies signed by Heller on the limitation page. In the original cloth, fine. Text block fine. In the original dust jacket, fine. In the scarce publisher’s original mylar, about-fine with only minor chipping and creases. In the original slipcase, about-fine with only minor chipping, tears, and soiling.

A scarce fine signed limited first edition of Something Happened.