RUSHDIE, Salman (b. 1947). The Satanic Verses. London: Viking, 1988.

8vo. Original blue boards (corners very slightly rubbed); publisher’s dust jacket (slight edgewear, spine panel very slightly faded).

FIRST EDITION, SIGNED BY RUSHDIE on the title-page. Harold Bloom named The Satanic Verses “Rushdie’s largest aesthetic achievement.” Controversy surrounded the novel after it was accused of blasphemy, ultimately leading to its ban in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sudan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Kenya, Thailand, Tanzania, Indonesia, Singapore, and Venezuela.  In mid-February 1989, following a violent riot against the book in Islamabad, Pakistan, the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa calling for the death of Rushdie and his publishers. The book received wide critical acclaim, and was a 1988 Booker Prize finalist.